From today (1 July 2026), the European Union (EU) will begin applying a temporary customs handling charge to low-value consignments (under €150) imported from outside the bloc. The measures, which apply a €3 (c. £2.60) temporary duty per item are set to have widespread impact across the supply chain.
The action was initially announced in November 2025 and is part of the wider EU Customs Reform.
EU lawmakers stated that the measures are being taken is to ensure fairness across the supranational political and economic union’s supply chains.
The implementation follows evidence that a significant share of low-value e-commerce imports fail to meet EU standards.
The EU said that this poses a risk to consumers and undermines the fair competition ethos central to its operations to unite its member organisations.
A temporary charge
In a June statement, the EU explained that “products on the EU market have to comply with high standards, to protect citizens from dangerous goods and to remove goods that do not meet environmental and labour standards. If goods coming from third countries do not respect those standards, this generates unfair competition for legitimate EU business.”
The EU added that “due to the digitalised customs environment where electronic data are available for all imported goods regardless of their value, it is no longer justified to maintain the customs duty relief for low-value consignments.”
This relief had previously been introduced to prevent the disproportionate administrative burden on customs authorities, businesses and private individuals, but this provides a competitive advantage to certain business flows. Reportedly, last year, almost 5.9 billion of low-value items were directly shipped from third countries to consumers in the EU, without paying customs duties; something that traditional retailers cannot compete with.
However, the flat fee is a temporary regime scheduled to apply until 1 July 2028, pending implementation of the future EU Customs Data Hub and broader customs reforms.
Full details of the new rules were published in the Official Journal of the EU on 8 June.
These outline anti-abuse provisions that prevent operators from skirting or restructuring transactions to avoid the €3 per-item charge on products imported from outside the EU.
IOSS shipments remain subject to the new customs duty while new product identifier requirements are expected to enhance both customs controls and traceability.
EU commissioner Maroš Šefčovič said: “This reform ensures fairness for all businesses operating within the EU market while keeping customs procedures simple for consumers.
“By introducing a small duty and stronger product traceability, we are closing loopholes that allowed unsafe and non-compliant goods to enter our market too easily.
“This is a key step in the modernisation of our Customs Union and towards a fully digital, agile and coordinated EU customs system fit for the challenges of our times.”
The rules will apply to distance sales of imported goods from non-EU suppliers.
To enhance traceability, product identifiers (PIDs) will also become mandatory from 1 November 2026 (but can be declared on a voluntary basis already from 1 July 2026), helping customs authorities detect and block unsafe or non-compliant goods.
The measure is completely non-discriminatory and applies equally regardless of the country of origin of the goods or the logistics operator involved.
Potential impact for UK businesses
As it pertains to UK businesses, the UK government currently estimates that 41% of total UK exports go to the EU single market.
As such, any changes that impact British businesses could put many at risk of losing profits or profitability.
In reaction to the EU’s decision, UK head of trade policy, William Bain, said: “Although UK originating products will still be tariff free, they will now face customs fees and potentially separate handling charges levied by individual EU countries.
“This extra cost will make goods from Great Britain less attractive to both businesses and people in the EU and squeeze profit margins.”
Industry has also called on the UK to take action, noting that it remains increasingly out of step with developments in other markets
“Major EU customs reforms are due to come into force from January 2028, and the UK government is consulting on the scheme for abolishing the UK de minimis threshold from 2029. The government must now consider wider customs reforms and the introduction of a Single Trade Window to ease costs for our firms. It will also need to review the impact of these EU changes on customs rules between Great Britain and Northern Ireland,” Bain said.
Parcel carriers including Royal Mail and DHL have already released statements warning customers that the new EU charges will impact current payment frameworks.
Shahab Wahdatehagh, vice president, global trade intelligence EMEA/AP at Descartes, warned that transport companies and freight forwarders will also feel the effects of the measure.
“Even if shipping volumes decline drastically immediately after 1 July, they will still have to manage customs declarations for around one billion parcels almost overnight, leading to increased workload and complexity,” he said.
A version of this article first appeared in the July issue of Logistics Manager magazine.
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