Counterfeit
Government certification for K-brand protection against counterfeit goods abroad: What are the conditions for up to 200 million won in support?
💡 In this article, you can check the following content.
What was confirmed in the 1st recruitment of the K-Brand government certification system?
Is our company eligible to apply for the K-Brand government certification?
What should we prepare together before and after applying for the K-Brand government certification?
Frequently asked questions about applying for the K-Brand government certification system
Things to organize before the application deadline: trademark status by country
Last spring, we shared the news about the introduction of the K-Brand Government Certification System, through which the government will directly respond to counterfeit products overseas. At that time, the general direction of the system was disclosed, and as the recruitment of the first round of participating companies has now begun, the application requirements and support conditions have been concretely determined.
The K-Brand Government Certification System is a system in which the government develops a national certified trademark, for which the government holds the rights, and pursues its filing and registration in major overseas countries. Then, it permits companies selected through an evaluation process to use that trademark. Through the genuine product verification technology applied to the national certified trademark, overseas consumers can verify whether a product is genuine using their mobile phone cameras. If an infringement of the national certified trademark is confirmed, relevant government ministries will request investigation, crackdowns, and customs clearance suspensions from local authorities. Moving away from the existing method where companies responded individually, the structure will shift to one where the government also participates in the response as a rights holder of the national certified trademark.
The Intellectual Property Office has been recruiting the first round of participating companies since August 24, and the application deadline is September 11 at 18:00.
If you are considering applying this time, there is one thing you must check first before the deadline. That is whether our trademark is filed or registered in the countries where we intend to use the national certified trademark. Based on this requirement, the countries for which you can apply in this round will be determined first. We will organize and share what has been decided in this announcement, and what requirements and documents our company needs to prepare in order.
K-Brand Government Certification System 1st Round Recruitment, what has been finalized?
This announcement details the application schedule, target countries, the method of permitting the use of the national certified trademark, and the support conditions for genuine product verification technology introduction costs. The first thing to distinguish is that the permission to use the national certified trademark and the support for introduction costs are decided separately.
For products that receive permission for use, the national certified trademark, which the government is currently filing and registering overseas, can be attached. However, obtaining permission for use does not automatically guarantee support for introduction costs. Support targets are determined within the budget limit in order of evaluation scores among the products that received permission for use, and the support limit for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and middle-market enterprises is up to 200 million KRW per company.
Here are the six conditions to check when considering this first round of recruitment.
Recruitment Round and Period: The first recruitment period is from August 24, 2026, to September 11, 2026, at 18:00. The announcement schedules up to 5 rounds, and all applications will be reviewed collectively by round, regardless of the order of receipt. The recruitment poster states that it may close early or be extended depending on the budget and application status.
How to Apply: Apply online through the Korea Intellectual Property Protection Agency's K-Brand National Certified Trademark Application System.
Target Countries: The targets are the top 73 export countries. These are countries that account for 98% of South Korea's total export value, including not only places where the distribution of counterfeit goods is currently serious but also countries with potential to become new distribution hubs in the future. The filing and registration of the national certified trademark are pursued by country, and companies apply by designating their export countries among them.
Support Details: This includes permission to use the national certified trademark, support for genuine product verification technology introduction costs, and the provision of monitoring results. Companies can use the monitoring results regarding counterfeit distribution regions and scale as reference materials to confirm damage and respond to disputes. In cases where large-scale infringement is confirmed, support for local investigations can also be provided.
Business Cost Burden: SMEs and middle-market enterprises receive 50% of the total business cost supported by the government and bear the remaining 50%. Based on the total business cost, SMEs bear 30% in cash and 20% in-kind, while middle-market enterprises bear 40% in cash and 10% in-kind.
Large Enterprises: Large enterprises can also apply to use the national certified trademark, but they must bear the full cost of introducing the genuine product verification technology themselves.
The background of the government participating as a rights holder of the national certified trademark can be seen in two cases released together by the Intellectual Property Office when announcing the system.
Cosmetics export company A confirmed that counterfeits of its products were being distributed in the local market and requested an investigation and crackdown from the local authorities. However, due to the non-cooperation of the authorities, no crackdown took place, and the investigation did not progress for two years. Food company B filed a damage claim lawsuit due to counterfeit infringement and won, but the awarded compensation of 47 million KRW did not even cover the local attorney fees of 60 million KRW.
These two cases show that even if infringement is confirmed or a lawsuit is won, it can be difficult for individual companies alone to elicit action from local authorities or to recover the response costs incurred. When the government participates as a rights holder of the national certified trademark, the entity requesting response from the local authorities and the inter-agency cooperation tools that can be utilized will change.
