May’s withdrawal of tariff exemption on £800 Chinese imports to be extended globally
Under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on 29 July 2025, packages valued at or under $800 sent to the U.S. outside of the international postal network will now face “all applicable duties” starting on 29 August 29.
This extends the May (see below) ending of the customs tariffs exemption threshold that was put into effect on Chinese originating consignments to US consumers.
“The de minimis exemption has been abused, with shippers sending illicit fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, precursors, and paraphernalia into the United States in reliance on the lower security measures applied to de minimis shipments, killing Americans,” the White House said’
The EU €150 de minimis is expect to end in 2028. The UK £135 customs exemption threshold will shortly go under review.
2 May 2025: all Chinese import consignments subject to duties
The US has ended the $800 duty-free exemption, de minimis, for consignment goods shipped from China (including Hong Kong) to US consumers. This came into effect on 2 May 2025. From this date all consignments worth less than $800 will be subject to a 120% levy or a flat fee of $100, rising to $200 from June.
This will affect over four million de minimis daily shipments into the US. Shipments from other countries will continue to enjoy the $800 threshold.
Individual consumers are permitted one duty-exempt consignment per day.
Global ending customs de minimis
Duty and import tax exemption thresholds have traditionally been used to alleviate the obligation on customs authorities to collect relatively low totals of taxes for high administrative costs.
Ending the de minimis, part of the Trump Presidency imposition of increased tariffs, also reflects other countries withdrawing their de minimis thresholds. Several countries have recently moved to reduce or eliminate their de minimis thresholds to concerns over revenue loss, trade fairness, and protecting local retailers.
The EU customs €150 exemption is likely to be removed in 2028.
