Korea Customs Service Intensifies Crackdown on Import of Counterfeit Goods During Peak Overseas Direct Purchase Season

The Korea Customs Service is intensifying its crackdown on the import of intellectual property rights-infringing goods (hereafter referred to as counterfeit products) during the peak overseas direct purchase season, which coincides with China's Singles' Day (November 11) and the United States' Black Friday (November 24).

On November 6, the Korea Customs Service announced that it will conduct a focused crackdown from November 6 to December 1 to prevent consumers from mistakenly purchasing counterfeit products as genuine items during the expected surge in overseas direct purchases.

This intensive crackdown aims to block the entry of counterfeit products into the country by strengthening inspections of special shipments, postal parcels, and general imported cargo.

In particular, the Korea Customs Service explained that it will concentrate inspections on items such as counterfeit cosmetics, electrical products, and food, which have not received safety certification and could pose direct threats to public health and safety. The agency also plans to strengthen enforcement on product categories with a history of frequent intellectual property rights violations, such as clothing and accessories.

Given the rapid global spread of the Korean Wave, the agency also plans to actively block the import of goods infringing on trademark and design rights to protect the value of K-brands.

Previously, the Korea Customs Service detected 2,480 items (across 9 cases) of counterfeit character goods imported via mail that infringed on the trademark of a well-known K-brand company.

All detected counterfeit products are destroyed in their entirety, regardless of the quantity or value purchased. Therefore, it is important for consumers to avoid purchasing products if the sales information contains slang terms for counterfeits (such as "SA-grade," "replica," "genuine loss," "mirror," "me-too," etc.) or if the price is suspiciously low, which may indicate the item is counterfeit.

To protect rights holders from the import and export of counterfeit goods, the Korea Customs Service also operates a customs declaration system for intellectual property rights in accordance with Article 235 of the Customs Act.

Under this system, if the intellectual property rights holder reports their rights to customs in advance, customs can use this information during the review and inspection of import and export declarations to efficiently detect goods that infringe on intellectual property rights.

A Korea Customs Service official stated, "The importation of counterfeit and uncertified products poses a serious threat to public safety and constitutes an illegal act that damages the credibility of domestic companies and the national image. Through this intensive crackdown, we will protect the property and safety of the public, as well as the legitimate rights of intellectual property holders, to ensure a fair market order."

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