Korea-Australia Customs Commissioner Meeting…Cooperation to Block Illegal Activities like Counterfeit Goods and Tobacco Smuggling

Korea-Australia Customs Commissioner Meeting…Cooperation to Block Illegal Activities like Counterfeit Goods and Tobacco Smuggling

The customs authorities of Korea and Australia have decided to strengthen cooperation in cracking down on illegal activities such as counterfeit goods and tobacco smuggling.

On the 14th (local time), Commissioner Lee Myung-goo of the Korea Customs Service held the '11th Korea-Australia Customs Commissioner Meeting' with Commissioner Gavin Reynolds of the Australian Border Force in Canberra, Australia.

This high-level bilateral meeting, held two years after the 10th meeting in 2024, was the first since Commissioner Lee Myung-goo took office.

During the meeting, both sides discussed strengthening cooperation in cracking down on intellectual property infringing goods, expanding information sharing related to tobacco smuggling, and enhancing cooperation in combating trade-based money laundering.

Specifically, regarding the crackdown on counterfeit goods, they decided to establish a cooperation system from export/import customs clearance to domestic production and distribution stages, and to continuously exchange detection cases and risk information.

To combat tobacco smuggling, they agreed to strengthen the analysis of suspicious cargo information and share real-time information on suspected smuggling.

Furthermore, both sides decided to share experiences in utilizing data and artificial intelligence (AI) in customs administration and to pursue the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to replace the existing Korea-Australia Mutual Customs Assistance Agreement.