Data as of: Korea’s imports Jan–Sep 2026 and Jan–Sep 2025 (SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data, retrieved October 15, 2026); agreement status checked October 15, 2026; tariff rules checked October 14, 2026.
The Korea-Ecuador FTA has not cut Korea’s shrimp tariff yet. The two countries signed the Strategic Economic Cooperation Agreement (SECA) on September 2, 2025, but it was not in force as of October 15, 2026. Ecuadorian frozen shrimp still pays Korea’s 20% base duty. Once in force, the SECA opens a duty-free shrimp quota of 10,000 tonnes in year one.
Key takeaways
- Korea and Ecuador signed the SECA on September 2, 2025; Korea’s trade ministry recorded no ratification or entry into force as of October 15, 2026.
- The SECA gives Ecuadorian shrimp a duty-free quota in Korea of 10,000 tonnes in year one, rising to 15,000 tonnes from year six; volumes above it pay the 20% base rate (SECA Appendix 2-B-1).
- Korea imported 2,018 tonnes of frozen whiteleg shrimp from Ecuador worth US$10.3 million in Jan–Sep 2026, 1.8% of Korea’s shrimp imports by value, down from US$12.4 million in Jan–Sep 2025 (SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data).
- Ecuadorian whiteleg shrimp averaged US$5.11/kg in Korean customs value in Jan–Sep 2026, against US$6.59/kg for duty-free Peruvian shrimp (SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data).
Is the Korea-Ecuador SECA in force?
No. Ecuador was not on the list of 23 FTAs in force on Korea Customs Service’s (KCS) FTA portal. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR) chronology ends at the 2025 signing, with no ratification or entry into force, as of October 15, 2026.
What the SECA is
SECA is Korea and Ecuador’s name for their trade agreement. On tariffs it works like an FTA; until it is in force, Korea’s normal rates apply.
| Date | Step |
|---|---|
| October 11, 2023 | Conclusion declared, text initialed |
| September 2, 2025 | Agreement signed in Seoul |
| April 14, 2026 | Ecuador’s National Assembly approves |
| May 2026 | Korean government sends it to Korea’s National Assembly |
| October 15, 2026 | Not in force |
Sources: MOTIR FTA site (SECA chronology, checked October 15, 2026); Asamblea Nacional del Ecuador, August 4, 2026.
Entry into force follows 60 days after the two sides exchange notifications (Article 23.4).
What tariff does Ecuadorian shrimp pay in Korea today?
It pays Korea’s 20% base rate. Korea’s 2026 tariff schedule has no preferential code for Ecuador on frozen whiteleg shrimp (HSK 0306.17.9091). The Korean importer pays it on the CIF value.
How does Ecuador compare with competing shrimp origins?
Ecuador is Korea’s second-largest supplier of frozen whiteleg shrimp (15.4% by value in Jan–Sep 2026) and has the lowest average customs value of the main origins, despite paying 20% duty against Peru’s 0%.
| Origin | Agreement in force with Korea | 2026 rate, HSK 0306.17.9091 | Share of line by value, Jan–Sep 2026 | Avg. customs value, US$/kg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peru | Korea-Peru FTA (2011) | 0% | 59.4% | 6.59 |
| Ecuador | None (SECA signed, not in force) | 20% (base) | 15.4% | 5.11 |
| Vietnam | Korea-Vietnam FTA | 0% within a 15,000 t quota in 2026; 20% above it | 8.6% | 7.37 |
| Malaysia | Korea-ASEAN FTA | 0% within the ASEAN quota of 5,000 t a year | 8.4% | 7.07 |
| Saudi Arabia | None | check UNI-PASS | 2.9% | 5.86 |
| Thailand | Korea-ASEAN FTA | 0% within the ASEAN quota of 5,000 t a year | 2.3% | 8.00 |
| Colombia | Korea-Colombia FTA (2016) | 0% | 1.7% | 5.63 |
| China | Korea-China FTA | 8% | 0.2% | 7.23 |
Source: SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data, Jan–Sep 2026, retrieved October 15, 2026; KCS 2026 tariff schedule; KCS FTA portal. Customs value is CIF value divided by weight, not a market price, and mixes size grades.
This line is a small part of Korea’s shrimp trade: US$66.8 million in Jan–Sep 2026, down from US$74.3 million a year earlier. Frozen peeled shrimp (HSK 0306.17.1090) reached US$313.9 million, Korea’s largest single seafood import line, and Ecuador shipped none of it.
What would the SECA change for Ecuadorian shrimp?
It would not remove the 20% tariff outright. Korea’s schedule puts Ecuadorian shrimp under a tariff-rate quota (TRQ): a fixed volume enters duty-free each year, and the rest pays the base rate. Only smoked shrimp gets a full phase-out, over 15 years.
| SECA year | Duty-free quota, tonnes | Rate above quota |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 10,000 | 20% |
| Year 2 | 11,000 | 20% |
| Year 3 | 12,000 | 20% |
| Year 4 | 13,000 | 20% |
| Year 5 | 14,000 | 20% |
| Year 6 onward | 15,000 | 20% |
Source: Korea-Ecuador SECA, Annex 2-B and Appendix 2-B-1, checked October 14, 2026.
- One quota for all forms. It covers frozen shrimp, shell-on or peeled (HSK 0306.16 and 0306.17), and prepared shrimp (1605.21 and 1605.29).
