Korea and Indonesia Introduce Electronic Sanitary and Phytosanitary Certificates for Seafood Trade...First Simultaneous Application to Imports and Exports

Immediate customs clearance without paper documents
Simplified procedures for 14,000 cases a year
Expected savings of 1 billion won in mailing costs

For the first time, electronic sanitary and phytosanitary certificates will be introduced for the entire import and export process in seafood trade between Korea and Indonesia.

The National Fishery Products Quality Management Service of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 8th that it will sign an agreement with the Indonesian Quarantine Agency (IQA) on the 9th at its headquarters in Yeongdo-gu, Busan, for the mutual recognition of electronic sanitary and phytosanitary certificates for seafood. Under this agreement, the two countries will use electronic documents instead of paper certificates for seafood trade.

An electronic sanitary and phytosanitary certificate is a system in which the government of the exporting country provides an electronic guarantee that it is free from aquatic animal diseases designated by the World Organisation for Animal Health. Because the certificates are transmitted directly between the quarantine authorities of both countries through an international standard electronic document exchange system, customs clearance can be completed immediately without submitting paper documents or going through in-person verification procedures.

The two agencies have completed the establishment of an electronic quarantine system based on international standards through ongoing consultations, and with the signing of this agreement, electronic sanitary and phytosanitary certificates will be applied for the fourth time on the import side and for the first time on the export side. As a result, including the three countries where the system is already in place, Korea will be able to process about 38 percent of its total seafood trade volume using electronic quarantine procedures.

Indonesia ranks first in terms of the number of quarantine cases for seafood imports into Korea, and for some items such as olive flounder and abalone, it is also one of Korea's major export destinations. After signing the agreement, the two countries plan to conduct a six-month pilot period during which both paper and electronic certificates will be issued in parallel, and then move to full electronic processing.

Once electronic sanitary and phytosanitary certificates are introduced, the procedures for approximately 14,000 Korea-Indonesia seafood import and export cases per year will be streamlined, significantly reducing customs clearance time and costs. The time required for customs clearance is expected to be shortened from the current 3 to 7 days to immediate processing, and the more than 1 billion won spent annually on mailing paper documents is expected to be virtually eliminated.

Cho Ilhwan, head of the National Fishery Products Quality Management Service, said, "This agreement will be an important milestone in establishing a safe foundation for seafood trade through the digital transformation of quarantine administration," adding, "We will expand cooperation not only with Indonesia but also with other countries to create a safe and seamless seafood trade environment."

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