From 1 July 2026, the EU will introduce a fee on small parcels entering its territory, with e-commerce platforms like Temu and Shein expected to be primarily impacted.

On Friday, EU member states agreed to implement a €3 levy on all parcels valued under €150 entering the union. This move aims to limit the expanding presence of Chinese e-commerce platforms such as Temu and Shein, which ship billions of affordable products to the EU market.

«As e-commerce grows rapidly, global changes accelerate — and appropriate measures are necessary to keep up,» stated EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič.

«Hence, the rule on customs duties for small parcels imported into the EU is crucial to guarantee equitable competition at our borders in this era dominated by e-commerce.»

Effective starting 1 July 2026, the charge is applied per parcel, not per individual item. Thus, if a consumer orders three products sent in one parcel, the fee will be €3; if those items arrive in three separate parcels, the fee applies to each package individually.

The volume of small e-commerce parcels entering the EU has risen steeply in recent years. In 2024, imports of low-value goods under €150 reached approximately €4.6 billion, equating to around 12 million parcels daily, according to European Commission data.

This figure marks a significant rise compared to €2.3 billion in 2023 and €1.4 billion in 2022.

Under current legislation, parcels priced below €150 incur no customs duties. However, the EU has recently decided to remove this exemption.

This regulation is provisional until the EU establishes a long-term approach to phase out the customs duty exemption threshold.