EU Customs Reform Takes Effect and Strengthens E-Commerce Parcel Oversight
The EU customs reform will be implemented in phases, and platforms and sellers may assume more importer responsibilities involving product data, duties, fees, and product compliance.
What are the key facts?
- 1The EU’s new customs reform has taken effect
- 2The reform includes a unified customs data platform
- 3Platforms may assume responsibilities similar to those of importers
- 4The customs-duty exemption for parcels below €150 has ended
What happened?
The European Commission Representation in Cyprus said in a September 22, 2026 announcement that the EU’s new customs reform has taken effect. The relevant legal texts were published in the Official Journal of the European Union on September 19 and will be implemented in phases.
The reform includes establishing an EU Customs Authority, building a unified EU customs data platform, and strengthening oversight of low-value e-commerce parcels. For platforms and sellers offering non-EU goods to EU consumers, platforms may in the future be treated as importers or assume similar responsibilities. They may need to submit complete product data, handle duties and related fees, and ensure compliance with EU safety, environmental, and product requirements.
The EU previously removed the customs-duty exemption for parcels valued below €150 from July 1, 2026, and temporarily imposed a €3 duty per item. A new EU-wide handling fee is expected to take effect from November 2026, with the specific amount still pending adoption by the European Commission through a delegated act.
The sellers most affected are those shipping directly to the EU from China, Japan, Southeast Asia, and other regions through Amazon FBM, independent websites, TikTok Shop, and other platforms, especially operators using low-average-order-value, small-parcel, and multi-SKU order models.
What does this mean for cross-border sellers?
The EU customs reform has taken effect and will be implemented in phases. Platforms and sellers may assume more importer responsibilities, requiring complete product data and the handling of duties, related fees, and product compliance. The customs-duty exemption for parcels below €150 has ended, so low-value, small-parcel, and multi-SKU direct-shipping models need to recalculate costs and declaration arrangements.
What should sellers do now?
- 1This week, create product-data tables for EU direct-shipping stores and multi-SKU orders; use HS codes and duty estimates to verify the €3-per-item duty impact on parcels below €150, and produce a list of SKUs, taxes and fees, and declaration fields.HS duty estimate
- 2This week, enter EU low-value small parcels into a profit calculator by store and SKU, including the €3-per-item duty and a variable for the expected November 2026 handling fee; export a list of SKUs requiring price increases or warehouse changes.Profit calculator