President Trump’s executive orders on Saturday imposing broad tariffs on the country’s three largest trading partners also scrapped a shipping workaround for low-cost products, a move that is poised to alter how many online purchases are taxed.
The provision, known as the de minimis exception, has been used by many e-commerce companies to send goods to the United States from China without having to pay taxes on them. Mr. Trump’s decision to revoke the loophole set off confusion and chaos within the U.S. Postal Service, which initially said it would no longer accept packages from China and Hong Kong, before reversing its decision some 12 hours later.
Mr. Trump’s order on Saturday required that all goods leaving China must follow the same rules for higher-value shipments. His ban on duty-free handling of shipments worth up to $800 could shift the landscape for online sales from fast-fashion retailers like Shein and Temu, which rely on Chinese vendors. Both companies have been able to expand their market share largely by exporting goods into the United States without being subject to duties.
On Monday, leaders of Canada and Mexico reached deals with Mr. Trump to delay the tariff rollouts by 30 days. The broad 10 percent tariffs on Chinese goods went into effect on Tuesday.
Here’s what to know about the de minimis rule:
What is the de minimis provision?
The de minimis rule, or Section 321 of the Tariff Act of 1930, was originally aimed at allowing American tourists to send goods bought overseas to the United States without facing taxes. But more recently, companies have used the provision to ship products from other countries that have a retail value below a certain threshold without being subjected to taxes — a huge tax advantage.
In 2016, Congress raised the entry threshold to $800, from $200. Since then, the number of duty-free parcels has risen tenfold. Under the rule, packages can be shipped from other countries without paying tariffs, as long as the shipments do not exceed $800 per recipient per day.
Retailers have increased their reliance on the workaround in recent years, especially since Mr. Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese products in his first term. It underpins major business models, as Shein, Temu and many sellers on Amazon have used the de minimis exemption to bypass taxes.
A report released last week by the Congressional Research Service found that Chinese exports that are exempted by the de minimis rule soared to $66 billion in 2023 from $5.3 billion in 2018.
Why is the Trump administration targeting the rule?
The Trump administration has said it is focused on eliminating the de minimis loophole because of its apparent ties to the fentanyl trade. A White House official said in a call with a reporter on Saturday that the provision was causing the United States to lose tariff revenue — and that the large flow of low-cost goods from China had made it challenging for customs officials to identify fentanyl shipments sent through the mail.
Traditional retailers have expressed frustration with the workaround for different reasons. These retailers typically send big bulk shipments to their warehouses that are subjected to duties. Under pressure from the rising popularity of Chinese e-commerce sites like Temu and Shein, retailers like Walmart and Amazon had explored shifting more toward shipping directly to consumers from China. In late 2024, Amazon started Haul, which was intended to help it compete with Temu and other low-cost online retailers.
Express delivery companies like FedEx and UPS, which fly many of the packages across the Pacific Ocean from China, have spoken out in favor of preserving the de minimis exception. Supporters of de minimis have also long said that eliminating the provision would increase the burden on U.S. customs officials. Customs and Border Protection is also the primary agency responsible for carrying out much of Mr. Trump’s enforcement actions at the border.
How will online retailers be affected?
Shein and Temu, which rely on Chinese vendors, have been able to expand their market share largely by sending cheap goods into the United States. The two companies together have about 17 percent of the discount e-commerce market in the United States for fast fashion, toys and other consumer goods, according to the Congressional Research Service. The unraveling of the de minimis loophole threatens their operations.
While a majority of Shein and Temu products are shipped directly from China, both companies have diversified by working with more U.S.-based sellers and opening warehouses in the United States, which could limit some of the impact.
But other retailers might stand to gain.
“Amazon, as a whole, as well as other online retailers that fulfill from U.S. warehouses, will benefit as their competitors will be negatively affected,” said Yannis Bakos, an associate professor at the Stern School of Business at New York University who studies e-commerce.
What about smaller sellers and consumers?
Small and medium-size online retailers that source from China are likely to be affected, too. About a quarter of the biggest sellers on the e-commerce platform Shopify — sellers that are much smaller than Shein and Temu — also use the de minimis loophole to cheaply ship many of their products from China, said Aaron Rubin, the chief executive of ShipHero, a warehouse management software firm.
The loophole is “pretty widely used,” Mr. Rubin said. Beyond direct sales to customers, many small brands have also opted to ship products worth less than $800 at a time to Amazon to avoid paying taxes, Mr. Rubin added.
“In general, any of these sellers that were shipping directly from China are definitely going to be disrupted,” said Santiago Gallino, an associate professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania who researches retail supply chains. Some retailers, including smaller companies, might eventually shift toward bulk orders and set up distribution centers in the United States, if the changes last, he added.
The ban on de minimis will also come at a cost for American consumers. A $15 dress from Shein, for example, could jump to $17, said Izzy Rosenzweig, the chief executive of Portless, a third-party logistics company. Research has found that eliminating the provision entirely would result in costs of $11 billion to $13 billion for American consumers and disproportionately hurt poorer and minority households.
Jordyn Holman contributed reporting.
