The end of the duty-free parcel: how the US and the EU rewrote the rules of cross-border e-commerce

For a decade, international e-commerce grew on a simple rule: if a parcel was cheap, it entered without paying duties and with almost no paperwork. That rule ended in the world’s two largest consumer markets in less than a year, and it changed the math for any business that sells, buys or ships parcels across borders.

What was de minimis and why did it move so much volume?

De minimis is the value below which a country does not charge duties on an import and simplifies its clearance. In the United States it lived in Section 321 of the Tariff Act and let a shipment worth up to US$800 per person per day enter duty-free with minimal data, one of the highest thresholds in the world. In the European Union, shipments up to €150 paid no customs duties, although they have paid VAT since July 2021.

That threshold powered the rise of direct-to-consumer platforms. In fiscal year 2024, U.S. Customs and Border Protection processed more than 1.36 billion de minimis shipments, 92% of all cargo entries into the country, according to CBP. The EU received 4.6 billion parcels worth less than €150 that same year, and 91% came from China, according to the Council of the EU.

At those volumes the rule stopped being a technical detail. Governments began to see it as a way around tariffs, as unequal competition for local retailers and as a blind spot for product safety checks.

What changed in the United States?

On 29 August 2025, the United States suspended de minimis for shipments from every country and by every mode of transport, as published in the Federal Register. Since that day, every parcel pays the duty that matches its tariff classification, whatever its value.

The suspension survived the Supreme Court ruling of 20 February 2026 that struck down the tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The same day, a new executive order kept the suspension in place on a different legal basis, as Thomson Reuters explains, and in August 2026 the Court of International Trade confirmed that the President can eliminate the exemption, according to Troutman Pepper. On top of that, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act repeals de minimis by law from 1 July 2027, so the change no longer depends on an order that could be reversed.

The effect was immediate. In November 2025, Chinese e-commerce exports to the United States fell 52% year on year, the steepest drop on record, and e-commerce air cargo on that lane fell by more than half, reports Air Cargo Week. In the Americas, Mexico’s postal service temporarily suspended parcels to the United States while the new procedures were defined.

What changed in the European Union?

The EU chose a phased path. Since 1 July 2026, shipments under €150 pay a flat duty of €3 per item, according to PwC. The charge is counted per tariff heading: a parcel holding a T-shirt and a pair of headphones pays €3 twice, even if both travel in the same box.

It is a transitional measure. It applies until July 2028, when the EU will start charging normal duties on all goods regardless of value. The Council justified it by unfair competition with EU sellers, consumer safety risks, fraud and the environmental impact of millions of individual shipments.

How do the two rules differ?

What does it mean for those who sell or buy abroad?

• The cost per shipment rises and is no longer uniform. The duty depends on what is inside the box. Two parcels of the same weight can pay very different amounts.
• Data must be complete at origin. Precise description, Harmonized System code, real value and country of origin. A vague description such as “gift” or “clothing”, which used to pass, now stops clearance.
• Consolidation makes sense again. If every parcel pays and clears separately, grouping goods into a single formal entry and distributing at destination can cost less than hundreds of loose shipments. That is why many sellers are moving inventory into the destination country.
• The change cuts both ways. Miami International Airport handles about 3.5 million tonnes of freight a year, mostly with Latin America. Exporters in the region who sold directly to U.S. consumers now face more cost and more paperwork.

How to adapt your shipments?

1. Classify your products before setting the price
   • Use the Harmonized System code to at least 6 digits.
   • Check the current tariff in the destination country. See our HS codes guide.
2. Recalculate the landed cost per parcel
   • Add the duty, clearance charges and final delivery, not just freight. See how to calculate landed cost.
3. Decide who pays the duty
   • DAP: the buyer pays on delivery, which causes refusals and returns in e-commerce.
   • DDP: you collect it at checkout, which gives a clean experience but requires calculating it correctly.
4. Compare individual and consolidated shipping
   • Ask for a quote for both options with clearance charges itemized per parcel.
5. Put the coming dates in your calendar
   • 1 July 2027 in the United States.
   • July 2028 in the European Union.

Quick checklist before your next shipment

• Every product has an HS code and a specific description.
• The declared value matches the invoice.
• The country of origin is stated for each product.
• It is defined who pays duties and taxes at destination.
• The selling price already includes the estimated duty.

In summary

The world’s two largest consumer markets stopped treating the cheap parcel as an exception. The United States did it at once and the European Union in two stages, but the destination is the same: every shipment pays according to what it contains. The advantage is no longer in staying below a threshold but in having classification, data and route sorted out before shipping.