EU proposes €2 handling fee on low-value imports

In order to manage the large influx of low-cost items being imported from abroad, the European Union has proposed a flat-rate €2 handling fee on low-cost goods.

The EU currently receives around 12 million small parcels on a daily basis, many of which are sold via low-cost international shopping platforms such as Shein and Temu and shipped from China.  

The flat-rate charge is intended to have two impacts – to prevent large-scale ‘dumping’ of cheap goods onto the European market following updated United States tariff policy, and to support customs authorities across the EU in checking that imports are compliant with product safety regulations.

The EU proposals include a lower €0.50 fee for products that are already stored within the bloc before being shipped to end-consumers.

The flat-rate fee is expected to be levied on major online marketplaces rather than directly on consumers.   

Earlier this year, the United States announced that it would remove the ‘de minimis’ exception for goods entering from China, a duty-free threshold for low-value imports.  This caused major Chinese ecommerce retailers including Temu to announce that it would no longer ship goods from China, and instead rely on local sellers to fulfil orders.  The policy is now pending further litigation in the courts.

In a similar move, the EU Commission has also proposed scrapping the current €150 duty-free threshold for imports.  The current threshold allows for many low-priced goods to enter the European market without any additional customs fees.  

Both proposals will require consent from all EU Member States and be put to a vote in the European Parliament before they can become effective.  

The United Kingdom, another close trading partner, has also announced a similar review into its own duty-free threshold of £135, which many British retailers claim provides an unfair ‘loophole’ for international retailers relying on low-cost, high-volume sales models.  The British government has launched a consultation which is expected to return results later this year.  

New return shipping fee regulations for retailers in Türkiye

The Turkish Ministry of Commerce has announced a new consumer rights framework which will require retailers to cover the cost of return shipping fees.  

In an amendment to the Distance Contracts Regulation, retailers will be required to cover any return shipping costs incurred when a customer invokes their right to withdraw from the sale under distance selling regulations.   

This means that retailers must either specify (and prepay) a nominated carrier for returns, or arrange the return at no additional cost to the customer.

Additionally, the amendment will allow consumers to exercise a 14-day withdrawal period for many electronic items such as mobile phones, tablets and computers when purchased online.  Previously, consumers could only return these items if the retailer agreed to the request.  

The amendment also means that customers will not need to provide any reason for exercising their right to withdraw from a distance sale and return any shipped goods.    

These measures will be effective from 1 January 2026.

AliExpress launches local shipping options in Germany

AliExpress has launched its Local+ shipping programme in Germany, which will allow sellers to fulfil delivery to customers in as little as three days.

The Local+ programme aims to offer consumers a regionally tailored shopping experience which includes sellers based in Germany, and domestic shipping options to lower overall lead times.  

Germany is a key target market for AliExpress, with the e-commerce platform recently sponsoring the EUFA European Championship which was held in Germany earlier in 2024.  

In recent years, the e-commerce platform has sought to step up efforts in major consumer markets to become a key player, such as with the launch of its ‘Direct Store’ initiative the neighbouring United Kingdom.  

The Direct Store programme allowed UK businesses to directly ship products to consumers whilst taking advantage of the marketing and promotional tools offered by AliExpress as a selling platform.