Whether our company can utilize this system depends on whether we meet the trademark and product requirements.
Is our company eligible to apply for the K-Brand Government Certification?
The basic target of the application is domestic corporations currently exporting products overseas. Once you have verified the company size, you must next check two requirements: trademark and product.
The first hurdle is the trademark. Our trademark must be filed or registered in the overseas countries where we intend to use the national certified trademark. It is not necessary to complete the registration; a filed status also satisfies the requirement. However, the designated goods of our trademark must fall within the range of designated goods of the national certified trademark. The list of designated goods is posted separately on the application website, so it is recommended to cross-check whether the product you want to apply for is included in the range first.
Checking the trademark status in the exporting country is not enough. In the actual evaluation, they also check whether the trademark of the product is filed or registered in the country of production. If there are products produced overseas, the trademark status in the producing country must also be organized.
The second hurdle is the product. The applied product must meet domestic certification standards, and the list of standards can be found in the appendix of the announcement. Certifications applied by item, such as KC or HACCP, belong here.
▶︎ Note: If there is no certification standard for the industry
If there is no domestic certification standard for the relevant industry, this requirement can be replaced with a letter of recommendation from the competent ministry. Conversely, cases where certification standards exist but are not met do not apply here. To receive a recommendation letter, you must also adhere to the recommendation request deadline for each round. The deadline for the first round of recommendation requests has passed as of August 31, and the second deadline is September 18.
Where and under what management the product was produced is also reviewed during the evaluation. While domestically produced products are the primary target, overseas-produced products can also be applied for if they meet the requirements. When applying for overseas-produced products, you must present documents showing that the domestic corporation manages and controls the overseas production and quality.
The evaluation is conducted collectively for each round. Permission for use is granted to applied products with an average evaluator score of 70 points or higher. However, even if the overall average is 70 points or higher, if the average evaluator score for the 'Me-too Product Verification and IP Infringement Risk' evaluation category is 10 points or lower, permission for use cannot be obtained regardless of the total score.
The "me-too products" mentioned in the announcement are distinguished from general counterfeit products. They refer to products that do not directly infringe on another person's intellectual property rights but use their own brand name while copying the appearance, design, naming, etc., of another company's leading product to ride on its popularity.
Before applying, how should we organize the trademark status by country?
To sort out the eligible countries, it is best to first organize the trademark status of the exporting and producing countries on a single sheet.
Open the list of 73 countries in the application system and check if our export countries are included.
List both export and production countries in the rows of the table.
For each country, write down the filing or registration status, application or registration number, and the classification of the designated goods.
Compare with the list of designated goods posted in the business announcement to mark whether our item is included in the range.
Countries without trademarks should be collected separately to be used later when prioritizing securing rights.
When choosing countries to apply for, it is easy to look at the sales volume first, but if you only use that as a standard, countries where counterfeit goods or unofficial distribution have already been confirmed might be omitted. It is better to prioritize by putting sales volume and infringement records together.
What documents are required to apply for the use of the national certified trademark?
Once you have determined the countries to apply for, prepare the required documents. The announcement divides the submitted documents into mandatory, optional, and mandatory where applicable.
Certificate of Business Registration and Corporate Register Certified Copy (Mandatory). Must be issued within 3 months of the submission date.
Application for Use of K-Brand National Certified Trademark (Mandatory)
K-Brand Utilization and Protection Plan (Mandatory)
Pledge to Exclude Unfair Intervention by Third Parties (Mandatory)
Certificate of Company Size (Mandatory). Document to verify the size of the applying company.
Certificate of National and Local Tax Payment (Mandatory). Document to confirm whether there are outstanding national and local taxes.
Supporting Documents for Meeting Certification Standards (Mandatory). Copy of the certificate showing that the domestic certification standards for the item are met.
List of Overseas Filing and Registration Countries of the Self-owned Trademark and Supporting Documents for Filing or Registration by Country (Mandatory)
Pledge and Consent to Provide Information to Third Parties (Optional)
Supporting Documents for Overseas Production and Supply Chain Management (Mandatory where applicable). Submitted when applying for overseas-produced products managed and controlled by a domestic corporation. Submit a total of 3 types: 1 type of document confirming production relationship, 1 type of R&D or design development document, and 1 type of applicable document among additional supporting documents specified in the announcement.
