Let's start saying goodbye to Temu and Shein. Brussels is accelerating customs duty on parcels
Brussels wants to speed up the imposition of tariffs on low-value parcels entering the European Union to crack down on cheap imports from China, which arrive in billions of pieces each year, Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said, as quoted by Reuters.
In 2023, the European Commission proposed to abolish the exemption of small shipments (de minimis) from customs duties for goods worth less than EUR 150 (at the current NBP exchange rate: PLN 635), but only from mid-2028.
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In a letter to EU finance ministers who met in Brussels on Thursday, Sefcovic proposed that the “de minimis” threshold be abolished in the first quarter of 2026, two years earlier than planned.
“A move that would hit online platforms such as Shein, Temu would signal that the bloc is serious about protecting the competitiveness of businesses in the 27-nation bloc,” Sefcovic wrote.
News about the proposed changes revived the quotations of commercial companies on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Żabka gains 5.9%, CCC 2.6%, LPP 0.9% and Allegro 0.7%.
The number of low-value parcels arriving in the bloc doubled last year to 4.6 billion, most of them from China, and the Commission, the bloc's enforcement arm, faces pressure from EU companies to stem the flow more quickly.
The US has already introduced a tariff
The United States has already abolished its own “de minimis” policy, which allowed duty-free entry of parcels worth less than $800, which suggested that more cheap Chinese imports would be redirected to Europe.
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The matter is also urgent because individual EU countries want to introduce national handling fees. Romania proposed a fee of 25 lei (PLN 21) from low value parcels, while Italy working on tax until end of year to protect its fashion industry – said the Minister of Industry on Wednesday.
Common fee?
European retail and wholesale lobbying group EuroCommerce has warned that a range of different national charges could undermine the EU single market. The Commission has proposed a fee of €2, but it is unclear when it would be imposed.
Sefcovic said the current timetable for lifting the de minimis threshold in mid-2028 is “incompatible with the urgency of the situation.”
“If we act with the required political determination and pragmatism, it will be possible to introduce a viable solution for the first quarter of 2026.” – he said.
EU finance ministers are expected to agree a common position on Thursday, opening negotiations with the European Parliament, which will also have to back the new rules.
Ahead of Thursday's meeting, Dutch Finance Minister Eelco Heinen told reporters that it's time to “control” the situation of cheap Chinese parcels flooding the European market.
