How to Export Seafood to Korea: A Step-by-Step Guide for Any Origin

Data as of: rules checked October 14, 2026; trade figures Jan–Sep 2026.

To export seafood to Korea, you follow nine steps, and most of them happen before the vessel sails. As of October 2026, your plant must be registered with Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) for two years at a time, each lot needs the right government certificate, and an MFDS-registered Korean importer files the import declaration.

Key takeaways

• Under Korea’s Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control (in force October 8, 2026), a foreign seafood plant must be registered with MFDS before import, for two years at a time.
• MFDS’s facility registration guide (October 2024) lists 11 countries with a seafood safety arrangement with Korea; plants there are registered through their own government and each shipment needs a health certificate.
• MFDS food inspection and quarantine by Korea’s fishery quality agency (NFQS) are separate checks; live aquatic animals and uncut, uncooked frozen or chilled abalone, oysters and shrimp face both (October 2026).
• In Korea, the importer files the MFDS import declaration (from 5 days before arrival) and the customs declaration (within 30 days of warehousing), as of October 2026.

What are the steps to export seafood to Korea?

There are nine steps. You handle five, your government issues the certificates, and your Korean importer files in Korea.

Step 1: Does Korea already buy your product?

Start with data. For example, frozen peeled shrimp (HSK 0306.17.1090) was Korea’s largest single seafood import code in Jan–Sep 2026, at US$313.9 million (SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data; seafood here means HS chapter 03 plus HS 1603–1605).

For origins and price per kg, see Korea’s frozen peeled shrimp imports by origin on SEACHING (free sign-up) or use our 5-step product check.

Steps 2 and 3: Who registers your plant, and when?

Your Korean importer or your plant registers the plant with MFDS before the import declaration. Under Article 5 of the Special Act, registration lasts two years and can be extended. MFDS can refuse the declaration for an unregistered plant.

The importer must also hold its own MFDS import and sales business registration. Ask your buyer to confirm it before you sign. Forms and the MFDS Imported Food portal are covered in our MFDS foreign facility registration guide. No buyer yet? See how to find seafood buyers in Korea using import data.

Step 4: Does your country have a seafood safety arrangement with Korea?

If it does, only plants your government has notified to Korea can export, and each shipment needs a government health certificate. MFDS described this model in its 2020 arrangement with Norway.

MFDS’s facility registration guide (October 2024) lists 11 countries with a seafood safety arrangement: China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Russia, Ecuador, Chile, Norway, the Philippines, Peru and Argentina. A press report the same month counted 12, adding Spain, so check the current list with MFDS. The certificate is submitted with the import declaration; if MFDS can verify it electronically, no paper copy is needed.

Of 119 seafood shipments that failed Korean inspection between 2021 and August 2024, 62 (52.1%) came from countries without an arrangement, the same report says. See why shipments fail Korean inspection.

Step 5: Does your product need NFQS quarantine?

Only some products do. MFDS checks food safety, while the National Fishery Products Quality Management Service (NFQS) checks for aquatic animal diseases.

NFQS quarantine covers live fish, shellfish, crustaceans and amphibians for food, ornamental or research use, and live aquatic animals for stocking. It also covers frozen or chilled abalone, oysters and shrimp that have not been heat-treated or cut, as of October 2026. If your product is cooked, peeled or cut, ask NFQS before you ship.

For covered products, the importer needs the original quarantine certificate issued by your government agency. NFQS lists processing times of 2 days for document checks, 3 days for clinical checks and 15 days for lab tests. Details are on the NFQS import quarantine page (Korean).

Steps 6 and 7: What goes on the label and the trade documents?

The importer submits Korean label content with the MFDS import declaration, either as packaging printed in Korean or as a document showing the Korean label text. Agree on the text with your buyer before printing cartons. Names, origin marking and stickers are covered in our guide to Korea’s labeling and origin rules.

Duty depends on the 10-digit HSK code. To claim an FTA rate, the importer must apply before the declaration is accepted and hold proof of origin. Without it, the buyer pays the general rate. Rates by species are in our Korea seafood import duty guide.

Steps 8 and 9: What happens after the vessel sails?

Seafood enters through ports such as Busan, Incheon and Yeosu. For timing, see lead times, MOQs and container loads.

