Click to view full size

The end of an ex­emp­tion on tar­iff du­ties for low-val­ue pack­ages com­ing in­to the Unit­ed States is caus­ing mul­ti­ple in­ter­na­tion­al postal ser­vices to pause ship­ping as they await more clar­i­ty on the rule.

The ex­emp­tion, known as the “de min­imis” ex­emp­tion, al­lows pack­ages worth less than $800 to come in­to the U.S. du­ty free. A to­tal of 1.36 bil­lion pack­ages were sent in 2024 un­der this ex­emp­tion, for goods worth $64.6 bil­lion, ac­cord­ing to da­ta from the U.S. Cus­toms and Bor­der Pa­trol Agency.

It is set to ex­pire on Fri­day. On Sat­ur­day, postal ser­vices around Eu­rope an­nounced that they are sus­pend­ing the ship­ment of many pack­ages to the Unit­ed States amid con­fu­sion over new im­port du­ties.