How long is the application window in practice?

The 2026 예비 공고 gave three weeks: applications ran from 6 to 26 March 2026, and selection followed in April. That is the window in which the 사업계획서 must already be good — validation that starts when the window opens is validation that finishes after it closes.

When does the year's calendar become known?

Each December the K-Startup portal publishes the integrated announcement (통합공고) mapping the year's central-government and local-government programmes. The 2026 edition was posted 19 December 2025 — that is the moment to plan validation backward from.

What should validation actually test?

The printed funding categories are the test list: can the prototype be built (시제품 제작), is there a customer the marketing line can reach, is the IP worth filing (지식재산권 출원·등록). A validation that answers those three is a plan; one that does not is a mood.

Does incorporating to look credible help validation?

It can disqualify you from the pre-startup rung. The 2026 공고 excluded anyone who, on its cutoff date of 22 January 2026, held a business registration certificate in their own name or the power to represent a company. Validate without the corporate shell, or validate on the 초기 rung after registering.

What happens after selection?

Agreement (협약) and the first payment, in May in the 2026 공고, then a second stage gated by the interim evaluation (중간평가), which measures progress against the plan you submitted. The plan is the contract the money later reads.

Is spending money before selection covered?

The 2026 공고 schedules the first payment with the agreement, in May. Anything spent before that date sits outside what these pages promise — treat pre-selection spending as your own risk budget, not programme money.

Validate before the 모집공고 closes: what the printed calendar actually gives you

Published 1 September 20263 min read5 primary sources

A Korean call is a dated evaluation window — the 2026 예비 공고 took applications for three weeks in March, selected in April and paid from May. Validation that happens before writing the 사업계획서 is the only kind the window rewards.

An open planner with blank weekly pages beside coloured pencils and glasses on a wooden desk

On this page

What the calendar actually gives you
Validate against the printed categories
The December map, and the backward plan

Korean programme calendars look generous on a wall and short in practice. The 2026 예비 공고 gave three weeks of application window, then a selection period. Reviewers score the plan by reading what you wrote about a company that does not exist yet.

What the calendar actually gives you

The 2026 예비 공고, as printed. It came out on 27 February, and applications ran from 6 to 26 March until 6 pm. Selection ran to April, and agreements and first payments followed in May.

Working backward from that, you need the plan written, evidenced and internally consistent before the application window opens. The window is for submitting and correcting — not for finding out whether the idea works.

Validate against the printed categories

The funding categories are not administrative detail; they are the shape of the evidence the system wants.

시제품 제작 (prototype production) asks: can the thing be built, by whom, at what cost? The marketing line asks: who is the customer, and can a channel reach them? The IP line asks: is there something here worth filing?

An idea validated against those three questions is a plan. An idea validated by enthusiasm is a draft with a deadline.

The December map, and the backward plan

Each December the K-Startup portal publishes the integrated announcement (통합공고), mapping the year's programmes. The 2026 edition went up on 19 December 2025, with reception running to the end of the year.

That is the planning moment. From the map, pick the rung whose eligibility you actually meet. Then schedule validation to finish before its window opens, not inside it.

Frequently asked questions

How long is the application window in practice?: The 2026 예비 공고 gave three weeks: applications ran from 6 to 26 March 2026, and selection followed in April. That is the window in which the 사업계획서 must already be good — validation that starts when the window opens is validation that finishes after it closes.
When does the year's calendar become known?: Each December the K-Startup portal publishes the integrated announcement (통합공고) mapping the year's central-government and local-government programmes. The 2026 edition was posted 19 December 2025 — that is the moment to plan validation backward from.
What should validation actually test?: The printed funding categories are the test list: can the prototype be built (시제품 제작), is there a customer the marketing line can reach, is the IP worth filing (지식재산권 출원·등록). A validation that answers those three is a plan; one that does not is a mood.
Does incorporating to look credible help validation?: It can disqualify you from the pre-startup rung. The 2026 공고 excluded anyone who, on its cutoff date of 22 January 2026, held a business registration certificate in their own name or the power to represent a company. Validate without the corporate shell, or validate on the 초기 rung after registering.
What happens after selection?: Agreement (협약) and the first payment, in May in the 2026 공고, then a second stage gated by the interim evaluation (중간평가), which measures progress against the plan you submitted. The plan is the contract the money later reads.
Is spending money before selection covered?: The 2026 공고 schedules the first payment with the agreement, in May. Anything spent before that date sits outside what these pages promise — treat pre-selection spending as your own risk budget, not programme money.

Sources

Everything above is the rule as published. See how it applies to your case.