Customs Clearance Procedures

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Customs Clearance Procedures

Customs clearance refers to the import, export or return of goods pursuant to the procedures prescribed by the Customs Act. Import clearance refers to a series of customs processes, including import declaration to a customs director, acceptance of the declaration by the director with its lawfulness, issuance of a certificate of import declaration, and shipping of the imported goods.

Meanwhile, export clearance refers to the process of declaring the export of goods to customs and accepting permission of export and loading cargo. Return refers to the sending back of goods carried into Korea without import declaration to the country from where they were sent, and the procedure as a whole is called return clearance.

Customs Clearance Procedures

Import Clearance

In order to export, import, or return goods, the name, standard, quantity, and price of such goods and other matters prescribed by the relevant regulations must be reported to the head of a customs office. The declaration of imports can only be made after the vessel (aircraft) loaded with the goods has arrived, but the import declaration can be made before arrival when the goods to be imported need to be cleared promptly. Goods that have been declared for import before arrival are deemed to have arrived in Korea.

※ Declaration of import must be made by selecting a reporting method, if necessary, from declaration before departure, declaration prior to arrival, declaration prior to arrival in bonded area, or report after storage in bonded area.

Documents for Import Declaration

Submission of the invoices, bills of landing, packing lists, certificates of origin, and documents confirming other import requirement is required for cargo owners, certified customs brokers, etc. when filing an import declaration. The declaring must summit the documents if requested for the clearance procedure, but if not they may keep the documents by themselves.

Import Declaration

Import declaration is undertaken according to the method of screening, document screening, and inspection of goods, etc. When the import declaration is made legally, the report is immediately accepted. If the items listed in the declaration are not sufficient, a supplemental import declaration or customs clearance may be requested.

Inspection of Imported Goods

This inspection refers to whether the goods declared for import conform to the import declaration and whether they violate any regulations set by relevant laws and regulations through in-kind inspection. The inspection ratio may be applied differentially in consideration of compliance with regulations of importing companies, records of inspection performance, country of origin, etc., while the inspection method may be extractive inspection, total inspection, or via analysis depending on the inspection objects. The importers bear the costs of inspecting imported goods.

Issuance of Certificate of Import Declaration

When the customs officer accepts the import declaration, a declaration certificate electronically stamped by the Customs Special Officer is issued to the declarant.

Process of Import Clearance

Internet Portal for Customs Clearance (UNI-PASS)

UNI-PASS is an online system that handles all customs clearance procedures such as customs declaration, payment of taxes, and application requirements needed by individuals and businesses when exporting or importing.

※ UNI-PASS : unipass.customs.go.kr

Services

The primary services of UNI-PASS include electronic declaration, electronic payment, information check, and providing a unique personal customs code.

Services : Service,Contents
Service	Contents
Electronic Declaration	Reports for import and export declaration or applying for a refund can be done online and checked afterwards. Customs documents can also be printed out.
Electronic Payment	Following the import declaration, customs duties can be paid and processing details can be checked.
Information Check	Declarants may check customs information, regulatory compliance, HS codes, etc. required for administrative tasks related to customs.
Unique Personal Customs Code	A unique customs clearance code used to report imports of personal goods is issued and declarants may check the code.

Application Procedure

To use the UNI-PASS system, it is necessary to receive the approval of customs. The applicant must apply for and obtain a certificate from an accredited certification body and then join the system via the user registration menu. Then the officer in charge will approve the use of UNI-PASS after the confirmation of the application.

※ Related law: Notification of the Use and Operation of Customs UNI-PASS

How to Use

UNI-PASS provides two types of services regarding the declaration method: application via a website; or application by PC and submitting to UNI-PASS all documents using the software to transmit multiple cases. The latter is useful when processing large amount of data or when there are many applications.

※ Browsers: Internet Explorer (IE), Chrome, Safari, FireFox

Work Processes through UNI-PASS

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