New Customs Service

[Anchor Lead]

The Korea Customs Service, which acts as a gateway when it comes to overseas exports to Korea, has adopted an innovative customs procedures system to simplify paper work. Thanks to the new system, customs clearance procedures for purchases made on overseas sites will gain speed. Let’s take a look.

[Pkg]

It takes customs officials half a day to finish a customs clearance procedure for each imported item. In severe cases, the procedure may get delayed. But from now on things will be different. As soon as a customs inspector posts a photo of the item on the spot, the entire procedure is over in just five minutes.

[Soundbite] Lee Kyung-rin(Official, Incheon Main Customs) : "Because the inspection results are registered on the spot, it takes 5-10 minutes instead of half a day to clear customs."

Until recently, minor importers had to pay commission fees to customs brokers for clearing customs for them due to complicated paperwork. But the new customs clearance system can draft customs report documents automatically based on the inserted database. It can also track shipments in real time via a mobile device. The fourth-generation customs clearance system cost around 154 million U.S. dollars and took three years to develop. The Korea Customs Service has finished its pilot operation and launched it officially.

[Soundbite] Cheon Hong-uk(Commissioner, Korea Customs Service) : "The new system was designed to minimize inconveniences for the public and exporting businesses by ensuring a stable, uninterrupted flow of export logistics."

The Korea Customs Service hopes to export the new system to other countries like Sri Lanka that have shown interest in adopting the fourth-generation customs clearance system.