Six Pens in the Suitcase: South Korea Opens the Door to Weight-Loss Drugs Bought Abroad
From Thursday, a traveller arriving in South Korea with a legitimate prescription for Wegovy or Mounjaro no longer has to worry about watching the medicine disappear at customs. Under a rule change announced by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the Korea Customs Service, people entering the country may now carry in up to six units of such weight-management drugs — roughly a three-month supply — provided they were legally prescribed and bought overseas and are meant for their own treatment.
Why the rule changed
Until now, the authorities had blocked overseas-bought Wegovy and Mounjaro, arguing that they could not verify how the products had been made and distributed, and that patients would have little legal protection if something went wrong, such as a recall or a compensation claim. The approach drew criticism for treating a patient with a genuine foreign prescription the same way as someone ordering through unauthorised channels or bringing in large quantities.
The scale of the grey market helps explain the pressure. Between January and August this year, customs officers recorded 1,097 cases of the two drugs entering the country without authorisation — more than eight times the 134 cases logged in the whole of 2025.
The price gap next door
The change may matter most for Koreans who look across the sea to Japan. A four-week supply of the lowest dose of Mounjaro costs around 300,000 won (about $225) in Korea, while some Japanese medical institutions reportedly offer it for around 100,000 won. Part of the reason is that Mounjaro is listed under Japan’s national health insurance for type 2 diabetes, which cut its official price there by 25 percent.
With a short flight separating the two markets, it is not hard to imagine weekend trips to a Japanese clinic becoming part of some Korean patients’ treatment plans — the latest twist in the long story of medical travel between the two countries.
The catch: the cold chain
Regulators and doctors are not entirely relaxed. Injectable obesity treatments generally need to be kept refrigerated in transit, and a pen that has spent hours in a warm suitcase may not work as intended or could pose safety risks. Officials also worry about misuse and resale, which is one reason for the six-unit ceiling. The food and drug ministry says it will monitor how the new rule plays out.
For now, the message to travellers is straightforward: bring the prescription, keep the quantity personal, and pack a cool bag.