Duty-Free Shipments Into the EU Will End 1 July 2026
Published: 28 January 2026
From 1 July 2026, EU eCommerce imports under €150 will face a new duty at the border of at least €3.
If you’re a D2C brand located outside the EU and often ship there, you’re likely to be affected by new costs at the border and a diminished customer experience if you continue business as usual.
Here’s what you need to know.
In this article
How much is the new EU customs duty?
Currently, low-value shipments (under €150) are exempt from customs duties. From 1 July 2026, however, parcels entering the EU will be subject to a €3 flat customs duty.
Importantly, this €3 duty is applied per tariff classification, based on each item’s EU customs tariff classification (CN code). As a result, orders containing multiple items may incur higher total charges, although only one €3 charge applies per unique tariff classification within an order.
For example:
- A pair of earbuds and a speaker system would incur a €3 charge, as both items share the same EU tariff classification.
- A pair of earbuds and spare buds would incur a €6 charge, as the order contains two SKUs with different EU tariff classifications.
- An order containing earbuds, spare buds, and a charging cable would incur a €9 charge, as the order includes three SKUs with different EU tariff classifications.
It’s worth noting that this €3 duty is a temporary measure, expected to remain in place until a permanent solution is introduced in 2028.
Current indications suggest that any long-term approach is likely to calculate duty based on the sale price of an order, rather than a flat fee.
Why is the EU customs duty being introduced?
The new customs duty comes in the wake of the U.S’s removal of the $800 De Minimis Value and reflects a growing trend of more expensive cross-border shipping.
There has been growing pressure from the EU to close duty-free loopholes and create a fairer playing field for EU-based sellers, particularly after the growth of low-value eCommerce shipments in recent years.
It’s estimated that hundreds of millions of low-value parcels enter the EU every year, which simply wasn’t the case when the rule was originally designed.
Who pays the EU customs duty?
As with all international shipments, responsibility for paying customs duties depends on the Incoterm applied to the shipment.
- For DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) shipments, the shipper (you) covers the duty.
- For non-DDP shipments, the duty is payable by the customer. In these cases, orders are often held at the border until payment is made.
How to bypass the customs duty
We appreciate that this change may raise concerns for brands currently shipping into the EU from non-EU fulfilment centres, particularly following the removal of the $800 US De Minimis threshold last year.
At that time, we advised that the most effective way to mitigate the impact was to move stock in-region and fulfil locally, reducing exposure to cross-border duties and tariffs.
The same principle applies here. If you’d like to bypass the new EU customs duty entirely, we recommend considering localised EU fulfilment.
J&J Global Fulfilment currently operate two fulfilment centres in Europe, located in the Netherlands and Poland, and can support you in assessing whether an EU-based fulfilment setup is right for your business.
If you’d like to discuss your options or get further advice, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
This article is for informational purposes only. Please seek further guidance and advice for individual circumstances.
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