The European Union is intensifying measures against cheap packages from China that are flooding the European market. Finance ministers from member states agreed in Brussels that tariffs will be introduced in 2026 on all low-value shipments arriving in the EU, thereby eliminating the existing exemption for shipments valued up to 150 euros. This deadline is significantly earlier than the originally planned mid-2028.
The decision impacts Chinese e-commerce platforms such as Shein and Temu, which send a vast number of cheap packages to Europe. The value of imports of small packages from China in 2024 is projected to be 23.1 billion dollars. According to the European Commission‘s communication on e-commerce, 4.6 billion low-value shipments were imported into the EU in 2024, averaging 12 million packages per day. In 2023, there were 2.3 billion such shipments, and in 2022, there were 1.4 billion. The Commission states that in 2024, as much as 91 percent of all packages valued at less than 150 euros arrived from China.
Member states are expected to agree on a temporary system by December that will enable the implementation of the new rules, followed by negotiations with the European Parliament, whose consent is also required. Some countries are already introducing national measures. Romania has proposed a fee of 25 lei (approximately 5.73 dollars) on low-value packages, while Italy is working on a special tax that is expected to be introduced by the end of the year to protect its fashion industry from competition from cheap goods from China.
The changes represent a potential turning point for Chinese platforms that have aggressively increased their market share in Europe in recent years, while European trade associations warn that the system is overwhelmed with small packages and that stricter control and a unified approach at the EU level are necessary.
European Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič previously stated that the Commission is preparing a proposal under which a fixed fee of two euros would be charged for each small package sent directly from a third country to the EU. For shipments that are stored within the EU beforehand, this fee would be 0.5 euros.
