EU to slap new €2 fee on online shopping orders from outside Europe

The €2 processing fee is a new charge on shipments sent directly to EU consumers from non-EU or non-EFTA countries. It applies regardless of the order’s value. The fee is intended to help cover the growing customs costs created by huge numbers of individual packages entering the EU.

The existing €3 tax applies to imported parcels valued below €150. Like the processing fee, it is charged for each category of goods contained in a package. A parcel with several items may therefore generate more than one charge if those items belong to different categories.

The two measures are separate. The €2 processing fee is permanent, although its amount will be reviewed every two years. The €3 tax is temporary and is scheduled to end in July 2028, when small parcels will instead face European customs duties like other shipments.

The fee is calculated by product category, not simply by counting every individual item in a parcel. Items that belong to the same declared category are grouped together for the charge. This means a large quantity of similar goods can still produce only one fee.

For example, a shipment containing twenty caps would incur a €2 fee. But a package containing three caps, four t-shirts, and two belts would contain three separate categories. The total fee would therefore be €6, or €2 for each category.

The key mechanism is customs declaration. European legislation links the charge to how products are declared when they enter customs. The same category-based calculation applies to the existing €3 tax for small parcels. The article does not say exactly how every product is classified, but it makes clear that different declared categories create separate charges.

European legislation places legal responsibility for both fees on platforms, sellers, or their intermediaries. The rules concern shipments from non-EU or non-EFTA countries sent directly to EU consumers. The party handling the sale or shipment must therefore arrange payment of the charges.

The fees can still be included in the customer’s total during checkout. In practice, that means consumers may see the cost added while paying for an order. The article distinguishes this from a later demand made after the parcel has been shipped or delivered.

The European Consumer Organisation, known as BEUC, stressed that postal services and delivery companies must not later claim these fees from consumers. This aims to make the cost clear before purchase and prevent unexpected collection requests at the door. The article does not specify how every platform will display the charge.

The volume is enormous. Nearly 5.9 billion small parcels entered the European Union in 2025. That equals more than 180 parcels every second. The total was four times higher than in 2022, showing how quickly direct-to-consumer online shipments have grown.

China accounted for 93 percent of these parcels. The article links many shipments to platforms based in Asia, including Shein, Temu, and AliExpress. These parcels typically contain individual orders sent directly to European consumers rather than large consignments handled through traditional retail channels.

This scale is central to the EU’s policy response. Customs authorities say systematically checking every parcel is impossible when arrivals reach this level. The volume has also widened the European trade deficit and made it easier for dangerous or counterfeit products to pass through. The new fee is meant to help finance tighter controls.

The processing fee is designed to help finance tighter customs controls. Nearly 5.9 billion small parcels entered the EU in 2025, and 93 percent came from China. Authorities say the sheer number of packages makes it impossible to check them all systematically.

That gap can allow dangerous or counterfeit products to slip through. The surge has also widened the European trade deficit. European manufacturers and merchants have long argued that this flood of low-cost imports creates unfair competition, while several countries, led by France, pressed the EU to act.

The fee is therefore both a funding measure and part of a broader response to online imports. The article reports that the €3 tax already reduced small-parcel flows by about 64 percent since July, though Brussels says it is too early to draw conclusions. The €2 fee will remain permanent, with reviews every two years.

The clearest reported effect is a sharp fall in small-parcel flows. Since July, they have dropped by about 64 percent after the €3 tax began. Brussels cautions that it is too early to know whether this change will last. The new €2 fee could add another cost to low-priced online orders.

Tighter customs controls could make it harder for dangerous or counterfeit goods to enter the EU. The article says the previous parcel surge made systematic checking impossible. More funding for controls is intended to close that gap, although the article does not quantify how many unsafe products might be stopped.

European manufacturers and merchants could face less pressure from the low-cost imports they describe as unfair competition. Online shoppers may instead see higher checkout totals or buy fewer small orders. From July 2028, the €3 tax will end, and small parcels will face European customs duties on the same basis as other shipments.

Customs duties are charges collected by a government when goods enter a country or trading bloc. They are commonly calculated using the goods’ value, quantity, or classification. The article does not define them, but this is the standard meaning of the term used in its discussion of future EU imports.

Governments use customs duties for several established reasons. They can raise revenue, regulate cross-border trade, and make imported goods less price-advantaged compared with products made domestically. Duties can also support enforcement of trade rules. Their effect depends on the rate and how sellers or buyers absorb the cost.

The article connects the EU’s measures with a widening trade deficit and complaints of unfair competition from European manufacturers and merchants. It says the temporary €3 tax will be scrapped in July 2028. From then, small parcels will face European customs duties on the same basis as other shipments.