INTERNATIONAL TRADE LAW
De Minimis Rule Changes: What Importers Must Know Now
As of mid-2026, the $800 de minimis exemption is suspended for shipments from every country. No low-value shipment enters the United States duty-free: every commercial import now requires a customs entry and pays applicable duties, regardless of value. The suspension hit goods from China and Hong Kong on May 2, 2025, was extended worldwide on August 29, 2025, and was continued by a new executive order in February 2026 after the Supreme Court struck down related tariff authority. A court challenge is pending — but Congress has separately repealed the exemption by statute effective July 2027, so duty-free low-value imports are not coming back long term. Here is what changed, who it affects, and what to do about it.
What the De Minimis Exemption Was
De minimis — also called Section 321, after its home in 19 U.S.C. § 1321(a)(2)(C) — was an administrative exemption that let shipments valued at $800 or less per person, per day enter the United States free of duty and tax with minimal paperwork. Congress raised the threshold from $200 to $800 in 2016, and direct-from-factory e-commerce was built on it: CBP processed more than 1.3 billion de minimis shipments in fiscal year 2024. The exemption let those parcels skip formal entry, skip duty payment, and clear with minimal data — which is precisely why it became a target for enforcement concerns about tariff avoidance, counterfeits, and synthetic opioid shipments.
What Changed and When
The exemption was dismantled in stages over roughly a year. The timeline:
| Date | Action | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Feb. 2025 | First executive order targets China de minimis, then pauses | Suspension delayed until CBP systems ready |
| May 2, 2025 | Executive order takes effect for China and Hong Kong | De minimis eliminated for Chinese-origin goods |
| Aug. 29, 2025 | Executive Order 14324 (signed July 30, 2025) takes effect | Duty-free de minimis suspended for all countries |
| Aug. 29, 2025 – Feb. 27, 2026 | Postal transition period | Carriers could elect flat per-item duties ($80/$160/$200 by country tariff tier) or ad valorem |
| Feb. 20, 2026 | Supreme Court rules IEEPA tariffs unlawful; same-day Executive Order 14388 | De minimis suspension continued without interruption |
| Feb. 28, 2026 | Postal flat-fee option ends | All postal shipments duty-assessed ad valorem |
| July 2027 | Statutory repeal takes effect (2025 budget reconciliation law) | Commercial de minimis ends permanently by act of Congress |
Two things in that timeline deserve emphasis. First, the Supreme Court’s February 2026 decision invalidated tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, but it did not restore de minimis — the administration issued a new order the same day continuing the suspension, and CBP guidance confirms collection continues. Second, the litigation that matters now is Axle of Dearborn (Detroit Axle) v. Department of Commerce in the Court of International Trade, which challenges the president’s authority to suspend a statutory exemption. The case was revived in March 2026 and remains undecided.
Who Is Affected
Any business whose model depended on parcels clearing duty-free is affected, but the pain is concentrated in a few models:
- Direct-from-factory e-commerce — sellers shipping individual orders from overseas to U.S. consumers absorbed the full change: every parcel now needs an entry and pays duty.
- Marketplace and dropshipping sellers — duty, brokerage, and data costs that were zero are now per-shipment line items that someone in the chain must pay.
- Subscription and sample programs — low-value recurring shipments lost their exemption along with everything else.
- Importers splitting shipments — structuring orders under $800 to avoid duty no longer works and was always risky; CBP treats deliberate structuring as evasion.
Duty and Entry Consequences Now
Every shipment requires a customs entry and duty payment. The available paths:
| Shipment type | Entry path now | Who handles duty |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial goods ≤ $2,500 | Informal entry (Type 11) | Customs broker or self-filer; duties at entry |
| Commercial goods > $2,500 | Formal entry (Type 01), bond required | Customs broker; duties, MPF, and fees |
| Postal shipments | Duty collected through the international mail carrier or CBP-qualified party | Carrier remits ad valorem duties (only method since Feb. 28, 2026) |
Entry Type 86 is effectively gone. The Type 86 test was the electronic clearance lane built on de minimis eligibility; with the exemption suspended, shipments cannot use it, and CBP had already proposed ending the test in its January 2025 low-value entry rulemaking. Plan around informal and formal entry, not a Type 86 revival.
Duties owed are the real rates: the HTS column rate plus Section 301 duties and any other applicable tariffs or surcharges for the country of origin. For Chinese-origin consumer goods, total rates north of 50% are common — one reason the Detroit Axle plaintiff reports paying a 52.5% rate on parts that previously entered free.
Practical Steps for Importers
- Classify everything properly. Duty now turns on your 10-digit HTS code for every SKU, not just high-value ones. Misclassification means misapplied duties and penalty exposure — see our guide to classifying goods for import.
- Get a broker relationship and a bond. Per-parcel self-clearing rarely scales. A customs broker handling consolidated informal or formal entries is usually cheaper per unit than parcel-by-parcel clearance.
- Reprice with landed cost. Duty, brokerage, and bond costs belong in your unit economics now. Decide deliberately whether you absorb them or pass them through.
- Rethink fulfillment. Bulk importing into U.S. warehouses — paying duty once on a consolidated formal entry — typically beats per-parcel duties on direct fulfillment, which is why major platforms moved inventory onshore.
- Don’t bet on restoration. Even if the pending litigation succeeds, the statutory repeal arrives in July 2027. Build your compliance process for a world without de minimis.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the $800 de minimis exemption still in effect?
No. Duty-free de minimis treatment has been suspended for all countries since August 29, 2025, and a February 2026 executive order continued the suspension. Separately, Congress repealed the exemption by statute effective July 2027.
Do I owe duties on shipments under $800 now?
Yes. Value no longer exempts a shipment. Goods clear through informal entry (generally $2,500 or less) or formal entry, and pay the applicable HTS rate plus any Section 301 or other tariffs. Postal shipments have duties collected ad valorem through the carrier.
Is Entry Type 86 still available?
No, not as a practical matter. Type 86 clearance depended on de minimis eligibility, which is suspended, and CBP proposed ending the test in its January 2025 rulemaking on low-value shipments.
Could de minimis come back?
A challenge to the suspension (Detroit Axle) is active in the Court of International Trade, and the Supreme Court’s IEEPA ruling strengthens the plaintiffs’ arguments. But any restoration would be temporary: the statutory repeal takes effect in July 2027.
The end of de minimis turned thousands of casual parcel shippers into regulated importers overnight — with reasonable-care duties most of them have never had to meet. Reidel Law Firm helps e-commerce and import businesses get compliant with a flat-fee import/export compliance memo covering your classifications, entry strategy, and duty exposure — request yours before CBP asks the questions first.
