SINGAPORE – Less than a year after the US scrapped its duty-free allowance for low-value parcels, Europe is about to do the same.
Personal gifts valued under €45 (S$66) are exempt from the new duty and VAT, but senders must accurately declare the items as gifts and provide Harmonised System (HS) code data for customs clearance.
The HS code is an international product-classification system, in use since 1988, that must accompany parcels entering the EU for customs clearance.
Gifts worth between €45 and €150 are subject to a flat €3 customs duty per unique item, plus other handling fees and VAT, according to SingPost.
Europe’s new rule mainly affects small online business owners and corporates sending goods of below €150 into the EU which were previously spared customs duty.
From July 1, such parcels will face a flat-rate customs duty of €3. Importantly, this is charged per unique item heading (HS code) inside a package, and not per order. For example, a parcel containing three identical T-shirts will be taxed €3, while another parcel containing three different items will be charged €9.
Shippers have until June 30 to dispatch goods to the EU before the new duties on low-value parcels take effect.
Parcels valued above €150 are unaffected by the changes, and existing customs rules continue to apply.
Shipments entering the EU with missing or inaccurate declaration details risk immediate border delays, rejections or forced returns.
To mitigate the risks for Singapore exporters, SingPost announced on June 25 that it has launched a new dual-track shipping solution, the Speedpost Direct International (EU).
The first track is for customers that sign up for an EU Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS) account through the tax authorities of an EU member state.
IOSS is an electronic portal that simplifies how VAT is collected, declared and paid when e-commerce sellers ship goods from outside the EU to buyers inside it. It applies to shipments worth €150 or less.
IOSS-registered customers can use the Speedpost Direct International (EU) service, under which SingPost pays the duties, destination VAT and administrative fees on the corporate customer’s behalf. These costs are passed to the EU buyer at checkout, so the parcel arrives in Europe with nothing more for the buyer to pay.
The second track is for sellers without IOSS registration – retail shippers, casual senders and small-scale entrepreneurs. They can keep using standard postal services, either over the counter at a post office or through SingPost’s self-service online platform, Ezy2Ship.
In such cases, there is no prepayment – so the recipient in Europe pays the customs duties, local VAT and handling fees on delivery.
The US implemented similar rules in August 2025 under which packages valued at or under US$800 (S$1,040) sent to the US outside of the international postal network face all applicable duties.
The EU’s upcoming regulatory updates mark the first phase of its comprehensive customs overhaul.
Come Nov 1, the EU is expected to introduce an additional €2 customs handling fee per e-commerce import to offset rising administrative processing costs, which will stack on top of the €3 flat duty.
