The era of duty-free low-cost shopping from overseas is set to end across Europe.  In a move to protect domestic businesses and curb environmental waste, the Council of the European Union announced on 13 November 2025 that it had agreed to abolish the longstanding customs exemption for parcels valued under €150.

The decision targets the massive influx of small parcels entering the single market, predominantly from Asia, which currently bypass customs duties. 

Levelling the playing field for EU businesses 

Under current regulations, goods worth less than €150 can enter the EU without customs duties being applied. While originally intended to reduce administrative red tape for small shipments, this threshold has created a significant distortion in the market.

Stephanie Lose, the Danish Minister for Economic Affairs, praised the agreement, stating:

‘I am very pleased that we have reached an agreement on eliminating the €150 customs threshold. We ensure that duties are paid from the first euro, creating a level playing field for European businesses and limiting the influx of low-cost goods. We also agreed on the need to work towards a temporary solution as soon as possible in 2026’. 

The primary drivers for this reform are economic fairness and fraud prevention. 

The Council noted that the current system incentivises non-EU companies to split shipments into smaller individual parcels to deliberately stay below the €150 limit.  Furthermore, estimates provided by the Council show that up to 65% of small parcels entering the EU are undervalued to avoid duties.  

The environmental cost of this logistics model, which involves shipping millions of small, individual packets rather than consolidated bulk freight, had also been raised as a major long-term concern. 

According to the European Commission, 91% of all e-commerce shipments valued under €150 in 2024 originated from China.

Timeline for proposed changes 

Although the Council has reached a political agreement, the actual implementation will involve significant technical infrastructure that is still currently under development.  

The new rules will therefore only be fully applied once the planned EU Customs Data Hub is operational.  This proposed central platform will facilitate the calculation and notification of customs debt on a per-item basis, allowing authorities to manage the sheer volume of small packages.

The platform is currently under negotiation between the Council and the European Parliament, is currently expected to launch in 2028. 

However, due to the perceived urgency of the situation, the Council has committed to a transitional solution.  

A simplified temporary system is being developed to begin levying duties on these small goods, and implementation is expected as soon as possible in 2026, bridging the gap until the data hub is fully online.

UK pursues similar measures 

The European Union is not alone in its crackdown on cross-border e-commerce. 

As we reported earlier this year, the United Kingdom is actively considering similar changes to its own £135 threshold.  

Currently, goods shipped to the UK valued under £135 are exempt from customs duty, though they are still liable for import VAT.

The UK government has been reviewing this tax exemption following intense pressure from British high street retailers. Industry giants such as Next and Sainsbury’s have long argued that the exemption acts as a loophole, allowing ultra-fast fashion platforms like Shein and Temu to undercut domestic sellers who cannot avoid these duties.

Additionally, HMRC reported that the declared value of these low-value imports rise by 53% in the 12 months to April 2025, reaching £5.9 billion. This surge has prompted calls for reform to ensure fairer trading conditions.

The British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA) has also weighed in, highlighting that the issue extends beyond economics to safety.  

It has argued that the influx of unchecked small parcels often includes goods that do not meet strict UK safety standards, from electrical items to toys, putting consumers at risk while bypassing the checks that domestic goods must undergo.

Reference：
https://www.pgbuzz.net/calls-to-scrap-uks-de-minimis-tariff/
https://taxmen.eu/2025/10/01/low-value-imports-rise-as-the-uk-evaluates-customs-de-minimis-threshold/
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/apr/23/rachel-reeves-looks-at-ending-zero-tax-regime-for-low-value-imports
https://www.shopify.com/news/de-minimis