New customs duty to be introduced – must also be paid for parcels under €150 from 1 July 2026
From 1 July 2026, a new customs duty must be paid for online purchases worth up to €150 ordered from outside the EU. Goods ordered from Temu, for instance, are often of the kind that are now subject to payment of the new customs duty.
In addition to the customs duty, VAT must also be paid for the purchase.
How much is the new customs duty?
The customs duty is €3 for each goods item in the consignment. ‘Goods item’ means similar products that have the same commodity code and country of origin. For instance, if the same parcel contains two similar shirts, you will normally only pay the customs duty once for them.
In the declaration, goods are declared as goods items according to whether the goods are of the same or a different kind.
Similar goods can be declared under the same goods item
One goods item can contain several goods that have the same commodity code and country of origin (e.g. two similar shirts from China). When the declaration contains only one goods item, the customs duty is paid once, that is, the customs duty is €3.
Different goods are declared as separate goods items
If the consignment contains different goods, they must be declared as different goods items. For example, if the same consignment contains shirts and socks, they must be declared as different goods items. The customs duty must be paid separately for each goods item. If the declaration contains two goods items (e.g. a shirt and a pair of socks), you must pay double the customs duty, that is, €6 in total.
Note that similar goods can also be declared under different goods items. In such a case, you must also pay the customs duty for each goods item. For example, if two similar shirts are declared as separate goods items, you must pay customs duty for both of them, that is, €6 in total. Some online retailers may declare goods in this way for technical reasons.
The date on which the customs clearance is approved determines whether you must pay customs duty on the parcel:
- If you receive a customs clearance request in June and the customs clearance is approved in June, you don’t have to pay customs duty. This also applies in situations where the customs clearance is not completed until after June.
- If the parcel is declared in July or thereafter, customs duty must be paid.
Please note that, you can only declare the parcel once the transport company carrying the parcel sends you a customs clearance request. It is also possible that the transport company will declare the parcel on your behalf.
What does it mean to accept a customs declaration?
Accepting a customs declaration means that the customs clearance of the parcel has been started and successfully sent to Customs. However, the customs clearance does not have to be completed, that is, it does not matter if you have not yet paid any possible import taxes or received a release decision from Customs.
The declaration is accepted once you have received a reference number for it, that is, an MRN (begins with 26FI). If you have declared the parcel yourself in the Import Declaration Service for private persons, the declaration is available in the service under “My declarations”.
Ask the transport company about the arrival of the parcel
If needed, you can ask the seller or the transport company carrying the parcel for more information about the arrival of the parcel. Customs does not store or transport parcels or send customs clearance requests for them.
If you have ordered a package from a seller who does not have an IOSS number, you should pay customs duty and value added tax when you declare the product. You can declare your parcel for example in the Import Declaration Service for private persons.
If you have ordered a parcel from a seller who has an IOSS number, the seller or the seller’s representative will decare the parcel and pay the customs duty and VAT. As of 1 July 2026, you can no longer declare such a parcel yourself if the seller has an IOSS number.
Legislation
How much do I have to pay for parcels worth over €150?
The provisions on the customs duties and taxes on consignments worth over €150 remain unchanged. Customs duty according to the commodity code as well as VAT must be paid for such consignments, just as before.
Changes to declaring certain goods
The customs duty change affects the declaration of certain goods, such as documents and goods purchased from another private individual. Read more on the page Instructions for declaring specific goods
Based on an EU decision
The new customs duty will be introduced across the EU to curb the influx of low-value import consignments. The purpose of the change is to address the significant increase in the number of low-value import consignments ordered from outside the EU and the resulting impacts on the environment and consumers. The customs duty change is also part of a broader EU Customs Reform.