Customs rules that until now allowed small parcels to enter the EU without extra charges are being overturned following the political agreement reached by EU finance ministers at the recent Ecofin. Starting in 2026, EU member states are preparing to impose duties even on shipments worth under €150 — the millions of low-value parcels that arrive from third-country platforms, mainly from China.

This move does not mean the new system is fully finalized, but it marks the first step in a transition period lasting until 2028, when the EU’s unified customs system is expected to become fully operational. Until then, duties on small parcels will serve as a temporary framework aimed at correcting market distortions that have grown steadily in recent years.

During the Ecofin discussion, Greece’s Minister of National Economy and Finance, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, took a clear and active stance in favor of abolishing the €150 exemption threshold. He fully supported imposing duties on low-value parcels imported from non-EU countries, emphasizing that the policy is crucial for transparency in online commerce, for protecting European consumers, and for restoring fair competition for EU businesses. Aligning with the French position, he called for implementation as early as possible — from the beginning of 2026 — stressing its importance both for customs operations and for the EU as a whole.

EU Commissioner for Economy and Productivity Valdis Dombrovskis underlined the need for “fair rules” in e-commerce, noting that the massive volume of ultra-cheap goods entering directly to European consumers requires a more coherent and functional regulatory response.

The technical details of how the new charges will work are expected to be finalized in the coming weeks. The goal, however, is clear: to curb the uncontrolled inflow of small parcels that currently enter duty-free, creating unfair competition and giving non-EU platforms an unwarranted advantage.

The data presented to ministers was striking: up to 65% of small parcels are declared at a lower value than their true worth, while 91% of parcels under €150 that entered the EU last year originated from China. Many companies intentionally break orders into multiple small packages to avoid customs, a practice that also increases packaging waste and emissions.

The full overhaul of the system will be completed in 2028 with the launch of the EU Customs Data Hub, the new digital platform that will automatically calculate customs duties for every imported item. Once it is activated, the €150 duty-free threshold will be permanently abolished.

In Greece, the measure directly affects one of the most dynamic segments of e-commerce. With an average parcel value of about €25, the total turnover of small parcels arriving in Greece last year is estimated at €627 million, representing nearly 21% of the entire €3 billion online market. In simple terms: one in every five euros Greeks spend online goes to third-country platforms.

According to the Hellenic Confederation of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (ESEE), Greece ranked among the top European markets for Temu and Shein during 2023–2024. Transparency reports from both platforms show that in the first half of 2025 they each recorded roughly 2.7 million active monthly users, highlighting their deep penetration into the Greek market.

The United States has taken a similar approach, abolishing its own “de minimis” exemption for products from China and Hong Kong worth under $800 as of May.