EU FINANCE MINISTERS have agreed to impose a €3 duty on low-value imports into the bloc from July 2026 to help tackle a flood of small parcels ordered via the likes of Shein and Temu.

Last year, 4.6 billion small retail packages entered the European Union – more than 145 per second – with 91% originating in China and their numbers expected to keep rising.

Starting at €3, the new fee will apply once per item in cases where packages contain different products, but only once if they contain multiples of the same item, a spokesperson for the European Council told AFP.

The move comes a month after the EU agreed to scrap a duty exemption for parcels worth less than €150 imported directly to consumers in the 27-nation bloc, in many cases via Chinese-founded platforms.

The levy will be introduced on a temporary basis starting 1 July, staying in place until the bloc can settle on a permanent solution for taxing such imports.

“This temporary measure responds to the fact that such parcels currently enter the EU duty free, leading to unfair competition for EU sellers, health and safety risks for consumers, high levels of fraud and environmental concerns,” the Council, which represents EU member states, said in a statement.

Fianna Fáil MEP Barry Andrews welcomed the decision but said that the €3 fee will need to be increased “if it does not prove effective in stemming the flood of cheap deliveries from China”.

He has previously called for a €5 fee on purchases from China.

“There are over 4 billion packages delivered directly to homes in Europe each year, with the vast majority coming from China,” said Andrews.

“The constant buying and disposing of low-cost clothing is driving massive environmental pollution, widespread exploitation of workers and the undercutting of more sustainable European businesses.”

He added that the current EU custom rules “unfairly favour ‘ultra-fast fashion’ and low-cost online giants, such as Shein and Temu, by allowing millions of low-value parcels to enter the EU without full checks or customs charges”.

‘Major victory’

European retailers argue they face unfair competition from overseas platforms, such as AliExpress, Shein and Temu, which they claim do not always comply with the EU’s stringent rules on products.

Key EU power France has made the matter a priority, given the around 800 million such packages shipped to the country last year and strong domestic pressure to take action.

French Finance Minister Roland Lescure welcomed the flat tax as “a major victory for the European Union”.

“Europe is taking concrete steps to protect its single market, its consumers and its sovereignty,” he said.

The move comes as the EU strives to bolster the continent’s competitiveness by making the lives of European businesses easier through slashing red tape.

Alongside ending the duty exemption, the EU executive in May proposed a small package handling fee worth €2.

EU member states have yet to agree on the level of that fee, but hope it will apply from late 2026.

Fed up with waiting, some states have already moved forward with their own plans, including Romania, which has imposed a five-euro fee on small parcels.

- © AFP 2025 and with additional reporting from Diarmuid Pepper