Can I bring Bush Meat to South Korea?
Bush Meat→South Korea
⚠️ Restricted
About Bush Meat
When bringing Bush Meat, ensure compliance with Korea Customs Service regulations. If you want to bring Bush Meat as a snack or souvenir, be mindful of agricultural bans at your destination. For biosecurity reasons, many countries prohibit untreated Bush Meat. Choosing commercially packaged products with ingredient lists is highly recommended. 💡 Tip: If unsure about a food item, "Declare it" to avoid fines. Customs won't fine you for declared items even if they confiscate them.
General Rules Apply
We don't have specific rules for Bush Meat yet. Below are the general rules for Meat Products that apply to Bush Meat.
📋 Carrying Limits
✅ Declaration Requirements
⚠️Meat and meat products carried by travelers are designated quarantine goods: declare them immediately on arrival to the animal quarantine agency at the airport or port and have them inspected by a quarantine officer. You can declare in writing, by entering the items on the traveler customs declaration form, or by telling an animal quarantine inspector the type and quantity orally. Declaring is not approval: prohibited items or items that fail inspection are sent back or disposed of.
📌 Quick Summary
🔗 Official Information Source:
Last Updated:October 20, 2026
Reliability:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
📝 Important Notes
- •🥩 STRICTLY CONTROLLED: South Korea has some of the world's strictest meat import regulations due to African Swine Fever (ASF), Avian Influenza (AI), and Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) prevention.
- •⚠️ Conditional Rules for Meat Products:
- •Scope: Meat and processed meat products (including pork, beef, poultry, jerky, sausages, ham, bacon, salami and canned meat) are designated quarantine goods
- •Prohibited regions: Products produced in, shipped from, or passing through a region that MAFRA designates as prohibited for that species cannot be imported. The transit ban does not apply to goods that passed through such a region only during a simple stopover of the aircraft or ship, or by vehicle or train in a sealed container; MAFRA ordinance defines which stopovers count as simple stopovers, so not every layover qualifies. The production/shipping-origin, certificate, declaration and inspection rules still apply. The list differs by species: for beef, only Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, the US, Canada, Chile, Uruguay, the Netherlands, Denmark and Ireland are outside the prohibited regions; pork and poultry have their own country lists, and poultry is split into fresh/chilled/frozen and heat-treated meat
- •Emergency bans: MAFRA can also ban imports from countries not listed as prohibited regions when a serious animal disease breaks out or threatens to
- •Certificate: An exporting-government quarantine certificate must generally accompany the product (limited statutory exceptions apply). Products for which neither prohibited regions nor import health conditions have been set cannot be imported unless they carry a certificate and the quarantine agency recognizes they pose no risk
- •Commercial canned/retort products: For sterilized, shelf-stable canned, bottled or retort livestock products of 5 kg or less that are commercially manufactured and sold in the exporting country, inspectors may skip one processing-verification step. Origin, certificate, declaration and inspection rules still apply; commercial packaging alone does not make a product admissible
- •Meat-containing foods: Dumplings, meat buns and other foods that contain meat may be treated as meat products. Meat flavoring alone does not settle the question — if unsure, declare the item
- •⚠️ Why So Strict?:
- •Korea has experienced devastating ASF and AI outbreaks
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Does Bush Meat need to be vacuum-sealed for entry?
Vacuum sealing can significantly reduce the risk of confiscation, especially for meat or dried products. Additionally, Bush Meat with complete commercial labeling and ingredient lists is more likely to pass inspection.
What should I consider when bringing Bush Meat?
The most important thing when bringing Bush Meat is to confirm if it exceeds the duty-free allowance or declaration threshold of your destination. It's recommended to keep purchase receipts and ensure Bush Meat is in its original packaging for easier customs inspection. If the Bush Meat is of high value, always use the red declaration channel.
❓ More Questions
Can I bring any meat products to South Korea?
RESTRICTED — it depends on the product and its origin. Meat and meat products (fresh, frozen, processed or canned) must be declared on arrival and inspected. They cannot be imported if produced in, shipped from, or passed through a region MAFRA designates as prohibited for that species, and they generally need an exporting-government quarantine certificate (limited statutory exceptions apply). Passing through such a region is not counted only if it happened during a simple stopover of the aircraft or ship, or by vehicle or train in a sealed container; MAFRA ordinance defines which stopovers qualify, so not every layover does. Vacuum-sealed or commercially packaged products are not exempt: for sterilized, shelf-stable canned, bottled or retort products of 5 kg or less that are commercially manufactured and sold in the exporting country, inspectors may only skip one processing-verification step. Items that pass inspection are released; items that fail are sent back or disposed of.
What about beef jerky or dried meat snacks?
RESTRICTED. Dried, cured or jerky meat products — including beef jerky, biltong and dried sausages — are processed meat products, and processed meat is covered by MAFRA's prohibited-region list. Whether they can enter depends on the species and country of origin, an exporting-government quarantine certificate (limited statutory exceptions apply) and inspection on arrival; for beef, only Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, the US, Canada, Chile, Uruguay, the Netherlands, Denmark and Ireland are outside the prohibited regions. Declare them. Korean customs actively screens for these items.
Can I bring chicken or duck products?
RESTRICTED. Poultry products including chicken, duck and turkey are controlled because of Avian Influenza prevention. MAFRA's list sets separate countries for fresh/chilled/frozen poultry meat and for heat-treated poultry meat: for example, heat-treated poultry meat from China, Japan or Vietnam is outside the prohibited regions, while fresh, chilled or frozen poultry meat from those countries falls within them. MAFRA can also impose emergency bans after disease outbreaks. Cooked products such as roast duck and chicken jerky are not automatically allowed: they still need to meet the origin and certificate requirements and must be declared and inspected.
What happens if I bring meat products accidentally?
Declare immediately on arrival — in writing, on the traveler customs declaration, or orally to an animal quarantine inspector. Declaring does not make prohibited items admissible: items that fail inspection are sent back or disposed of, and declaring does not excuse other violations. The fine for failing to declare depends on the product and on how many times you have already been fined for the same violation within the previous 3 years: for uncertificated pork or pork products from ASF-affected countries publicly identified by MAFRA it is ₩5,000,000 / ₩7,500,000 / ₩10,000,000 for a first / second / third or later offense; for other uncertificated animal products ₩1,000,000 / ₩3,000,000 / ₩5,000,000; for animal products with the required certificate ₩50,000 / ₩100,000 / ₩500,000. Biosecurity dogs and X-ray machines are very effective at detection.
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