The European Union plans to impose tariffs on cheap goods purchased from Chinese online retailers including Temu, Shein and AliExpress, Reuters reported, citing the Financial Times, which cited three people briefed on the matter.
European Commission This month, the EU will propose abolishing the current threshold of 150 euros below which goods can be purchased duty-free, Reuters reported, citing a report published by the FT.
Media: Brussels plans to hit Chinese sellers with tariffs
Under current EU rules, parcels purchased online from a non-EU country are not subject to customs duties if their value does not exceed €150.
Two billion parcels with a declared value of less than 150 euros arrived in the EU from non-EU countries in 2023, the European Commission said, stressing that “the volume of e-commerce is testing customs borders,” Reuters reported.
The EU had been discussing lifting the cap as part of a customs reform bill proposed by the Commission in May 2023, but may now seek to speed up its adoption to counter the rise in cheap imports, the FT reported.
“We fully support lawmakers' efforts to reform the de minimis rule,” a Shein spokesman said, according to Reuters. AliExpress' parent company Alibaba, Temu and European Union did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
Fragment of the program “Nothing Simple: Ultra Fast Fashion”, TVN24 GOOne day off a week, work for a bowl of rice with vegetables and starvation wages – this is the reality of workers in Chinese sewing factories of ultra fast fashion. Sinologist Weronika Truszczyńska tells the story of many Chinese “migrant workers” who, in search of a better future for themselves and their children, take on work that some call “modern slavery”. A fragment of the program “Nothing Simple: Ultra Fast Fashion”, available on TVN24 GO. Antonina Dlugosinska, TVN24 GO
Critics of Shein and Temu in the United States have already complained that Chinese sellers are using import tax exemptions to undercut competitors and avoid customs inspections of their products.
The practice is intended to help both companies offer dresses for as little as $8 and smart watches for $25 to shoppers around the world, Reuters reported.
Main image source: Adobe Stock