U.S. Ends $800 Duty-Free Imports: What Shoppers Need to Know

Effective Aug. 29, the ‘De Minimus’ tariff exemption ends, adding new costs and delays to international shopping.

For years, Americans have been able to get goods from foreign markets easily without paying high tariffs or dealing with customs paperwork. But today, the United States is putting that to an end with the elimination of the “De Minimus” exemption that has allowed imports worth $800 or less to enter the country duty-free. The exemption had already ended for packages and items coming from China and Hong Kong, but now this applies to countries worldwide. 

This means shipments coming into the US will have tariffs imposed. Making it so packages can begin incurring charges ranging from 10% to 50% of their declared value or, for the next six months, a flat duty of $80 to $200 per parcel. 

National postal services of more than 30 countries have temporarily suspended sending most U.S.-bound packages due to the limited time and information provided on collecting duties. That list includes Australia, New Zealand, India, Japan, Mexico, Thailand, and almost every country in Europe. 

For the past couple of months, there have been reports of shipping companies holding packages until customers pay after-purchase bills to cover delivery duties, but that is unlikely to continue if tariffs endure. Many retailers are preparing to either increase costs, raise shipping fees, or add tariffs as an additional cost at the end of a purchase, alongside taxes or shipping at the bottom of receipts. 

Tariffs are based on the country of origin from which an item may come. For example, if you order a package from the U.K. but the products it contains are made in China, you will have to pay the tariff rate for China. The import taxes for small items are likely going to be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers, raising costs and potentially delaying orders. 

The decision to close the “De Minimus” loophole came from an Executive Order from President Donald Trump, stating, it had allowed fentanyl to be smuggled into the country, and lent foreign businesses an unfair advantage against American companies. 

After signing the Executive order to suspend the De Minimis exemption in July, the White House released a fact sheet stating, “Closing the catastrophic loophole used to, among other things, evade tariffs and funnel deadly synthetic opioids as well as other unsafe or below market products that harm American workers and businesses into the United States.”