Cooperative Establishment Report in Korea

Does a cooperative need authorization or a report?

A general cooperative is established by an establishment report alone, not by authorization. A social cooperative, by contrast, requires five or more founders to draw up articles of association, hold a founding general meeting and obtain authorization from the Minister of Planning and Budget. A cooperative is a corporation, and a social cooperative is a non-profit corporation.

What are the requirements for a cooperative establishment report?

(1) Five or more persons eligible to be members must act as founders.

(2) The articles of association must contain the matters set by law, such as the purpose, name and principal office location, membership eligibility, the amount per share of investment and the payment method, and the scope of business and accounting; the amount per share must be uniform.

(3) Founding general meeting: the date, time and place of the meeting, membership eligibility and the matters to be resolved must be publicly announced for at least 7 days before the meeting, and the meeting must resolve the articles, business plan and budget, election of officers, establishment expenses and similar matters. Resolutions require the attendance of a majority of those who submitted a consent to establishment and the approval of at least two-thirds of those present.

Which documents are needed for a cooperative establishment report?

Attach a copy of the articles of association, the founding meeting notice, a copy of the founding meeting minutes, the list of officers, the business plan, the revenue and expenditure budget, a document stating the amount per share and each member's number of shares, and the list of founders and persons who submitted a consent to establishment to the establishment report form. If the cooperative is established through a merger or division, a copy of the general meeting minutes is added.

What is the procedure for a cooperative establishment report?

(1) Form a group of five or more founders and draw up the articles → (2) announce the founding general meeting (at least 7 days) → (3) hold the meeting and pass resolutions → (4) submit the establishment report and attachments → (5) acceptance of the report and issuance of the report confirmation → (6) payment of investment → (7) incorporation registration. Once the report confirmation is issued, the founders must hand over the establishment work to the chairperson without delay, and the chairperson has prospective members pay their investment.

How long does a cooperative establishment report take?

The si/do governor must notify whether the report is accepted within 20 days of receiving it; if neither acceptance nor an extension of the processing period is notified within this period, the report is deemed accepted on the day after the period ends. The processing period on the report form is also 20 days.

Which authority receives a cooperative establishment report?

File the report with the Mayor of the Special City, Metropolitan City or Special Self-Governing City, or the Governor of the Province or Special Self-Governing Province (si/do governor) with jurisdiction over the principal office. On receiving the report, the si/do governor immediately notifies the Minister of Planning and Budget.

What is the statutory fee for a cooperative establishment report?

The establishment report form under the Framework Act on Cooperatives and its Enforcement Rule shows "None" in the fee field next to the attachments. Incorporation registration may involve separate registration-related costs (such as registration and license tax), but this page does not give amounts.

Why is a cooperative establishment report returned or supplementation requested?

Patterns confirmed in the law are missing documents required by the form, defects in the founding meeting notice or resolution procedure, and missing mandatory items in the articles. Matters needed for returning or supplementing a report are set by Presidential Decree, so when supplementation is requested, put the documents in order following the guidance of the si/do concerned.

What about social enterprise certification and incorporation registration?

The Social Enterprise Promotion Act is one of the labor-related laws listed in the Enforcement Decree governing certified labor consultants (nomusa), and that law prohibits anyone who is not a certified labor consultant from performing those duties as a business or advertising them (except where other laws provide otherwise), so this page does not cover social enterprise certification. Acting on behalf of a cooperative in filing for incorporation registration is the work of a certified judicial affairs professional (beopmusa), so registration agency is not covered either.

What can an administrative agent help with?

YouSun Administrative Agency prepares documents such as the establishment report, business plan and revenue and expenditure budget, and submits them to the si/do on your authorization. Work restricted by other laws cannot be handled, and litigation or court representation is outside the scope of an administrative agent and is not offered. Acceptance of the report and the outcome are decided by the competent authority.