Precautions to take when directly importing and selling coffee beans, etc.
Precautions to take when directly importing coffee beans, etc.- Increasing number of coffee shops import coffee beans, etc. without getting their supplies from other suppliers to sell freshly roasted coffees. Anyone who intends to personally import and sell coffee beans, etc. must file an import declaration pursuant to the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control.
Import declaration for coffee beans, etc.- Submission of import declaration
· Where a business entity intends to import(including filing an import declaration by proxy) food, etc. for the purpose ofsale or for the purpose of using them for business, he/she shall file an importdeclaration of the relevant imported food, etc. to the head of a RegionalOffice of Food and Drug Safety having jurisdiction over customs clearance ofimported food, etc. with the following x-documents (Article 20(1) of the Special Act onImported Food Safety Control and former part of Article 27(1) of theEnforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control).
√ Import declaration for imported foods, etc. (Attached Form 25 of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control)
√ A wrapper printed in Korean (including wrappers to which a label printed in Korean is attached) or a document mentioning content in Korean
√ A test or inspection report issued by an overseas testing or inspection agency through detailed inspection (only applicable to imported food, etc. subject to detailed inspection under Subparagraph 2(c) of attached Table 9 of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control
√ Any of the following documents [genetically modified foods, etc. (referring to foods which have undergone safety assessment as agricultural, livestock and fishery products, etc. cultivated or raised by using any of the genetic engineering techniques specified under Article 12-2(1) of the Food Sanitation Act or foods manufactured or processed with such products as raw materials) only applicable to where foods are subject to GMO labeling, but are not GMO-food labeled)]
(a) A certificate of separate distribution (referring to a document proving that imported food, etc. has been managed separately from genetically modified foods in handling processes including the purchase of seeds, production, manufacturing, storage, sorting, transportation and shipment)
(b) A certificate recognized by the government of a producing country as having the same effect as a certificate of separate distribution
(c) A test and inspection report showing that the imported foods are not required to be labeled as genetically modified foods, etc. issued by a test and inspection institution designated or deemed designated pursuant to Article 6 and Article 8 of the Act on Testing and Inspection in the Food and Drug Industry
√ A statement of reasons for setting the use-by-date or a statement of reasons for extending the use-by-date (only applicable to OEM-branded imported food, etc.)
√ An export plan (a specific plan after importing to the Republic of Korea shall be stated, and only applicable to where imported food, etc. is imported to acquire foreign currency pursuant to the Foreign Trade Act )
√ A copy of the approval or permission document, such as a business permit, or a copy of a report of manufacturing items (only applicable to where imported food, etc. is imported as raw materials to acquire foreign currency or as raw materials for manufacturing the importer’s products pursuant to the Foreign Trade Act; excluding where such documents are verified through a computer)
√ A health certificate or inspection certificate(only applicable to fishery products imported from an exporting country withwhich the Republic of Korea has concluded an agreement, etc. concerning theattachment of a certificate, but excluding caseswhere the certificate issued by the information agency of the exporting countryis available for verification through a communication network recognized by theMinister of Food and Drug Safety.)
√ An export health certificate (only applicable to livestock products)
√ The following documents which the Minister of Food and Drug Safety deems necessary to secure the safety of imported food, etc.
(a) A certificate issued by the government of a producing country certifying that a raw material from a healthy ruminant not infected by bovine spongiform encephalopathy is used
(b) An inspection report on dioxin residue (only applicable when importing heat-treated salt)
(c) Other documents posted by the Minister of Food and Drug Safety on the Internet homepage of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in accordance with hazard information, such as documents issued by the government of the exporting country
- Period of declaration
· In such cases, he/she may make an importdeclaration in advance up to 5 days before the scheduled date of arrival ofimported food, etc., and where important matters, such as the port of arrivalreported in advance, the scheduled date of arrival, the place where goods arebrought in and the scheduled date when goods are brought in, are changed,he/she shall immediately report the details thereof inwriting (latter part of Article 27(1) of the Enforcement Rule of theSpecial Act on Imported Food Safety Control).
- Sanctions for violations
· Any person who is required to file an import declaration but fails to do so will be punished by imprisonment for no longer than 5 years or be subject to a fine not exceeding KRW 50 million, or may be punished by both imprisonment and the said fine (Subparagraph 2 of Article 42 of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control).
Import declaration of an Internet purchase agent- Where a business entity engaged in the business of online purchasing of imported food, etc. by proxy intends to make an import declaration, it shall submit an import declaration (including an import declaration in electronic form) of imported food, etc. purchased on the Internet by proxy in attached Form 26 of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control) to the head of a Regional Office of Food and Drug Safety having jurisdiction over the place where imported food, etc. is cleared through customs (Article 27(2) of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control).
Responsibilities of an import declarant- A person who intends to file an import declaration or a person who has filed an import declaration shall be held responsible for the safety and quality of food, etc. that he/she imports, and shall not engage in any of the following conduct (Article 20(2) of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control).
· An act of filing an import declaration by fraud or other improper means
· Using or selling imported food, etc. for purposes other than what was declared in the import declaration; however, the foregoing shall not apply where a person who is registered for manufacturing or processing food or manufacturing food additives, or has made a notification of commencement of business on manufacturing containers or packages, or a person who has obtained permission to conduct business in processing livestock products, and business of meat packaging and handling obtains approval to change purposes after he/she has filed an import declaration of imported food, etc. as raw materials for manufacturing his/her own products.
· An act of re-importing imported food, etc. returned to an exporting country or taken out to another country after being subject to disposition of non-compliance as a result of inspection
· An act of violating any of the conditions of import declaration under the latter part of Article 21(1) of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control
· An act of filing an import declaration of imported food, etc. violating standards and specifications under Article 7 of the Food Sanitation Act, Article 14 of the 「Health Functional Foods Act」, and Article 4 of the Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act
- A person who violates any of the responsibilities of an import declarant will be punished by punished by imprisonment for no longer than 5 years or a fine not exceeding KRW 50 million, or may be subject to punishment by both imprisonment and fine (Subparagraph 3 of Article 42 of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control).
Types of import inspections and foods that require such inspections- Where the head of a Regional Office of Food and Drug Safety receives an import declaration (excluding cases corresponding to Article 29-2(1) of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control), he/she shall conduct an inspection of the relevant imported food, etc. in accordance with the methods of inspection as prescribed in attached Table 9 of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control. If he/she deems the results of inspection appropriate, he/she shall issue a certificate of confirmation of an import declaration of imported food, etc. (including such certificate of confirmation in electronic form) (the attached Form 28 of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control) to a person who has made an import declaration (Article 21(5) of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control and Article 30(1) of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control).