- Systematized Import Customs Clearance and Bonded Operations Enable Delivery from South Korea in Minimum 4 Days and from China in Minimum 5 Days -

Yamato Transport Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Yamato Transport") will begin offering a small-parcel ocean freight forwarding service to Japan for cross-border EC businesses on January 11, 2024. The delivery of products from South Korea to Japanese buyers in as quickly as four days and from China in as quickly as five days will be made possible by utilizing Yamato Transport’s proprietary import customs clearance and bonded system (OBOS) (*1) for small-parcel ocean freight.

Logo: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/img/202401054983-O4-UgW2Cd0h

Images: https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M106587/202401054983/_prw_PI2fl_mB3NdYw2.jpg

Background and Purpose of Service

The market size of cross-border EC is estimated to be worth US$785 billion in 2021 and is projected to grow to US$7,938 billion by 2030 (*2). In cross-border EC for Japan, imports of apparel, cosmetics, and other products from South Korea and China are increasing every year due to the expansion of the individual buyer segment resulting from the spread of SNS and other factors. The primary mode of transport is air, where simple import declaration procedures using manifests and the like are applied. However, the recent increase in demand has created the need for a system that enables rapid, large-volume customs clearance and bonding procedures while reducing transportation costs and greenhouse gas emissions through ocean transportation.

Yamato Transport was certified and approved by Tokyo Customs as an Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) customs broker in 2013. In a joint undertaking with LIBERTYCOM (*3), a company with extensive experience in developing import/export customs clearance and bonded systems for small-parcel cargo, Yamato Transport has developed OBOS, a system that facilitates these procedures for small-parcel ocean cargo. OBOS makes possible the rapid completion of customs clearance and bonding procedures for large volumes of cargo, which in turn allows cross-border EC operators to deliver merchandise to buyers quickly and at low cost via ocean transport. When shipping by ferry, products can be delivered to customers in Japan in as quickly as four days from South Korea and as quickly as five days from China, leading to expanded sales opportunities. A patent is pending for the technology utilized in this system (Patent Application 2023-176984).

Yamato Transport will continue to provide international logistics services that aid cross-border EC operators in expanding their business while enhancing convenience for buyers.

Notes:

(*1) Ocean B2C Operating System

(*2) Source: "FY2022 E-Commerce Market Survey," Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry

(*3) https://www.libertycom.jp/

Service Usage Flow (from China/South Korea): https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M106587/202401054983/_prw_PI3fl_mxIklL5v.jpg

Special Features of OBOS

- Automatic sorting of container-by-container shipment information into data that can be used for small-parcel customs clearance. Furthermore, by linking data to the tracking number attached to the parcels, data and parcels can be cross-checked, enabling speedy customs clearance and bonded cargo operations.

- Automatic generation of data necessary for customs declarations through the Nippon Automated Cargo and Port Consolidated System (NACCS). The system employs functions such as automatic duty and tax amount calculation for taxable shipments for which import customs declarations are complicated, thereby streamlining import customs clearance operations.

- The system also allows for the completion of customs clearance, bonded operations, and TA-Q-BIN shipping label issuance, making operations up to shipping more efficient.

Service launch date: January 11, 2024

Yamato Holdings website: https://www.yamato-hd.co.jp/english/