The End of Easy Imports: U.S. Suspends Duty-Free Rule, Raising Costs Worldwide

What Happened

This week marks the end of a decades-old system that shaped the way Americans shop online. Beginning Friday, the de minimis exemption, a rule that lets U.S. customers receive imports valued at up to $800 duty-free, will be suspended by executive order.

For years, the exemption allowed goods from abroad to slip through customs without major cost or delay. It fueled the rise of e-commerce and made it easy for Americans to order inexpensive items directly from overseas. More than 90% of U.S.-bound cargo by volume qualified as de minimis, according to Customs and Border Protection.

President Trump had already ended the exemption for China and Hong Kong in May, leading fast-fashion retailers like Shein and Temu to raise prices. Moving forward, the suspension will extend to all countries. Every international purchase will now be taxed at rates tied to its country of origin. The result is that most imported items, from jeans and crafts to home décor and gadgets, will cost at least 10% more and could take longer to arrive.

The global shipping industry is scrambling. Postal services and carriers across Europe, Asia, and Oceania have paused at least some U.S.-bound parcels while they sort out the new logistics. The United Kingdom expects its stoppage to last only a day or two. Germany’s DHL Group has said only that it will resume “as quickly as possible.”

Why It Matters

The de minimis rule wasn’t always set at $800. It began decades ago as a much lower threshold, designed to help customs authorities focus on large, high-value shipments rather than the millions of small packages entering the country. Congress raised the limit to $800 in 2016, in part to ease the flood of e-commerce deliveries that would otherwise clog inspection systems.

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That higher threshold became the backbone of the modern online shopping ecosystem. It allowed U.S. consumers to buy inexpensive products directly from foreign retailers without being hit with duties or delays. Retailers abroad relied on it to access the American market, while logistics companies developed streamlined systems to handle the flow of packages.

Suspending the rule effectively rewrites that system overnight. Every package will now require tariff calculation, invoicing, and processing. Customs authorities and shipping companies believe the new policies are ambiguous and demand entirely new logistics platforms. The pauses in shipments from France, Italy, Spain, India, South Korea, Singapore, Australia, and others reflect the scale of the adjustment.

Proponents of the change believe that it levels the playing field for U.S. manufacturers and retailers. They argue foreign competitors have long maintained an unfair advantage by exploiting these duty-free thresholds. They also point to vulnerabilities created by the exemption, which allows a massive stream of packages to bypass the revenue and oversight mechanisms built into U.S. trade policy.

But others believe that the sudden suspension threatens consumers, small businesses, and global trade partners, all of whom have come to rely on the exemption. For shoppers, it will certainly translate to higher costs and longer waits.

How It Affects Readers

For Americans, the change will be felt most at the checkout screen. That Danish lamp you’ve been eyeing, a hand-crafted bracelet from Spain, or a viral plush toy from Japan will no longer glide through customs duty-free. American consumers can expect higher totals and possible shipping delays as carriers adapt.

Retailers may pass along tariff costs in full, cut back their offerings, or seek U.S.-based warehouses to stay competitive. The biggest e-commerce players have the scale to adapt quickly. Smaller sellers, however, could be squeezed out, narrowing the variety of international goods available online.

The policy change also shows a bigger shift in U.S. trade and consumer strategy. What once was designed to streamline commerce and minimize red tape is now being reworked to protect domestic industries and assert control over global supply chains. For everyday consumers, that means the era of cheap, fast, duty-free imports may be coming to an end.

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