Japan-WCO International Masters Scholarships 2021 for Young Customs Officials in Developing Countries

Japan-WCO International Masters Scholarships 2021

Japan-WCO International Masters Scholarships 2021

The World Custom Organization offers the WCO Masters Scholarships in Japan for custom officials from Developing Countries to Study abroad at Graduate School of Business Aoyama Gakuin University, 2021

Application Deadline: 10th August 2020

Offered annually? Yes

To be taken at (country): Aoyama Gakuin University (AGU) Tokyo, Japan

Accepted Subject Areas? Strategic Management and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)

About Scholarship: The Japan-WCO Human Resource Development Programme (Scholarship Programme) provides a grant covering travel, subsistence, admission, tuition and other approved expenses to enable promising young Customs managers from a developing member of the WCO to undertake Master’s level studies at the Aoyama Gakuin University (AGU) in Tokyo, Japan.

The Scholarships in Japan provides Customs officials from developing countries with an opportunity to pursue Master’s level studies and training in Customs related fields in Strategic Management and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) at the university in Tokyo, Japan.


The Master degree programme comprises two segments: an academic segment and a practical segment. The academic segment starts with focused teaching of foundational skills in strategic management and IPR. It then moves to a range of applied topics which help students understand how to design, implement, and evaluate public policies, in particular customs policy, in accordance with development strategies for organizations. The practical segment is taught in co-operation with the Japan Customs, including the Japan Customs Training Institute.

Type: Masters

Who is qualified to apply?

• A candidate must be a customs officer of a developing member of the WCO with quality work experience of at least three years in the field of customs policy and administration in his/her home country.
• Preference will be given to candidates who have experience in IPR border enforcement, and who are expected to work in the IPR-related section of their Customs administration after this Scholarship Programme.
• A candidate must be in good health and preferably under 40 years of age as of April 1, 2021.
• Individuals who have already been awarded a scholarship under the Japan-WCO Human Resource Development Programme in the past will not be entitled to apply for this Scholarship Programme.
• After the completion of the Programme, the candidates should continue to work in their home Customs administration for 3 years at least.

How Many Awardees: Not specified

What are the benefits?

• A monthly stipend covers accommodations, meals, transportations, and other expenses. It cannot be increased to cover family members, if any. The amount of stipend is subject to change according to the decision of the Japanese Government.*
• Admission and tuition fees.**
• Round-trip economy-class air tickets between your home country and Japan.

*The current amount of monthly stipend is 147,000 yen (as of 2020).
**The current amount of admission fee is 290,000 yen and annual tuition fee is 917,000 yen (as of 2020).

How long will sponsorship last? For the duration of the masters programme

How to Apply: Candidates interested in applying for the scholarship should submit applications for admissions for the 2020/2021 Programme. ID and Password for the online application will be obtained by submitting the ONLINE REGISTRATION FORM (Link is at the top right corner of the Scholarship Webpage. When registering, enter Login ID and password of your own choice and indicate your interest in the WCO Scholarship) on the Web site by the application deadline.

Visit Scholarship Webpage for Details

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