EU to Impose €2 Handling Fee on Non-EU Packages From Sunday

The European Union will impose a €2 (US$2.25) handling fee on packages from outside the 27-nation bloc from Sunday, in a move aimed at curbing the influx from China.

What the new charge covers

The fee will apply to each type of item in a package sent directly to consumers from outside the EU.

The parcel’s value will not determine whether the new charge applies, as the fee covers packages regardless of their value.

The levy is described as a handling fee and will be charged on top of the EU’s existing €3 fee on small parcels.

This means the new measure adds another charge to the EU’s existing fee structure for small parcels, while also applying to each type of item within a package.

Timing before the shopping rush

The new levy is coming just weeks before the Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Christmas season shopping rushes.

Those shopping periods provide the immediate timing for the rollout of the charge on parcels sent directly to consumers from outside the EU.

The stated purpose of the measure is to curb the influx from China, although the fee’s stated coverage extends more broadly to packages arriving from outside the EU.

Source: South China Morning Post