More postal services pause shipments to U.S. with 'de minimis' loophole set to expire [View all]

Source: NBC News

Aug. 25, 2025, 12:10 PM EDT


Postal services in Japan and Switzerland are the latest to pause shipments to the United States this week, days before an exemption for certain import taxes is about to expire.

The loophole, known as “de minimis,” has allowed goods worth less than $800 to enter the United States duty-free since 2016. President Donald Trump signed an executive order last month to abolish the practice. It is set to end Friday. The change has rocked small businesses and consumers, leaving many concerned about shipping backlogs and higher costs. Some business owners have said on social media they will be forced to close up shop.

“There is so much uncertainty about how these tariffs are going to be collected,” said Caleb Silver, editor-in-chief of Investopedia. “Who will collect these tariffs? What products, if any, will be exempt from these tariffs? And that just adds more uncertainty into an already very confusing picture around tariffs and how they’re going to impact us here in the United States.”

The change means effective Friday, goods coming into the U.S. from abroad will be slapped with country-specific tariffs. For an $800 item coming in from a country with a tariff rate of 25% or more (like China, Brazil, India, Switzerland or Canada), that could amount to at least $200 in extra costs just to bring the product into the U.S. Under the new rules, letters and personal gifts worth less than $100 will still be duty-free.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/de-minimis-postal-services-pause-us-shipments-rcna226957