In the Black Friday and year-end sales, overseas shopping into Korea tends to turn on one question: is it over US$150? But how much tax you pay once it is over is set by other provisions. Article 30 of Korea’s Customs Act adds freight and insurance up to the port of import to the customs value, and Article 29(2) of the Value-Added Tax Act sets the VAT base as the customs value plus the duty. There is also a rule that duty under ₩10,000 is not collected (Customs Act Art. 40, Decree Art. 37). Enter the goods price, freight, exchange rate and duty rate and the calculator below works out the duty and VAT. Duty rates differ by item, so you must enter yours; every default value is our example.
1. The exemption test uses the goods price without freight: US$150 — Enforcement Rule Art. 45(2)1 exempts personal-use goods whose goods price (the customs value less freight and the like) is US$150 or less.
2. Once over, freight goes into the customs value — duty = (goods + freight) × exchange rate × duty rate, and 10% VAT is charged on (customs value + duty) (VAT Act Arts. 29(2) and 30).
3. Our example — goods US$250, freight US$20, a rate of ₩1,400 and 8% duty give a customs value of ₩378,000, duty of ₩30,240 and VAT of ₩40,824: ₩71,064 in all.
Calculator
Updates as you type. Enter the customs exchange rate the Commissioner of the Korea Customs Service sets each week (Customs Act Art. 18) — the default ₩1,400 is our example. Duty rates differ by item; the default 8% is our example. Fractions of a won are dropped (our arithmetic). Goods that also bear individual consumption tax, liquor tax or education tax are not covered. The two reference rows below — duty and VAT each rounded down to 10 won (applying the Treasury Funds Management Act Art. 47(1)), and the customs value times the 15% simplified rate (Customs Act Enforcement Decree Annex 2, item 4) — are our arithmetic; which way the tax is actually collected is for customs to decide.
The provisions — as written
| Provision | What it says | Worth noting (our reading) |
|---|---|---|
| Customs Act Art. 30(1) | The customs value of imported goods is the transaction value: the price actually paid or payable by the buyer for goods sold for export to Korea, adjusted by adding … 6. freight, insurance and other transport-related costs up to the port of import | Freight counts when the tax is worked out — unlike the exemption test |
| Enforcement Rule Art. 45(2)1 | Goods whose goods price (the customs value less the amount under Act Art. 30(1)6; where that amount cannot be clearly separated, the price including it) is US$150 or less, recognised as goods for personal use | If freight is not shown separately, the US$150 test includes it |
| Customs Act Art. 18 | To convert a foreign-currency price into won, the Commissioner sets the rate by averaging the base or cross rates of the previous week | May differ from your card’s rate |
| Customs Act Art. 40 · Decree Art. 37(1) | Where the tax payable is less than the amount set by Presidential Decree, the head of customs does not collect it. / That amount is ₩10,000. | “Less than” — exactly ₩10,000 is collected |
| VAT Act Art. 29(2) · Art. 30 | The VAT base for imported goods is the customs value plus the customs duty, individual consumption tax, liquor tax, education tax, special rural development tax and transport-energy-environment tax. / The rate is 10 percent. | So VAT is charged on the duty too |
Small goods exempt from duty are exempt from VAT as well: Article 27(6) of the VAT Act exempts the import of “small goods received by a resident that are exempt from customs duty”. So if the goods pass the US$150 test, VAT is nil too; once over, duty and VAT come together. When duty is declared and paid on import, VAT is declared and paid with it (VAT Act Art. 50).
The simplified rate — one rate instead of two taxes
Customs Act Art. 81(1) says that for goods prescribed by presidential decree among travellers’ hand luggage, postal items (other than those that need an import declaration) and “consigned or separately shipped goods”, a simplified rate “may be applied notwithstanding other Acts”. Art. 81(3) says the simplified rate is set by presidential decree “based on the rates of customs duty, temporary import surtax and domestic taxes on imported goods”, and the table is Annex 2 of the Enforcement Decree (Decree Art. 96(1)). Instead of computing duty and VAT separately, one rate is applied to the customs value (our reading).
