Korea Customs Service Provides Economic Benefits Worth 385.8 Billion KRW to Domestic AEO Certified Companies

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] A total of 286 domestic import-export companies certified as Authorized Economic Operators (AEO) received economic benefits amounting to 385.8 billion KRW last year.

According to the Korea Customs Service on the 2nd, AEO is a system where the Customs Service certifies the appropriateness of import-export companies' compliance with laws, internal control systems, and safety management standards, and provides various customs administration benefits such as expedited clearance to certified companies.

These AEO companies receive customs clearance benefits not only domestically but also in 15 major export countries including the United States, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Australia, which have signed the AEO Mutual Recognition Arrangement (AEO MRA).

Through this, large enterprises saved 4.91 billion KRW, mid-sized enterprises saved 1.13 billion KRW, and small and medium enterprises saved 290 million KRW in costs last year.

Typically, import companies certified as AEO benefit from an annual reduction of 1.01 billion KRW per company due to savings in inspection costs, while export companies benefit from an annual reduction of 890 million KRW per company due to savings in local customs clearance costs, according to the Customs Service.

For example, AEO-certified companies reduce customs clearance costs by applying an import inspection rate of 50% or less in the export destination country. Additionally, under the Mutual Recognition Arrangement, they receive the same customs clearance benefits without separately obtaining AEO certification from the counterpart country, and can expect increased operating profits due to increased export volumes resulting from reduced customs clearance time.

The Customs Service plans to leverage these advantages to continue discovering AEO benefits and strategically expand the signing of AEO MRAs to increase benefits for domestic AEO-certified companies.

Meanwhile, from the 2nd, AEO-certified companies can check their individual economic effects through the Customs Service's electronic customs clearance system (UNI-PASS).

Companies interested in obtaining AEO certification can receive guidance through regional customs offices or the Korea AEO Promotion Association, a non-profit organization.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.