“Temo” and “SheM” are in trouble.. Europe imposes fees on cheap packages

Starting today, the European Union imposed a fee of 3 euros on low-value e-commerce imports coming from China, in the first step aimed at reducing what it describes as unfair competition from electronic shopping platforms such as Shein, Timo and Ali Express.

The move represents a new setback for these platforms, which for years have benefited from customs exemptions to sell products at very low prices, which contributed to their rapid growth and sparked complaints from retailers and policymakers.

In May, America, the largest market for these platforms, canceled customs exemption for shipments coming from China, with the decision expanding to include all imports starting at the end of August.

The new duties are imposed on each customs classification within a single shipment, which means that a package containing three different types of products will pay a total duty of 9 euros, while a shipment containing products of the same category, such as several dresses or several toys, will be subject to a single duty of 3 euros.

Low-value imports have enjoyed customs exemptions for decades, while the current exemption ceiling has been set at 150 euros since 2008.

But the number of e-commerce packages that entered the European Union under this exemption jumped from 1.4 billion packages in 2022 to 5.8 billion packages during 2025.

Member of the European Parliament Dirk Gutinck, who is responsible for the customs system reform file, said that this exemption was appropriate in a different trade environment, but it is no longer appropriate in light of the large boom in e-commerce, especially coming from China.

He added that the exemption was widely used in a way that gave foreign companies a competitive advantage at the expense of European companies.

For his part, e-commerce and air freight consultant, Derek Losing, expected that e-commerce shipments transported by air to the European Union would decrease by between 10% and 35% during the first weeks of implementing the new fees, which may also be reflected in global air freight traffic.

He pointed out that the main question is the ability of these platforms to transfer their business to other markets, explaining that after America ended the customs exemption, Europe represented a suitable alternative, but there is no longer a clear alternative after the European decision.

He added that platforms may pressure suppliers to bear part of the additional costs with the aim of reducing price increases for consumers and maintaining profitability margins.
Businesses are preparing and duties may raise prices

Shein prepared for the decision by expanding storage space in the Polish city of Wroclaw, in addition to increasing the shipment of products to its warehouses within the European Union in large quantities.

Analysts expect that the new fees will lead to higher product prices for consumers, with platforms passing part of the additional cost to buyers.

Ali Express, a subsidiary of Alibaba, announced that it will add a phrase to the included products clarifying that the price includes customs duties and value-added tax, while in other products a full breakdown of import duties will appear to consumers before completing the purchase process.

For its part, Amazon said that 97% of its shipments within the European Union during the past year were carried out from warehouses within the bloc, confirming that it will also display import duties on products shipped from outside the European Union before completing the purchase process.