To deal with the rapid rise in the smuggling of gold for profit, the Finance Ministry will impose stiffer penalties under the Customs Law. The legal amendment will authorize a fine of up to five times the value of the smuggled gold. The aim is to deter gold smuggling by raising the fine to a level that will make smuggling unprofitable. The ministry is looking at implementing the new regulations from April 2018.

The current penalty for gold smuggling is a fine of up to 5 million yen or a prison term of up to five years. The maximum fine will be raised to 10 million yen, and if the value of gold smuggled exceeds 2 million yen, a fine of up to five times this amount can be imposed. (Abridged)