International trade expert says US ‘de minimis’ changes could swamp tariffs impact

David Taylor, Director of Operations at Mark 3 International, says the end to US de minimis exemptions for China could cause far greater disruption than any tariff hikes.

De minimis thresholds are set by each country and imported goods below those values do not attract tax or duties. It is a scheme that works very well to support global ecommerce, which typically consists of huge numbers of small, relatively low value, packages.

In the US, de minimis is set at $800. The new administration says it’s abolition will disrupt the flow of opioids into the US from China.

A report from Reuters notes that the number of de minimis packages entering the US approached 1.4 billion in 2024, largely due to online shopping. It adds, “More than 90% of all packages coming into the U.S. now enter via de minimis. Of those, about 60% come from China, led by direct-to-consumer retailers such as Temu and Shein.”

David Taylor commented: “Tarriff wars are bad for trade, but removing de minimis exemptions could cripple ecommerce shipments across the world. Our trade with the US is vital to our economy, and ecommerce shipments into the US are huge and growing.

“If those shipments were subject to tax it would cause serious problems for UK exporters, ultimately raising prices and creating delays.”

The UK is the third largest ecommerce market in the world, after China and the US, according to US government’s International Trade Administration.

And the UK’s Office for National Statistics, in its most recent analysis, says the UK exported £60.4 billion of goods (15.3% of all goods exports) to the US in 2023, making it the UK’s biggest individual trading partner.

Taylor added; “There are opportunities for businesses to structure shipments such that they fall within the destination country’s threshold. This can streamline