Fuchu City (Hiroshima) Small Business Management Improvement Loan (Marukei) Interest Subsidy

(1) Overview: Fuchu City (Hiroshima Prefecture) Economic & Tourism Department, Commerce & Tourism Division operates this interest-subsidy program to stabilize and grow small businesses inside the city. The city subsidizes part of the loan interest paid by businesses that received a "Marukei" (Small Business Management Improvement) loan from the Japan Finance Corporation (JFC). (2) Eligible Applicants: Small businesses that (a) have an office in Fuchu City and have continuously operated the same business for at least 1 year; (b) received a Marukei loan between April 1, 2015 (Heisei 27) and March 31, 2025 (Reiwa 7) with the recommendation of either the Fuchu Chamber of Commerce or the Joge-cho Society of Commerce and Industry; and (c) have no delinquent city taxes. (3) Eligible Expenses & Benefit: The contractual interest (yakujo-rishi) paid to JFC on the Marukei loan during each calendar year (January 1 to December 31; for Heisei 27, April 1 to December 31) is the basis of calculation. Delinquent-interest charges are excluded. The subsidy equals the interest amount calculated at an annual rate of 0.5% (or the actual loan rate if it is below 0.5%). (4) Rate, Cap, Schedule & Tips: The subsidy is paid for at most 24 months counted from the month of the first interest payment. Applications must be submitted via the recommending Chamber of Commerce / Society of Commerce and Industry; the application for each year (through December) must be filed by the end of January of the following year. No explicit per-application monetary cap is published on the city page — the amount is determined by the 0.5%-equivalent formula. Contact the recommending body for the application forms and detailed procedure.