| Annex 2 (amended 28 Feb 2023) | Goods (as written, our translation) | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Item 1(a) | Among goods subject to individual consumption tax: gaming machines, gambling devices and other amusement goods | 47% |
| Item 1(b) | Jewels, pearls, tortoiseshell, coral, amber and ivory and products using them; precious-metal products | ₩721,200 + 45% of the amount over ₩4,808,000 |
| Item 1(c) | High-end watches and high-end bags | ₩288,450 + 45% of the amount over ₩1,923,000 |
| Item 3(a) | Among goods with a basic duty rate of 10% or more that bear no individual consumption tax: fur clothing, its accessories and other fur products | 19% |
| Item 3(b) | Clothing of leather or composition leather and its accessories, textile fibres and textile products, footwear | 18% |
| Item 3(c) | Deer antler velvet | 21% |
| Item 4 | Goods not in items 1 to 3, except high-end fur and its products, high-end carpets, high-end furniture, passenger cars, hunting firearms, alcohol and tobacco | 15% |
Decree Art. 96(2) lists goods to which the simplified rate is not applied: duty-free goods and goods with duty reduced or exempted, raw materials for export, goods involved in customs offences, goods under specific duties, goods set by the Commissioner of the Korea Customs Service (commercial quantities, high-value goods, goods that may harm domestic industry, or where a single simplified rate would seriously distort fairness), and goods for which the owner asks, when declaring, that the simplified rate not be applied to all taxable goods. The Commissioner’s list is Art. 55 of the Notice on Import Clearance: goods assessed by notice whose customs value per item or set exceeds ₩10 million, commercial quantities, and goods charged a rate above the basic rate under Act Art. 49(3).
At the calculator default (customs value ₩378,000), item 4’s 15% gives ₩56,700, and item 3(b)’s 18% for clothing and footwear gives ₩68,040 — different from the ₩71,064 from 8% duty and 10% VAT computed separately (our arithmetic). But the provision says the rate “may be applied”, so whether one courier-delivered online order is actually charged at the simplified rate cannot be settled from the text alone. The only choice the provisions give the owner is to ask that the simplified rate not be applied (Decree Art. 96(2)6); there is no wording for asking that it be applied (our reading). The ₩10,000 floor of Customs Act Art. 40 is not applied to the simplified-rate row.
How the calculator works — our reading
| Line | Arithmetic | Worth noting (our reading) |
|---|---|---|
| Exemption test | Goods price alone against US$150 | The US list-clearance US$200 concession and combined taxation are not modelled |
| Customs value | (goods + freight) × customs rate, fractions of a won dropped | Dropping fractions is ours — Treasury Funds Management Act Art. 47(2) says fractions under 1 won in “the tax base of a national tax” are not counted (whether that reaches the customs value as is, is our reading) |
| Duty | customs value × duty rate | Left out of the total if under ₩10,000 |
| VAT | (customs value + duty) × 10% | The computed duty is added even when it is not collected — our reading |
| Tax to pay | duty (if ₩10,000 or more) + VAT | No ₩10,000 floor applied to VAT — see below |
| Under 10 won (reference) | duty and VAT each rounded down to 10 won | Treasury Funds Management Act Art. 47(1) applied — our reading |
| Simplified rate (reference) | customs value × 15%, fractions of a won dropped | Decree Annex 2 item 4 — other goods carry other rates (table above) |
The “under 10 won dropped” row applies Art. 47(1) of the Treasury Funds Management Act — where a treasury receipt or payment has a fraction under 10 won, the fraction is not counted — to duty and VAT separately. Art. 2 of the same Act defines “receipt” as treasury funds such as taxes being paid in as state revenue, and Decree Art. 109-2 only makes an exception for instalments. The Customs Act itself does not contain the word for “fraction” (0 hits in the current text). So applying this provision to one customs collection of duty and VAT is our reading; at the defaults it turns ₩71,064 into ₩71,060 (30,240 + 40,820).
Four cases — our examples
| Case (our example) | Result | Worth noting (our reading) |
|---|---|---|
| Goods US$250 + freight US$20, ₩1,400, 8% | Value ₩378,000 · duty ₩30,240 · VAT ₩40,824 → ₩71,064 | 270 × 1,400 = 378,000; VAT is 10% of ₩408,240 |
| Goods US$160 + freight US$15, ₩1,400, 8% | Value ₩245,000 · duty ₩19,600 · VAT ₩26,460 → ₩46,060 | Only US$10 over, yet freight joins the value |
| Goods US$160 + freight US$10, ₩1,400, 3% | Value ₩238,000 · duty ₩7,140 (not collected) · VAT ₩24,514 → ₩24,514 | Duty under ₩10,000 falls away; VAT remains |
| Goods US$140 + freight US$10 | Goods price US$150 or less → exempt if for personal use | US$150 with freight, but the test uses the goods price alone |
Compare the first two cases: just over the limit, freight enters the customs value and the tax is larger than people expect. The fourth case assumes the receipt shows freight separately — the proviso to Rule Art. 45(2)1 tests US$150 on the price including freight where freight cannot be clearly separated.
