🇰🇷How to import into South Korea
To import into South Korea, most goods clear customs freely, but specific sectors need a permit, product registration or import licence from a named regulator before the shipment lands. A legitimate importer of those goods holds the current document, ask for it and check it at the source.
Importing into South Korea: the basics
- Customs identity: Customs-registered business number
- Importers clear goods under their business registration number through the UNI-PASS system. Korea Customs Service (UNI-PASS)
- Import tax at the border
- Standard VAT in South Korea is 10%, charged on goods plus freight plus duty. NTS Korea Duty depends on the product's HS code, so we do not state a rate: look it up in Korea Customs Service tariff , then put both into the landed-cost calculator.
- Documents that travel with the shipment
- Commercial invoice · Packing list · Transport document (CMR, bill of lading or air waybill) · Customs declaration, filed by you or your broker · Proof of origin, when claiming a preferential duty rate
- Incoterms a small supplier will actually agree to: EXW or FCA
- Small and artisan producers normally sell EXW (you collect at their workshop) or FCA (they hand the goods to your carrier). Expect to arrange freight, insurance and customs clearance yourself, or through a forwarder. DAP and DDP shift carriage and import formalities onto the seller, and a small maker will usually decline them: under DDP the seller must even be able to pay import taxes in your country. Larger exporters more often quote FOB or CIF for sea freight. Compare all Incoterms.
- Worth knowing before the first shipment
- The EU-Korea FTA gives preferential duty on qualifying EU goods; above a value threshold the exporter must be a registered approved exporter for the claim to stand.
- Food, cosmetics and devices require separate MFDS clearance in parallel with customs.
Reviewed 2026-07-21. Factual pointers to public rules, not legal advice; confirm with customs or a broker before shipping.
Sector import rules
These sectors carry their own import requirement in South Korea. For each, a legitimate importer holds the document named below, issued by the named regulator. Ask for it, then verify it at the source.
- cosmeticsRegistration required
product registration from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS).
Importer must register as a cosmetics distributor and submit a product notification to the Korea Pharmaceutical Traders Association.
Official source - medical devicesRegistration required
product registration from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS).
Importer must secure a medical device import license and product item registration from MFDS before distribution.
Official source - pharmaceuticalsRegistration required
product registration from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS).
Importer must register the product with MFDS and obtain an import business license via the electronic data interchange system.
Official source - telecom/radio equipmentImport permit required
conformity certificate from the National Radio Research Agency (RRA).
Importer must obtain a KC (Korea Certification) certificate under the broadcasting and communication equipment clause via RRA.
We could not confirm a live official link for this regulator, so no source is shown. Search the regulator name on the South Korea government domain to reach it.
This is a factual pointer to public rules, not legal advice, and the list is not exhaustive.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a licence to import into South Korea?
- It depends on the product. General goods clear South Korea customs without a sector licence, but regulated sectors (cosmetics, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, telecom/radio equipment) require a specific permit, registration or licence from the regulator named on this page.
- How do I check an importer in South Korea is allowed to bring in my product?
- Ask the buyer for the import permit or product-registration number for the sector, then confirm it with the named regulator. A genuine importer of regulated goods already holds one; a buyer who cannot produce it may not clear customs.
- Is importing a specific product into South Korea ever banned?
- Most sectors are permitted with the right licence or registration. Always confirm the current rule with the named regulator before shipping.
- What do I need to clear customs in South Korea?
- A business importing into South Korea needs a Customs-registered business number. Importers clear goods under their business registration number through the UNI-PASS system. A normal commercial shipment also travels with: commercial invoice, packing list, transport document (cmr, bill of lading or air waybill), customs declaration, filed by you or your broker, proof of origin, when claiming a preferential duty rate.
- How much tax do I pay importing into South Korea?
- Standard VAT in South Korea is 10%, charged on the goods plus freight plus duty. Customs duty depends on the product's HS code, so there is no single rate: look yours up in Korea Customs Service tariff, then add both to the goods and freight to get the landed cost.
- Which Incoterms will a small supplier agree to?
- Usually EXW or FCA. Small and artisan producers normally sell EXW (you collect at their workshop) or FCA (they hand the goods to your carrier). Expect to arrange freight, insurance and customs clearance yourself, or through a forwarder. DAP and DDP shift carriage and import formalities onto the seller, and a small maker will usually decline them: under DDP the seller must even be able to pay import taxes in your country. Larger exporters more often quote FOB or CIF for sea freight.
South Korea suppliers by sector
Manufacturers and wholesalers based in South Korea, with the open-record facts we hold on each and a link to the free public source behind them.
Importing for the first time? Read the first-time importer sequence (country choice, maker checks, landed cost, a survivable first order).