The United States Postal Service announced Tuesday that it’s temporarily suspending inbound packages from China and Hong Kong, a move that’s likely to create delays and problems for packages from other destinations too.
The suspension comes after President Trump used an executive order imposing a 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods to also close a loophole called the de minimis exception, which allowed packages valued below $800 to enter the US duty free. It’s how e-commerce outfits including Shein and Temu have been able to offer goods to US buyers at such low prices. It is also widely exploited by the likes of Amazon and by merchants on Etsy and eBay.
The restriction is temporary, though no end date has been set. Only packages and parcels are affected, with letters and envelopes continuing to ship as usual. The suspension is also specific to the official postal services of the two countries, rather than private courier and shipping services. Neither UPS nor FedEx has announced restrictions, but they are undoubtedly struggling to cope with the new requirements.
The challenge facing USPS and others is managing the task of inspecting the large volume of shipments from China that are suddenly eligible for duty and import taxes, which is almost certain to create delays and problems for packages from other destinations. The suspension may even affect parcels from other couriers, since USPS is frequently used by private shipping companies as the last-mile delivery service.
Over 1.3 billion parcels entered the US using the de minimis exemption in 2024 according to US Customs and Border Protection, a number that’s grown by more than 600 percent over the past decade. De minimis hasn’t been removed entirely, but shipments from China are no longer eligible for it.
In addition to enabling the likes of Shein and Temu, de minimis shipments have posed safety concerns, making it easier for low quality products to reach US buyers. In the extreme case, some e-bike and battery manufacturers have used de minimis to skirt safety regulations and avoid product inspection, resulting in hundreds of fires caused by faulty e-bike batteries in New York City alone.
China has already launched its own response to Trump’s tariffs, with levies on fuel and large vehicles shipped from the US, along with restrictions on exports of certain rare minerals used in some technology manufacturing. The country has also initiated antitrust proceedings against Google and Nvidia, with probes into Intel and Apple rumored to be in the works as well.