Easy mistakes that make the tax look smaller
- “Freight is left out of the tax” — only in the exemption test. Once taxable, Act Art. 30(1)6 adds freight and insurance to the customs value.
- “VAT is 10% of the goods price” — VAT Act Art. 29(2) charges 10% on the customs value plus the duty.
- “The card payment day’s rate is used” — the Art. 18 rate is the Commissioner’s average of the previous week’s base and cross rates.
Read next
- The US$150 and US$200 limits and combined taxation — Overseas shopping: US$150, US$200 from the US.
- When the tax is due, and what lateness costs — customs duty payment deadline calculator.
- Getting the duty back on a return — return customs refund calculator.
Checklist
- ☐ Check whether the receipt shows goods price and shipping separately
- ☐ Check whether you bought anything else from the same seller on the same day (combined taxation)
- ☐ Check the duty rate for the item (Korea Customs Service or a customs broker)
- ☐ Check that week’s customs exchange rate
- ☐ Check whether the item also bears other taxes (liquor, tobacco, perfume)
Questions that remain
Is VAT under ₩10,000 also not collected?
Customs Act Art. 40 says “the tax payable” under ₩10,000 is not collected, and Art. 4(1) says the Customs Act prevails for the imposition and collection of VAT and other domestic taxes that customs collects on imports. But from the provisions we read we did not conclude that a separate ₩10,000 floor applies to VAT. The calculator therefore applies the floor to duty only and adds VAT in full — our choice, so the result is never lower than it should be.
Where do I find the duty rate?
It follows the tariff classification. This article does not reproduce the tariff schedule; the 8% and 3% are our examples to show the arithmetic.
What if I paid in another currency?
Art. 18 converts a foreign-currency price into won at the customs rate. The exemption test is in US dollars, so enter the price converted to dollars.
Sources
- Korea Law Information Center — Customs Act Arts. 4, 18, 30, 40 and 81 — original (current text, in force 2 October 2026, Act No. 21490; checked 10 November 2026, Art. 81 read again on 10 November). Domestic taxes on imports, customs exchange rate, customs value (freight and insurance added), minimum amount collected, simplified rate (consigned goods included).
- Korea Law Information Center — Enforcement Decree of the Customs Act Arts. 37 and 96, Annex 2 — original (in force 1 July 2026, Presidential Decree No. 36140; checked 10 November 2026, Annex 2 as amended 28 February 2023 read in the annex viewer). ₩10,000 not collected, goods covered and excluded, the simplified-rate table.
- Korea Law Information Center — Notice on Import Clearance Art. 55 — original (Korea Customs Service Notice No. 2025-66, in force 17 December 2025; checked 10 November 2026). Goods excluded from the simplified rate (customs value over ₩10 million and others).
- Korea Law Information Center — Treasury Funds Management Act Arts. 2 and 47, Decree Art. 109-2 — original (current text, in force 2 January 2026, Act No. 21065 and Decree No. 35947; checked 10 November 2026). Amounts under 10 won in treasury receipts not counted; under 1 won in a national tax base not counted; the instalment exception.
- Korea Law Information Center — Enforcement Rule of the Customs Act Art. 45 — original (in force 31 July 2026, Ministry of Economy and Finance Ordinance No. 42; checked 10 November 2026). US$150 personal-use exemption and the goods price without freight.
- Korea Law Information Center — VAT Act Arts. 27, 29, 30 and 50 — original (in force 2 January 2026, Act No. 21065; checked 10 November 2026). Small-goods exemption, VAT base on imports, 10% rate, joint declaration and payment.
- Not read. The tariff schedule (item rates), customs practice on whether a given courier-delivered order is actually charged at the simplified rate and Annex 2’s test for “high-end” watches and bags, whether a customs notice has its own rounding rule, the air-freight rule (the ordinance under Decree Art. 20(3)), and any minimum amount for VAT.
- What we added. The calculator defaults (US$250, US$20, ₩1,400, 8%) and examples, dropping fractions of a won, not applying a floor to VAT, the under-10-won and simplified-rate reference rows and their arithmetic (₩56,700, ₩68,040, ₩71,060), and the “worth noting” column.
Where to check further
- Korea Customs Service help centre and website — item duty rates, that week’s customs rate, estimated tax.
- Your courier or customs broker — the customs value and tax actually declared.
Written on 10 November 2026. The provisions are reproduced from the originals; the explanations and arithmetic are ours.
