Fashion
EU de minimis exemptions, new customs duties to affect UK bizs: BCC
The EU move primarily targets parcels arriving through e-commerce channels that currently benefit from duty-free entry.
Reacting to the EU decision on de minimis exemptions and new customs duties starting July 1, 2026, the British Chambers of Commerce said the decision to charge a flat customs duty of €3 on each commodity code for consignments worth less than €150 will significantly affect UK businesses.
It will make British goods less attractive to both businesses and people in the EU and squeeze profit margins, it noted.
“Although UK-originating products will still be tariff free, they will now face customs fees and potentially separate handling charges levied by individual EU countries,” William Bain, BCC head of trade policy, said in a statement.
“This extra cost will make goods from Great Britian less attractive to both businesses and people in the EU and squeeze profit margins,” he observed.
Major EU customs reforms are due to come into force from January 2028, and the UK government is consulting on the scheme for abolishing the UK de minimis threshold from 2029, he said.
“The government must now consider wider customs reforms and the introduction of a Single Trade Window to ease costs for our firms. It will also need to review the impact of these EU changes on customs rules between Great Britain and Northern Ireland,” he added.
EU officials said the measure aims at addressing unfair competition faced by EU sellers, alongside concerns over consumer health and safety, widespread fraud, and environmental impact linked to high volumes of low-value imports. Around 93 per cent of e-commerce flows into the EU are expected to fall under the scope of the new duty, the European Council said in an earlier press release.
The €3 rate will apply to goods sold by non-EU traders registered under the EU’s Import One-Stop Shop for value-added tax purposes. The Council clarified that this customs duty is separate from a proposed handling fee being discussed under the broader customs reform and the EU’s multiannual financial framework.
The temporary duty will remain in force until a permanent system agreed in November 2025 comes into application, which would remove the €150 duty-free threshold altogether and subject all such goods to standard EU tariffs.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)