End of US low-value package tariff exemption is permanent, Trump officials say

(VOVWORLD) - The US tariff exemption for package shipments valued under 800 USD ended permanently on Friday, with a six-month transition period under which postal service shippers can opt to pay a flat duty of 80 USD to 200 USD per package depending on the country of origin, Trump administration officials said.

A cargo ship operated by Chinese shipping company COSCO docks at the Port of Long Beach, California, the US. (Photo: XHN/VNA)

The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency began collecting normal duty rates on all global parcel imports, regardless of value on Friday.

The move broadens the Trump administration's cancellation of the de minimis exemption for shipments from China and Hong Kong earlier this year.

"President Trump's ending of the deadly de minimis loophole will save thousands of American lives by restricting the flow of narcotics and other dangerous prohibited items, and add up to 10 billion USD a year in tariff revenues to our Treasury," White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told reporters.

"This is a permanent change," said a senior administration official, adding that any push to restore the exemptions for trusted trading partner countries was "dead on arrival."

CBP has estimated that the number of packages claiming the de minimis exemption jumped nearly 10-fold, from 139 million in fiscal 2015 to 1.36 billion in fiscal 2024.