EU agrees to impose customs duties on parcels worth less than 150 euros to stop Shane and Timo’s avalanche

The 27 European Union countries agreed Thursday to abolish the rule that allowed goods worth less than 150 euros to enter the European Union without paying customs duties. With this change, tariffs will apply to all goods entering the EU, consistent with the current rules for VAT on imported goods. This measure is particularly focused on the arrival of small parcels from Chinese companies such as Temu or Shein.

Although the initial idea was that the measure would be implemented in 2028, due to the necessity of its implementation, a simple and temporary solution will be worked out to apply tariffs on the aforementioned goods in 2026.

The EU claims that the flood of Chinese goods has become an “unfair competition issue for EU sellers”, as well as raising “environmental concerns” about emissions from transport.

The European Commission issued a report in which it found that in 2024, 65% of small parcels arriving in the EU were offered for less than 150 euros “to avoid import tariffs.” We are talking about approximately 4.6 billion shipments of low-cost goods, which means 12 million packages enter duty-free every day because their value does not exceed 150 euros. 91% of all e-commerce shipments worth less than €150 came from China.

Stefanie Loos, Danish Minister of Economic Affairs, explained: “We have reached an agreement to abolish the threshold of 150 euros in customs. So customs duties will be paid from the first euro and European companies will have greater competitiveness because the flow of low-cost products will be limited.”

This new rule will come into effect as soon as the EU Customs Data Center is operational, which is currently expected to be in 2028. The Center is currently under negotiation between the Council and the European Parliament as part of a broader fundamental reform of the EU customs framework. Its capabilities, which will allow customs debts to be calculated and notified by item, will allow customs authorities across the EU to apply the full customs regime to small parcels entering the EU.