
https://news.bloombergtax.com/daily-tax-report-international/e-commerce-platforms-should-prep-for-eu-vat-and-customs-changes
I HOPE it is not paywall/subscription protected! It is a very good explanation.
Highlights:
"Customs duty relief will be removed. The current exemption from customs duty for goods valued at less than 150 euros will be abolished from March 1, 2028. From 2028, platforms will log their sales into the new centralized online systemEU Customs Hubwhich will replace national systems over time and will allow simplified clearance. No declaration for each specific parcel will be required."
"The current threshold of 150 euros for the import one-stop shop scheme will be eliminated. Currently, when the IOSS is opted for, the payable VAT is collected at the point of sale and paid via the IOSS to the member state where the customer is located. The IOSS is currently only available for sales of imported goods with a value not exceeding 150 euros. After the threshold is abolished, consignments with a value above this threshold can also be reported in the IOSS."
"The special arrangements for postal carriers will be extended. The special arrangements allow couriers to declare and pay the collected VAT on a monthly basis for imports on behalf of their customers. Under this proposal the 150-euro threshold which currently applies to the special arrangements will be removed."
FWIW, just before I got this article, I got this AI result that was the clearest thing I had yet found, until I next got the article:
"The Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS) 150 threshold in the European Union is not ending, but is proposed to be removed as part of wider EU customs and VAT reforms expected to take effect around 2028. The user may be confusing this with the end of the U.S. de minimis rule on August 29, 2025.
EU's IOSS 150 threshold
The EU's IOSS system was introduced in 2021 to simplify VAT collection on imports into the EU for goods up to 150. The upcoming changes are part of the EU's VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) and Customs Reform packages:
The current proposal is to remove the 150 limit, allowing sellers to use the streamlined IOSS process for all goods sold to EU consumers, regardless of value.The EU also plans to abolish the parallel 150 customs duty exemption for low-value consignments, making all imported goods subject to customs duties.These reforms aim to simplify compliance and are targeted for implementation around March 2028."
Previous Message
For the Australian situation, I think if you look above to Model Monkey's reply to Paul's De Minimis post, you will get some idea what that complaint might be. Just for VAT, IOSS is not "user friendly" (thus the planned reforms...) I thought I had read that there used to be a de minimis value for VAT as well. A seller outside the EU did not need to collect it, but now they do. And then to find IOSS so much trouble. I strongly suspect this is what Red Roo means with what they wrote.
Previous Message
A better article:
https://www.strtrade.com/trade-news-resources/str-trade-report/trade-report/february/eliminating-de-minimis-new-fees-among-proposed-eu-responses-to-low-value-imports
Contained within is this. I added the bold print:
"adoption of the proposed Customs Union Reform Package, which would allow rapid implementation of new rules such as removing the duty exemption for low-value parcels and reinforcing capabilities for controls such as better data-sharing and risk assessment"
I had seen this, then lost it, to my annoyance. Most of my searches, even when I add the terms "EU" and "150" are getting me info on the current US de minimis situation, not what is happening with the EU. So, it is harder to find good, clear info on this subject for me.
What the "above 150" is talking about is an IOSS thing. Currently, IOSS is only set up for VAT collection if the value is below 150. It is also only set up for collection of the tariff if above 150. So, removing the above 150 rate is removing it from IOSS so that it can be used once that de minimis is gone. In other words, currently if a sender goes onto IOSS and enters a value below 150, they will find help applying VAT to their transaction, but nothing on the tariff. If they enter an amount above 150, they find tariff help (but not VAT help??) So, the rate "above 150 being removed" is talking about taking that out of IOSS so that whatever amount the user enters, they find VAT and tariff info.
These details can all be found if your search goes to details of the IOSS system reform, and does not ask anything about the deminimis going away. As soon as I (in the US) put de minimis into my search terms, no matter what else I add to it, all I get is ten tons of articles about US de minimis, and about three articles (none as clear as I would like) about the EU de minimis. "IOSS reform"...good (but often technical) results. "Anything deminimis"...the current US circus.
So, while details aren't exactly clear about the EU situation, either, due to a lack of information, and confusing information (like this example) the EU 150 de minimis is going away, and VAT and a tariff will be applied. I almost recommend you look into it from the IOSS reform approach, but that might not be terribly clear. Still, the results should all be for the subject you want, not the US situation.
Previous Message
The first article describes the current status including that below 150 there are no tariffs.
The second article writes mainly about changes exceeding 150 (not below!!). Regarding tariffs it is vague.
I found also older articles that in 2028 there will be a change. But currently, there is no change - not sure, what this Australian shop thinks is the problem (the handling fees, because they do not collect the tax themselves and their customers are surprise about that!?).
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