Trump has closed a tariff loophole for “de minimis” merchandise from China and Hong Kong
The post Trump has closed a tariff loophole for “de minimis” merchandise from China and Hong Kong appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. US President Donald Trump, by executive order on April 9, is closing the door on tariff exemptions on small packages from China and Hong Kong. The policy, which took effect on May 2, has ended the so-called “de minimis” privilege for direct-to-consumer goods arriving from the two Asian markets. Under the now-defunct loophole, goods valued under $800 could enter the US without duties or requiring customs declarations. The exemption was originally meant to avoid costly bureaucracy over low-value shipments, but became a backdoor for companies like Shein and Temu to flood the American market with inexpensive merchandise. According to customs data, an estimated 4 million such packages entered the US daily in 2024, many originating from Chinese e-commerce giants. De minimis tax tenure comes to an end The term “de minimis,” Latin for “about minimal things,” has existed in US customs law since 1938. It initially eliminated inefficiencies in tax collection, and the value threshold sat at just $1 for decades before rising incrementally to $800 under President Obama in 2016. This unusually high threshold compared to international norms, around $40 in Canada and $150 in the European Union, opened doors for small parcel imports. Chinese retailers used the system by shipping goods directly from manufacturing centers to American consumers, bypassing distribution hubs and domestic tax liabilities. Shein, Temu, and Alibaba’s AliExpress sent everything from $2 blouses to $10 gadgets at speeds and prices that traditional US retailers struggled to match. American consumers sought these cheap products in mass, which immensely strained border officials, overwhelmed airports, and shipping channels. Port authorities claimed it was also how illegal drugs, including fentanyl, reached the United States. Critics also alleged that some of the goods skirted bans on imports from regions implicated in human rights violations. De minimis goods now face a 120%…
The post Trump has closed a tariff loophole for “de minimis” merchandise from China and Hong Kong appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
US President Donald Trump, by executive order on April 9, is closing the door on tariff exemptions on small packages from China and Hong Kong. The policy, which took effect on May 2, has ended the so-called “de minimis” privilege for direct-to-consumer goods arriving from the two Asian markets. Under the now-defunct loophole, goods valued under $800 could enter the US without duties or requiring customs declarations. The exemption was originally meant to avoid costly bureaucracy over low-value shipments, but became a backdoor for companies like Shein and Temu to flood the American market with inexpensive merchandise. According to customs data, an estimated 4 million such packages entered the US daily in 2024, many originating from Chinese e-commerce giants. De minimis tax tenure comes to an end The term “de minimis,” Latin for “about minimal things,” has existed in US customs law since 1938. It initially eliminated inefficiencies in tax collection, and the value threshold sat at just $1 for decades before rising incrementally to $800 under President Obama in 2016. This unusually high threshold compared to international norms, around $40 in Canada and $150 in the European Union, opened doors for small parcel imports. Chinese retailers used the system by shipping goods directly from manufacturing centers to American consumers, bypassing distribution hubs and domestic tax liabilities. Shein, Temu, and Alibaba’s AliExpress sent everything from $2 blouses to $10 gadgets at speeds and prices that traditional US retailers struggled to match. American consumers sought these cheap products in mass, which immensely strained border officials, overwhelmed airports, and shipping channels. Port authorities claimed it was also how illegal drugs, including fentanyl, reached the United States. Critics also alleged that some of the goods skirted bans on imports from regions implicated in human rights violations. De minimis goods now face a 120%…
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