De Minimis Shock Hits U.S. Imports
- Arne Mielken
- Aug 29
- 2 min read
🔓 De Minimis is dead! U.S. low-value shipments now face full duties & taxes. Postal chaos ensues—only Royal Mail seems ready.
Opinion By Arne Mielken, Customs Professional
The De Minimis Shock: U.S. Imports Are About to Get Ugly
Let’s not sugarcoat it: the U.S. has just pulled the plug on the De Minimis exemption, and the fallout is hitting hard—and fast. Low-value shipments, the lifeblood of small businesses, e-commerce, and international gift-giving, can no longer enter the U.S. with minimal fuss and zero duty. Everything now gets counted, taxed, and tracked. No shortcuts. No mercy.
Here’s the kicker: global postal services are freaking out. European and Asian carriers are pausing or cutting off shipments to the U.S. entirely. PostEurop reports at least 16 European postal operators halting shipments. Germany’s Deutsche Post? Suspended. Belgium’s Bpost? Suspended. Japan Post? Suspended. The list goes on. The only major carrier that seems to have its act together? The U.K.’s Royal Mail. Everyone else is scrambling.
Why does this matter?
Because 1.3 billion packages entered the U.S. last year under De Minimis rules. Now, hundreds of millions of small shipments risk delay, higher costs, or outright blockage. Discount retailers like Shein and Temu are already seeing their costs skyrocket. And yes, ordinary Americans—your next online purchase, your gifts, your small-dollar imports—are going to feel it.
From a customs professional’s standpoint, this is more than an administrative headache. This is a wake-up call for global importers. If you relied on De Minimis to move goods quickly and cheaply, your supply chains just got a jolt of reality. Paper informal entries? Dead. Simplified filings? Dead. Postal shipments? Chaos.
This isn’t just bureaucracy—it’s a shift in U.S. trade policy, and it’s as blunt as it gets. Companies that adapt fast—update systems, coordinate with carriers, understand CBP guidance—will survive.
Those who wait? They’ll pay the price, literally and figuratively.
We’ve captured all the official guidance, the postal disruptionsi n our PRO Blog.
It’s your one-stop resource to cut through the chaos, stay ahead of CBP, and keep goods flowing.
Read the full PRO Blog here: https://www.customsmanager.info/post/us-de-minimis-suspension
De Minimis is dead. Adapt—or get left behind.
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