The importer then files two declarations. The MFDS import declaration goes to the regional MFDS office and can be filed from 5 days before arrival. The customs declaration is due within 30 days after the goods enter a bonded warehouse (Customs Act, Article 241). Customs clears food only with proof that MFDS requirements are met (Article 226).

MFDS uses four inspection types: document review, on-site inspection (including sensory checks), lab testing and random sampling. Failed lots must be returned or disposed of (see the FAQ below). For 27 listed items, the importer also reports onward sales under Korea’s distribution history system; that is not your task.

Which rules depend on your origin?

Safety arrangements, FTA rates and competing origins differ by country. Each origin guide covers them.

Korea has banned all seafood from eight Japanese prefectures, including Fukushima, since September 9, 2013. A catch certificate for imported seafood is also planned; its start date and species were not set as of October 2026.

Compare origins, starting from Vietnam’s seafood trade with Korea on SEACHING (free sign-up).

The Vietnam page lists the products Korea imports from that origin, with HS code, value and volume for the past year, so you can see where your product sits before you approach a buyer.

Pre-shipment checklist

• You know the HSK code Korea uses for your product and its main competing origins.
• Your buyer holds an MFDS import and sales business registration.
• Your MFDS plant registration will still be valid on the import declaration date.
• If your country has a safety arrangement, your plant is on its list for Korea.
• The health certificate shows the same plant name and number as your MFDS registration.
• For live products or uncooked abalone, oysters or shrimp, you hold the original quarantine certificate.
• Your buyer has approved the Korean label text.
• The HS code on your invoice matches the code your buyer will declare.
• The certificate of origin fits the FTA your buyer will claim.
• Your buyer has copies of all documents before the vessel arrives.

Where do first shipments usually go wrong?

• Treating MFDS and NFQS as one check. Frozen shrimp may need both a health certificate and a quarantine certificate.
• Names that do not match. The plant on the certificate, the MFDS registration and the carton should be the same.
• Late origin papers. A certificate of origin that arrives after the declaration is accepted can cost your buyer the FTA rate.

These rules are summarized as of October 14, 2026. Confirm the final requirements with your Korean importer, a licensed Korean customs broker or the agency concerned before you ship.

Check who in Korea already buys your product

Paperwork gets you through customs; data gets you the order. Check which Korean importers already buy your product category and at what price range. Company-level figures on SEACHING are statistical estimates, not confirmed contracts. Start with SEACHING’s product data (free sign-up)

FAQ

Can I export seafood to Korea without a Korean importer?

No. The import declaration must be filed by a business registered with MFDS to import and sell food. You can register your own plant, but a registered Korean importer files the declaration. See who Korea’s seafood importers are.

Is there a fee for NFQS quarantine of seafood?

NFQS charges no application fee for import quarantine. Lab tests are charged per test item, from KRW 10,000 for parasitic diseases to KRW 50,000 for viral diseases, as of October 2026.

What happens if my shipment fails inspection in Korea?

The importer has one year from the failure notice to return the lot, re-export it, convert it to feed with government approval, or destroy it.

Sources and method

• National Law Information Center: Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control, Articles 5 and 20 (in force October 8, 2026); its Enforcement Rule, Article 27 and Annex 9 (in force September 30, 2026); Customs Act, Articles 226 and 241 (in force October 2, 2026); FTA Customs Special Cases Act, Article 8
• Easy Law (Ministry of Government Legislation), import declaration of imported food, as of September 15, 2026
• NFQS import quarantine guide, checked October 14, 2026
• MFDS press release on the Korea–Norway fishery product safety arrangement, 2020; MFDS radiation safety information for imported food
• Food News (Sikpum Journal), seafood safety arrangements and inspection failures, October 8, 2024
• Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries: press releases (June 7, 2026; December 23, 2025)
• USDA FAS GAIN KS2025-0046, Korea Seafood Market Update 2025
• SEACHING, frozen peeled shrimp (HSK 0306.17.1090): SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data, imports, all origins, Jan–Sep 2026, queried October 15, 2026. Seafood imports here means HS chapter 03 plus prepared fish and crustaceans (HS 1603–1605); seaweed and salt are excluded.