South Korea...I purchased a knife unknowingly over the blade limit. What are the odds it makes its way through customs?

J

JonesCDCO

Joined
Jan 23, 2025
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So as stated in the title, I purchased a knife a couple cm's over the legal limit in Korea unknowingly from Spyderco and I guess I'm just wondering what are the chances it slips through. They shipped USPS and I believe under an individual name, not Spyderco's name, from what I can tell. I purchased another knife a while back that I'm just learning was a bit more than 1 cm over the limit, but it made its way through, so based on that I'm hoping the Spyderco arrives. Any experiences or thoughts? According to tracking it has made its way here and through US customs, but I have no Korean Post tracking number to see its progress. Any insights will be appreciated as I'm just anxiously waiting at this point for the worst haha
 
Elgatodeacero said:
I believe they will drop you at midnight into the DMZ……..

Jokes aside, I would not worry about, but I am a leaf in the wind.
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Thanks. I'm really hoping it does or that's just money down the drain. Ugh, some of these knife restrictions are just over the top.
 
JonesCDCO said:
Thanks. I'm really hoping it does or that's just money down the drain. Ugh, some of these knife restrictions are just over the top.
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If the knife does make it into your possession, you are now in possession of an illegal knife. If you just keep it at home, you should be OK. Carrying it in public will likely subject you to arrest, depending on how aggressively the South Korean police enforce weapons laws.
 
BootKnifeFan said:
If the knife does make it into your possession, you are now in possession of an illegal knife. If you just keep it at home, you should be OK. Carrying it in public will likely subject you to arrest, depending on how aggressively the South Korean police enforce weapons laws.
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What are you basing that off
 
Boattale said:
Pessimism. Viral pessimistic views flood this site all the time. Why I really don't know. Pessimism never works anyway.
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So nothing relating to Korea? No experience or second hand knowledge either?

I asked because I have family over there and have never met or heard of someone being arrested for carrying or having a knife (besides the very public assault cases), not that it's particularly common except with tools or farming.
 
kreole said:
So nothing relating to Korea? No experience or second hand knowledge either?

I asked because I have family over there and have never met or heard of someone being arrested for carrying or having a knife (besides the very public assault cases), not that it's particularly common except with tools or farming.
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South Korea doesn't have Second Amendment rights concerning the ability of its citizens to "keep and bear arms" like we have in the United States. A South Korean citizen can own a hunting rifle, air rifle or shotgun but it must be stored at all times in the local police station's armory. I knew a few people who were stationed there as part of their US military service and became familiar with their gun laws. Knives? Who really knows. Safe bet is to store them and use them at home. Why look for a problem?
 
BootKnifeFan said:
South Korea doesn't have Second Amendment rights concerning the ability of its citizens to "keep and bear arms" like we have in the United States. A South Korean citizen can own a hunting rifle, air rifle or shotgun but it must be stored at all times in the local police station's armory. I knew a few people who were stationed there as part of their US military service and became familiar with their gun laws. Knives? Who really knows. Safe bet is to store them and use them at home. Why look for a problem?
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Knife laws apparently state no more than 6 cm on a folding knife. It is what it is and I'm not looking to break any laws, so if it arrives it'll stay in my apartment. It's my fault, I should've checked laws previously, but I had purchased multitools here with substantially larger blades so it never crossed my mind, but I guess multitools are exempt from what I understand. Anyway, thanks everyone for the input.
 
I'd just reprofile/chop the blade to just under the legal length. The bonus of doing this is it usually results in a flatter blade profile more like a wharnclif, which I like
 
elevator man said:
I'd just reprofile/chop the blade to just under the legal length. The bonus of doing this is it usually results in a flatter blade profile more like a wharnclif, which I like
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Or carry a legal knife in public and leave your new Spydie alone.

It's probably like here, the chances of it being an issue unless you use it in a bar fight are probably pretty slim but I don't like jail in the USA, so I am quite sure I would not like jail in Korea.
 
I think it all comes down to how Spyderco lists it when shipping. I've purchased a few knives online and they often come listed as "hand tools" which I have a feeling would slip through. If they just plain list it as a knife, I'm guessing there's a good chance it gets confiscated.
 
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