"Owner Information Match Required" Korea Customs Service to Strengthen Personal Customs Clearance Code Verification

The Korea Customs Service announced on January 14 that, starting from February 2, it will significantly strengthen the identity verification procedures during customs clearance. This enhancement aims to address the increasingly frequent issue of personal customs clearance code misuse and to ensure the security of customs clearance for overseas direct purchase items.

To achieve this, the Korea Customs Service will compare the information of the personal customs clearance code holder with the postal code of the delivery address during the customs clearance process for overseas direct purchases.

Overseas direct purchase items are piled up at the Incheon Customs Express Logistics Center in Jung-gu, Incheon. / Yeongjongdo ? Photo by Kang Jinhyung aymsdream@

Until now, identity verification was conducted by cross-checking two items: the name and phone number, to confirm the validity of the reported personal customs clearance code.

However, starting next month, the Korea Customs Service explained that it will also verify whether the postal code matches, effectively blocking attempts at misuse. This is because, even if someone enters another person's information for the personal customs clearance code, name, and phone number, the delivery address is often written as the actual recipient's location in order to receive the goods.

Nevertheless, to ensure the stable operation of the system, the Korea Customs Service plans to first apply the strengthened measures to users who have newly issued or updated (including code changes) their personal customs clearance codes since November 21 of last year.

Considering that a one-year validity period for the personal customs clearance code has been introduced this year, the number of users subject to the enhanced measures will naturally expand as users are sequentially required to update their information.

Separately, to reduce inconvenience for users who receive goods at multiple locations such as workplaces or family residences, and to facilitate effective personal information management, the system has been upgraded to allow up to 20 delivery addresses to be pre-registered in the personal customs clearance code system.

Accordingly, users subject to verification will be able to clear customs without delay for overseas direct purchases only if the postal code of the delivery address entered on open markets or shipping agencies matches the postal code registered on the Korea Customs Service's personal customs clearance code issuance website.

An official from the Korea Customs Service stated, "To prevent misuse, we urge users to update their personal customs clearance code information in advance on the Korea Customs Service's personal customs clearance code issuance website before February 2." The official added, "If you sign up for the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's National Secretary Notification Service and set it to receive notifications for e-commerce (overseas direct purchase) customs clearance, you will be able to check your import declaration information whenever customs clearance is processed using your personal customs clearance code."