From Sunday, 1 November, every package entering the European Union will be subject to a €2 handling fee, a move designed to offset the administrative costs of customs checks and to level the playing field for European retailers facing a flood of low-cost imports from China.
The new fee applies regardless of a parcel's value and is collected by the 27 member states, with 75% of the revenue going to the EU budget and the remainder retained by national authorities. It comes on top of the €3 duty on small parcels worth under €150 that came into force in July. That duty is temporary and will remain until 2028, when a new EU-wide customs IT system is expected to be operational.
According to the European Commission, the July duty has already had a noticeable effect: between July and September, the number of small parcels entering the bloc fell by 60%. Still, around 5 million parcels continue to arrive every day, and in 2024, 91% of those shipments originated in China, with platforms such as Temu, Shein and AliExpress dominating the market.
Why the EU is acting
The measures are a direct response to the dramatic growth of e-commerce imports from Chinese platforms, whose low prices undercut European businesses. An EU official explained the rationale: “The logic for the duty is the level playing field: all goods entering the EU should pay the due and justified amount of duty.” The official added: “The logic of the fee is to cover the costs of control, as e-commerce represents a disproportionate cost for our customs authority.”
The €2 fee will be paid by platforms, sellers or carriers, depending on the arrangement, and will be collected by national customs authorities. The Commission argues that the fee is necessary to ensure that customs controls are adequately funded, given the sheer volume of parcels that must be inspected.
Beyond the fiscal measures, the EU is also tackling the issue of non-compliant products. In September, the Commission proposed legislation that would hold an economic operator based in the EU legally responsible for any non-compliance of goods sold through online marketplaces, a move aimed at curbing the import of illegal or unsafe products.
The new rules have been welcomed by European retail associations, which have long complained about the unfair advantage of Chinese platforms that benefit from the previous €150 threshold. However, some small businesses and consumers worry about the cumulative cost of the fees, which could raise prices on low-value items.
The Commission insists that the measures are not protectionist but are about fairness and safety. “We are not against e-commerce, but we want it to be fair and safe,” a Commission spokesperson said. “The fees are modest compared to the benefits of a well-regulated market.”
The impact of the new fee will be closely monitored, especially as the EU prepares for the full rollout of its new customs system in 2028. In the meantime, the bloc is also working on other fronts, such as enforcing its deforestation law and addressing cybersecurity vulnerabilities that have affected European websites.
For now, the immediate effect is clear: from 1 November, every parcel entering the EU will carry an extra €2 charge, a small but symbolic step in the bloc's broader effort to regulate the digital economy and protect its single market.
