US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has published guidance regarding the elimination of the de minimis duty exemption on Chinese-origin merchandise and the collection of duties on those once-exempt imports.
CBP’s guidance follows the Federal Register’s notice of the exemption’s elimination to align with President Trump’s April 2 executive order concerning the same.
Section 321 of the Tariff Act of 1930 allows for the informal entry of articles imported by one person on one day and with a retail value of $800 or less. These de minimis shipments are generally free of duty and taxes and subject to expedited CBP clearance.
President Trump’s April 2 executive order provides that as of May 2 this de minimis exemption will no longer be available for Chinese-origin merchandise that would otherwise qualify. Shipments of goods via the international postal network and transported by carriers will be subject to one of two identified rates: (1) 120% of the value of the goods contained in the postal item, or (2) $100 per postal item containing goods, increasing to $200 per item at 12:01 am ET on June 1.
These duties will be in lieu of any other tariffs or duties to which such shipments would otherwise be subject, including the general duty rates imposed according to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), the 20% tariff imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) based on allegations of the influx of opioids into the United States from China, and tariffs imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 (Section 301).
Carriers must collect these duties, remit them to CBP either once a month or at another time frame that CBP may deem appropriate, and maintain an international carrier bond to ensure the duties are remitted. Carriers must also report the total number of postal items containing goods and, if electing the 120% duty rate, the value of the goods in each postal item transported per conveyance in a specific time frame and manner. CBP has also published detailed guidance for carriers concerning filing data and remitting duties.
Shipments that would have qualified for the de minimis exemption that are shipped via other methods (outside the international postal network) will be subject to all applicable duties, including HTSUS general duty rates, IEEPA opioid-based tariffs, IEEPA reciprocal tariffs, and Section 301. These shipments must also be entered into the Automated Commercial Environment by a person qualified to make entry (i.e., the importer or a licensed customs broker).
To effectuate these changes and allow for these entries, CBP will suspend certain regulations effective April 30. The suspensions include a parenthetical clause in 19 CFR 143.21(a) that typically requires formal entry for goods classified in HTSUS Chapter 99, Subchapters III and IV, that are valued in excess of $250. CBP is also suspending 19 CFR 145.12(b) concerning informal mail entry, which will apply to all informal mail entries from China or Hong Kong regardless of value. As a result, formal entry will be required for mail shipments from China or Hong Kong valued at over $800. These suspensions apply to all modes of transportation, methods of entry, and countries of origin, which may pave the way for elimination of the de minimis exception more broadly, as referenced in President Trump’s original announcement of reciprocal tariffs.
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