EU to charge €2 handling fee on incoming parcels from 1 November
Platforms, sellers or carriers will pay the charge, which applies regardless of parcel value and is separate from the existing €3 duty on small parcels.
A €2 customs handling charge will apply to every parcel entering the EU market from 1 November. The measure comes as the bloc faces growing volumes of low-cost imports from Chinese online platforms, including Temu, Shein and AliExpress.
The charge will sit alongside a €3 duty introduced in July for small parcels valued below €150. That duty is temporary: it is due to remain until 2028, when a new customs IT system becomes operational.
Platforms, sellers or carriers will pay the handling fee. Collection will be carried out by the EU’s 27 member states, with 75 per cent of receipts going to the EU budget and countries retaining 25 per cent.
An EU official said the two charges served different purposes. The duty was intended to ensure goods paid the appropriate customs duties, while the handling fee would meet inspection costs, with e-commerce placing a disproportionate cost burden on customs authorities.
The European Commission said small-parcel arrivals fell by 60 per cent between July and September following the duty’s introduction. Even so, it said 5 million parcels continued to reach the EU market daily. China accounted for 91 per cent of those shipments in 2024.
In September, the Commission also proposed legislation targeting illegal imported products, particularly online marketplace sales. The proposal would ensure an operator within the EU was legally accountable for breaches of product rules.
