Starting July 1, every cheap package from China landing on a European doorstep will cost a little more. The European Union is introducing a flat €3 customs duty on online purchases valued at €150 or less, a move squarely aimed at the tidal wave of low-cost goods flowing in from Chinese e-commerce giants like Temu, Shein, and AliExpress.
The levy might sound small. But when you multiply it across 4.6 billion low-value parcels, which is the estimated volume that entered the EU in 2024, the math gets interesting fast.
What the new duty actually does
For years, the EU maintained what’s known as a de minimis exemption, a rule that let goods valued under €150 slip across borders without any customs duty. The volume of low-value parcels entering the EU more than doubled from 2023 to 2024, reaching that 4.6 billion figure. And 91% of those low-value imports in 2024 came from China.
The EU Council reached agreement on the new duty back in December 2025, with a final procedural green light following in February 2026. The €3 charge applies per item or per customs code, not as a single flat fee per parcel. So if your package contains three separate items, you could be looking at €9 in duties rather than €3.