- Importers bid for it. The Korea Fishery Trade Association allocates the quota by auction. The auction rules are not in the agreement.
- Year one may be short. It is the calendar year of entry into force, and the text is silent on part-year quotas.
- The codes date from 2021. The schedule lists shell-on shrimp as 0306.17.9090; Korea’s 2026 tariff uses 0306.17.9091 for whiteleg. Ask a broker how the quota maps once it applies.
The year-one quota of 10,000 tonnes is about five times the 2,018 tonnes Korea imported from Ecuador in Jan–Sep 2026, and close to the 10,452 tonnes of whole whiteleg shrimp Korea imported from all origins in those nine months. In full-year 2025, Korea imported 14,416 tonnes of this line, 2,720 of them from Ecuador.
| Case | Duty | Duty-paid value, US$/kg | vs. Peru |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ecuador today, or above the quota | 20% | 6.14 | 7.0% lower |
| Ecuador inside the SECA quota | 0% | 5.11 | 22.5% lower |
| Peru (Korea-Peru FTA) | 0% | 6.59 | – |
Illustrative calculation from average customs values, Jan–Sep 2026 (SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data). Excludes freight, port handling and Korean VAT; not adjusted for size grade.
Common misconceptions about the SECA and Ecuador’s shrimp share
“Once in force, all Ecuadorian shrimp enters duty-free.” Only the quota does, although Korea removes tariffs on 96.4% of tariff lines overall (2023 conclusion announcement).
“The tariff is the only reason Ecuador’s share is small.” Ecuador’s average duty-paid value is already below Peru’s. It ships only whole frozen whiteleg shrimp, while most Korean spending goes to peeled and prepared shrimp.
What can Ecuadorian exporters do before the SECA applies?
Prepare origin paperwork and ask buyers about quota bids.
- Exporter: arrange proof of origin: a certificate from Ecuador’s competent authority or an approved exporter’s declaration, in English, issued within seven days of shipment and valid 12 months.
- Exporter: meet the origin rule. Shrimp must be wholly obtained in Ecuador; farmed shrimp counts even from imported larvae. Prepared shrimp (HS 1605) cannot use non-originating raw shrimp.
- Korean importer: bids for quota and claims the SECA rate at import declaration.
See the guide to exporting seafood to Korea and Korea’s seafood import duties by species. Ecuador’s biggest seafood line into Korea is frozen squid (US$15.5 million, Jan–Sep 2026), whose 22% base rate the SECA removes over five years.
Confirm rates, codes and quota steps in UNI-PASS, the KCS customs system, or with a Korean customs broker before pricing a shipment.
Track Ecuador’s shrimp in Korea’s import data
A quota helps only if Korean buyers want your form. SEACHING, a Korea seafood trade data platform operated by LINKSUP, Inc. in Busan, shows Korea’s monthly imports by 10-digit HS code and origin: frozen whole whiteleg shrimp imports by origin (free sign-up) and frozen peeled shrimp, Korea’s largest shrimp line (free sign-up). See also Korea’s shrimp imports by origin, Chile, Peru and Ecuador seafood exports to Korea and Asian shrimp exports to Korea.
The whiteleg shrimp page compares origins by value, unit price and volume.
See where Ecuadorian shrimp ranks among Korea’s suppliers each month. Open Ecuador’s Korea trade page on SEACHING (free sign-up)
FAQ
When will the Korea-Ecuador SECA enter into force?
No date was set as of October 15, 2026. Korea’s National Assembly still had to ratify, and entry into force follows 60 days after the notification exchange.
Which origins ship frozen whiteleg shrimp to Korea duty-free today?
Peru, Colombia and Chile pay 0% on HSK 0306.17.9091 under their FTAs (2026 schedule). Vietnam and ASEAN members pay 0% only within FTA quotas. Ecuador pays 20%.
Does the SECA change sanitary rules for Ecuadorian shrimp?
No. Ecuadorian plants still register with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) through Ecuador’s competent authority, and frozen shrimp still goes through National Fishery Products Quality Management Service (NFQS) quarantine. The SECA changes tariffs only.
Sources and method
- MOTIR FTA site, Korea-Ecuador SECA chronology, checked October 15, 2026
- Korea-Ecuador SECA, full English text: Article 23.4, Chapter 3, Annex 2-B (Korea’s schedule) and Appendix 2-B-1, signed September 2, 2025, checked October 14, 2026
- KCS FTA portal, FTAs in force, table as of May 2026, checked October 14, 2026
- Asamblea Nacional del Ecuador, news on SECA ratification status, August 4, 2026
- Korea.kr policy news on the conclusion of the Korea-Ecuador SECA, October 11, 2023
- SEACHING, frozen whiteleg shrimp (HS 0306179091) imports by origin: SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data, Jan–Sep 2026 and Jan–Sep 2025, retrieved October 15, 2026
- KCS tariff schedule by HSK, 2026 (data.go.kr), registered February 11, 2026
- MFDS guide to foreign food facility registration, October 2024 edition
- Korea.kr policy news on shrimp quarantine, 2019
- Method: “Korea’s shrimp imports” covers HSK 0306.16, 0306.17, 0306.35, 0306.36, 0306.95, 1605.21 and 1605.29. Average customs value is cumulative CIF value divided by cumulative weight. Import figures cover Jan–Sep 2026 against Jan–Sep 2025, imports only. The agreement schedule uses the 2021 HSK; current codes may differ.