“Postal operators in several countries have announced they will suspend certain deliveries to the United States,” because of the upcoming “end to a long-standing tariff exemption for packages worth $800 or less,” reports The Washington Post. President Trump said he was ending the exemption to prevent the flow of illegal drugs:
But mail companies abroad are halting some of their services to the U.S., saying that many aspects of the new rules remain unclear.
Previously, most imported goods with a value of $800 or less were exempt from tariffs. That rule, known as the de minimis exemption, is set to end on Friday — though letters or personal gifts worth less than $100 won’t be affected, postal operators said.
A number of national mail companies from countries such as France, Germany, the U.K and India have responded by temporarily suspending some mail services to the U.S.
For consumers, this could mean delays in receiving packages — which may now also incur tariffs of $80 or more.
De minimis, which in Latin means something too small or insignificant to be considered, was passed by Congress in the 1930s and amended over the years. Under the Obama administration, the de minimis exemption was raised from $200 to $800 — where it remained until this year.The exemption allowed companies to save tens of billions of dollars in fees on cheap imports, most of which came from China…PostEurop, an association that represents 53 European postal operators, said that with just days left until the new rules go into effect, many issues remain. “Critical issues and processes, such as customs duties collection, the data to be collected, and the interaction with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, are not yet clearly defined…Everybody hopes that there will be a solution soon.”
