EU Scraps the €150 Duty-Free Parcel Threshold: What Exporters Shipping to Russia Should Prepare For

1. What the EU actually agreed

The vote removes the €150 threshold in 2028, and the date is conditional: it depends on the successful launch of the centralised EU customs data hub that will replace the patchwork of national systems used today. The online portal is designed to calculate and pass on the customs debt for each individual item inside a parcel entering the Union — not for the parcel as a whole.

Because 2028 is far away, officials say they will now urgently work out an interim mechanism for collecting duty on low-value goods in 2026. This follows the European Council decision in June to introduce a flat €2 e-commerce handling fee starting in November 2026. The stated target is the flow of cheap imports from Alibaba, Shein, Temu and other platforms.

«We ensure that duties are paid from the first euro, levelling the playing field for European businesses and limiting the influx of low-cost goods,» said Stephanie Lose, Denmark’s economy minister.

One detail is often missed: even today, parcels under €150 are exempt only from customs duty. VAT and a customs declaration in the EU have always applied. What changes is the money, not the paperwork — the paperwork was already there.

2. Why the low-value channel is closing in every market

The numbers explain the decision better than the politics. The EU received 4.6 billion import parcels in 2024. Up to 65% of small parcels arriving in the region are estimated to be undervalued in order to avoid import duty, and 91% of all e-commerce parcels worth less than €150 last year came from China. Collecting duty on that flow is expected to yield $1.2 billion a year.

The criticism of de minimis runs along three lines. Regulators in both the US and Europe say it gives foreign sellers an unfair advantage over domestic manufacturers. European officials point to the extra packaging and vehicle emissions of shipping single parcels instead of consolidated loads destined for stores. US authorities argue the simplified programme helps smuggle illegal drugs and counterfeits, because e-commerce shipments can bypass regular customs checks.

Air freight demand from China and Hong Kong to the US has been falling since May. Large online sellers reacted in a way worth studying: they moved the bulk of their inbound inventory into ocean containers and now ship e-commerce orders from warehouses inside the destination market. That is the model that survives when de minimis disappears — consolidated sea freight or road groupage into a bonded, properly declared import, then local last-mile delivery.

3. What this means for your shipment to Russia and the CIS

Russian sellers have long complained that Chinese sellers can undercut them on marketplaces because they pay neither VAT nor duty and are not bound by product labelling rules. The Ministry of Finance proposal closes part of that gap. If the amendments pass, the tax on imported marketplace goods reaches 20% by 2030 — the standard domestic rate.

For you as the shipper, three things follow. First, your Russian buyer will start asking for a full commercial document set rather than a courier waybill: a commercial invoice with a realistic per-line value, a packing list, the contract and payment terms, the country of origin, and the HS code your goods will be declared under. Second, they will ask you for the technical file — composition, materials, voltage, intended use, product photos and labels — because certification and declarations of conformity for the Eurasian market are issued on the basis of your documents, not theirs. Third, valuation will be scrutinised: the customs value declared at import clearance in Russia has to stand up against the price you actually invoiced.

The single most common cause of a border hold is a mismatch between the invoice and the goods: a value below the market level, a vague description such as «samples» or «spare parts», or an HS code that does not match what is in the box. Fix the invoice at your end before the truck leaves — correcting it after the goods reach the border costs days, not hours.

Timing matters too. A certificate or declaration of conformity is issued before the goods are cleared, and the application needs your paperwork first. If your buyer starts the process only when the container is already at the port, the goods wait. Sending the document pack together with the shipping schedule, not after it, is the cheapest thing you can do for the delivery date.

4. What the exporter should do now

1. Assume the parcel route is temporary. If part of your volume to Russia and the CIS moves as individual low-value shipments, plan the switch to consolidated freight with full customs clearance.
2. Standardise your commercial invoice: one line per article, real unit prices, precise product description, materials and model numbers, country of origin, net and gross weight.
3. Agree the HS code with your buyer in advance and keep it consistent across the invoice, packing list and transport documents. Duty rates, VAT and permit requirements all follow from that code.
4. Prepare a technical file for certification: composition or specification, safety data where applicable, label and packaging artwork, user manual, product photos.
5. Write the responsibilities into the contract — who pays duty and VAT, who applies for the certificates, which Incoterms apply, and what happens if clearance is delayed.
6. Build extra days into your lead time for the first shipments under the new rules. The first consignment of any product is always the slow one; the second moves on the file you already built.

5. Frequently asked questions

Does the EU decision affect my shipments to Russia directly?
No. It changes the rules for parcels entering the European Union. It matters to you because it confirms the direction of travel: the US removed de minimis in August, the EU is following, and Russia is preparing VAT on foreign marketplace goods. If your sales model depends on duty-free small parcels, it will need rebuilding in each of those markets.

Are small parcels into the EU duty-free today, with no formalities at all?
No. Parcels below €150 are exempt from customs duty only. VAT and a customs declaration already apply, and a flat €2 handling fee is due to start in November 2026.

Why is undervaluing the invoice a problem if it has worked so far?
Because it is exactly what the new rules are aimed at — up to 65% of small parcels arriving in the EU are estimated to be undervalued. Customs authorities compare declared values against market data, and a low invoice now attracts a check rather than avoiding one.

What can I do from my side to speed up clearance in Russia?
Send the document pack early and make it consistent: invoice, packing list, contract, origin, HS code and the technical data needed for certification. Almost every delay we see starts with a document that contradicts another one.

Summary

The EU will scrap the €150 duty-free threshold in 2028, with an interim collection mechanism planned for 2026 and a €2 handling fee from November 2026. The US already removed de minimis for all origins in August, and Russia intends to phase in VAT on foreign marketplace goods from 5% in 2027 to 20% in 2030. For an exporter, the response is the same in every case: consolidated shipments, honest valuation, a consistent HS code and a complete document pack sent early. Request a consultation and we will go through your specific consignment.

We will prepare the Russian customs and certification paperwork for your consignment so your buyer clears it without holds at the border.

Request a consultation