The templates for the application, plan, and pledge can be found in the appendix of the announcement. Files must be uploaded in PDF or JPG format, and for categories where multiple files must be submitted, combine them into a single PDF before uploading. Applications are only accepted online; in-person or mail submissions are not accepted.
For documents requiring issuance within 3 months, it is safer to check the issuance date in advance based on the deadline date.
In what order do we apply for K-Brand Government Certification?
Once you have verified the applying countries and required documents, the actual application proceeds in the following order.
After preparing the Certificate of Business Registration and Corporate Register Certified Copy, sign up as a member on the application system.
After logging in, start the online application from the recruitment announcement of the corresponding round.
Complete the online application form and the K-Brand Utilization and Protection Plan. Enter the requested information such as applying company details, applied products, and brands.
Attach the remaining required documents.
After verifying the entered details and attached files, submit finally. Merely writing the application does not complete the submission; all required documents must be fully submitted by the deadline time to be recognized as an application.
After submission, check the evaluation progress in the application system.
What should be prepared together before and after applying for K-Brand Government Certification?
While checking the eligibility, you might find that you don't have a trademark in the country you are entering. If it is difficult to make it in time for this round, considering that a filed status is also included in the trademark requirements, you can start reviewing the filing process for the next round.
The Intellectual Property Office's Overseas Intellectual Property Center Legal Service Support Project supports part of the cost of filing overseas trademarks, patents, and designs for SMEs and middle-market enterprises exporting or preparing to export overseas. The most recently announced 6th regular recruitment closed on August 21. If you decide on the countries to file in advance, you can reduce preparation time when the next announcement is released.
Along with trademark filing for the next round, it is also good to organize the online distribution status before introducing the certification. Genuine product verification technology helps consumers verify whether the product they purchased is genuine, but this certification alone does not manage the sales channels, sellers, and prices altogether. Brands must separately check on which channels, at what prices, and by whom the products are being listed and sold.
If you keep the current status as a baseline while preparing the application documents, you can use it to compare changes in sales channels, sellers, and prices after the certification.
Frequently Asked Questions about K-Brand Government Certification System Application
Q. Once we receive permission for use, does the application of genuine product verification technology start immediately?
Even if you receive permission for use, the application of genuine product verification technology does not start immediately. Since the introduction for each company is carried out sequentially, there may be a waiting period.
Q. If we are not selected in the first round, can we apply again in the next round?
Yes, it is possible. You can apply again in the next round after addressing the areas for supplementation.
Q. Does receiving permission for use also finalize the support for introduction costs?
No. Permission for use and support for introduction costs are decided separately. Support targets are determined within the budget limit in order of evaluation scores among the products that received permission for use. The total budget for introduction cost support is 3 billion KRW.
Q. When will the evaluation results be released, and how long does the permission for use last?
The results of the first round of evaluation are expected to be notified by September 22. The period of permission to use the national certified trademark is 2 years from the date of issuance of the permission letter, and renewal can be requested up to 2 months before expiration.
What to organize before the recruitment deadline: Trademark status by country
Under this system, the government participates in overseas responses as the rights holder of the national certified trademark, but the actual preparation for application starts with verifying which countries our company has filed or registered its own trademark in.
The first round of applications closes on September 11 at 18:00. Although subsequent rounds are scheduled, the entire recruitment may close early depending on the budget and application status. If you have not decided whether to apply yet, instead of gathering all documents at once, try making a single sheet of trademark status by country first. That single sheet will be the starting point for reviewing this application and the baseline for prioritizing securing next overseas rights.
▶︎ Reference Materials
2026 K-Brand Government Certification System Participating Company Recruitment Announcement (1st Round): Basis for application eligibility, submitted documents, schedule by round, and evaluation criteria
Introduction to K-Brand Government Certification System: Selection criteria and list of 73 countries, application targets, and approval conditions
Introduction to Genuine Product Verification Technology and Monitoring System: Method of providing monitoring results
K-Brand National Certified Trademark Application System: Member signup, online application, and checking evaluation progress
K-Brand Government Certification System 1st Round Business Announcement: Application period and downloading the announcement document
2026 K-Brand Government Certification System Participating Company Recruitment Poster: 1st round application period, budget, and guidance on the possibility of early closure or extension based on application status
Overseas Counterfeit K-Brands, Now the Government Tracks Them Down to the End (Intellectual Property Office 2026-03-31): Source of cases of Company A and Company B
2026 Overseas Intellectual Property Center Legal Service Support Project 6th Regular Announcement (Securing Rights): Recruitment method and schedule for supporting overseas trademark filing costs