The new rules of cross-border commerce after de minimis

Juan Pellerano-Rendon, Chief Marketing Officer, Swap

On July 1, the duty-free era of European e-commerce ended. As reported by Modern Retail, every parcel entering the European Union now owes customs duty, regardless of value. Shipments under €150 carry a €3 charge per line item, and the liability lands on brands and retailers. Under the new framework, the merchant — not the customer, not the carrier — is the default legal customs debtor, responsible for duty on top of VAT.

For years, de minimis thresholds let low-value goods cross borders without duties or full customs processing. A blazer from Paris, boots from London — if the parcel sat under the buyer’s threshold, it shipped straight to the door. That model moved staggering volume: in 2024, the E.U. cleared 4.6 billion parcels under the €150 threshold. All of that flow now runs through customs, line item by line item.

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