Customs violations by Chinese visitors feared to surge amid visa waiver program

Chinese tourists enter Korea as part of a visa waiver program at Incheon Port, Oct. 13. Yonhap

Concerns are mounting over a sharp increase in customs violations by inbound Chinese tourists, amid the government’s push to expand visa waiver program, according to lawmakers Tuesday.

They warn that government efforts to promote visa waivers for Chinese nationals to boost domestic tourism come amid concerns that the current customs system remains ill-equipped to handle the rising volume of illegal imports and smuggling, posing a risk to national security and public safety.

According to data provided by the Korea Customs Service to Rep. Lee In-seon of the main opposition People Power Party, Chinese nationals committed nearly 72,000 customs violations between 2020 and September this year.

Over 17,000 violations occurred in the first nine months of this year.

The violations included bringing goods into the country exceeding per-person duty-free limits, and importing banned items such as illegal pharmaceuticals and knives.

Attempts to smuggle counterfeit products were also identified.

In some cases, they were caught using tourist visas to bring large quantities of goods to sell in Korea. They usually entered through Incheon, Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Province and Gunsan in North Jeolla Province.

Many of them falsely declared items to the customs authorities, including Chinese agricultural produce and drugs.

“If crimes like drug smuggling and voice phishing continue to slip through our border controls, public trust in Chinese tourists will decline,” Lee said. “This not only undermines the government’s tourism policy but also puts our citizens’ safety at risk. We need strengthened measures to identify and prevent customs violations.”

The lawmaker said without stronger border control, a government move to expand visa waiver programs could lead to unintended consequences, including an increase in organized criminal activity disguised as tourism.

“The government should reassess its visa policies and border control strategies to ensure that increased openness does not come at the cost of safety and public trust,” Lee added.