US De Minimis Rules in 2026: Suspension and Repeal

By ChinaManufacturers.com Editorial Desk · Updated 30 October 2026 · How this page was researched

What de minimis was, and where it stands now

De minimis is the US customs exemption, known as Section 321 (19 U.S.C. §1321(a)(2)(C)), that let articles imported by one person on one day with an aggregate fair retail value of $800 or less enter free of duty and taxes. As of October 2026 the exemption is suspended for every country, in every mode of transport, regardless of value, and a 2025 statute repeals it outright from 1 July 2027.

The exemption was administrative, and the statute always let the Treasury Secretary carve merchandise out of it by regulation (19 U.S.C. §1321(b)). Its use grew sharply with direct-to-consumer e-commerce. CBP processed more than 1.36 billion de minimis shipments in fiscal year 2024, almost ten times the 139 million it processed in 2015, according to CBP's interim final rule of June 2026. FY2024 was the last full year before the suspensions.

The policy concern was simple. A shipment under $800 could enter with minimal data, through manifest release or the Type 86 test, and so bypass the Section 301 duties that the same goods from China paid in a container. The suspension closed that route first for China and then for everyone.

How the exemption ended: a timeline

Date	Action	Instrument
May 2025	De minimis ends for shipments from China and Hong Kong	Executive order of April 2025
14 May 2025	Postal duty on China items cut from 120% to 54%; $100 per item retained	EO 14298
2025	Statutory repeal enacted, effective 1 Jul 2027	Pub. L. 119-21, §70531(b)(3)
August 2025	Suspension extended to all countries	EO 14324
24 Feb 2026	Suspension continued after the IEEPA ruling	EO 14388 (91 FR 9433)
24 Jun 2026	CBP suspends de minimis by regulation, all modes	Interim final rules, FR Docs. 2026-12669 and 2026-12670
24 Jul 2026	New postal informal entry process begins	FR Doc. 2026-12669
22 Sep 2026	Entry Type 13 test begins	CBP
22 Oct 2026	Formal-entry compliance date for certain mail moved to 20 Jan 2027	FR Doc. 2026-21600
1 Jul 2027	De minimis exemption terminated by statute	Pub. L. 119-21

CBP's own fiscal 2025 seizure report describes "the suspension of the de minimis rule for shipments from China and Hong Kong in May 2025" and its broadening "to cover shipments from all countries in August 2025." The number of the April 2025 order and the exact August effective date were not confirmed in the sources for this page.

Why the Supreme Court ruling did not bring it back

The 2025 suspensions were issued alongside IEEPA tariff orders, so when the Supreme Court held on 20 February 2026 that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs, some importers assumed de minimis would return. It did not.

The same day, EO 14388, "Continuing the Suspension of Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries" (FR Doc. 2026-03829, 91 FR 9433), provided that the exemption "shall not apply to any shipment of articles not covered by 50 U.S.C. 1702(b), regardless of value," effective 24 February 2026. Postal carriers were to collect a duty per item equal to the Section 122 surcharge rate, 10%, until that surcharge expired or CBP's new postal process took effect. CBP's CSMS #67845486 of 23 February 2026 said the order "maintains the original de minimis suspension without modification."

CBP then suspended the exemption under its own regulatory authority in 19 U.S.C. §1321(b), with two interim final rules published on 24 June 2026: FR Doc. 2026-12670 for non-postal modes and FR Doc. 2026-12669 for postal shipments (91 FR 37801, docket USCBP-2026-0761). That suspension does not depend on IEEPA or on any executive order. The only articles kept outside it are those covered by 50 U.S.C. §1702(b), such as donations for humanitarian relief and informational materials. How bona fide gifts and returned goods are treated under the suspension was not confirmed in the sources for this page.

What a low-value shipment from China pays now

A small parcel from China now pays every duty a container of the same goods pays: the MFN rate, the Section 301 list duty, the 12.5% forced-labor Section 301 duty in effect since 24 July 2026, any Section 232 duty, and any antidumping or countervailing duty. How it is entered depends on the mode.

Non-postal shipments

Express and cargo shipments that once used de minimis now go through formal or informal entry, with the duties assessed at entry like any other import.

Postal shipments

Mail shipments valued at $2,500 or less and classifiable in HTSUS Chapters 1–97 can use the postal informal entry process that began on 24 July 2026. The filer, who may be the owner, the purchaser or a licensed customs broker, submits a monthly spreadsheet with a 10-digit HTS code for each item and pays through Pay.gov by the 7th of the following month. A basic importation bond is required (19 CFR 145.15). The filing and payment obligations sit with the filer, not the postal carrier.

Some mail cannot use that process and needs formal entry: goods regulated by other agencies, goods subject to Chapter 98 or 99 duties (which includes China Section 301 goods), and goods claiming FTA or Chapter 98 duty-free treatment. CBP extended the compliance date for these from 22 October 2026 to 20 January 2027 (FR Doc. 2026-21600, published 22 October 2026). Entry Type 13, CBP's electronic entry type for low-value shipments excluded from the postal process, began testing on 22 September 2026.

The requirements are new and have already moved once. A licensed customs broker should confirm the entry type and classification for any recurring small-parcel flow.

What the suspension has changed

Mail volume. CBP estimates an approximately two-thirds reduction in mail shipments after the global suspension. That is an agency estimate for mail only.
Revenue. CBP estimated annualized tariff revenue from the postal rule at $166,130,323 at a 7% discount rate, or $163,007,696 at 3%. Those are regulatory-impact estimates, not collections. GAO classed the rule as a major rule (B-338571, 24 July 2026).
Enforcement. In FY2024, 97% of intellectual-property seizures in the cargo environment were in de minimis shipments. In FY2025, 62% of all such seizures occurred in commercial vessel cargo, a shift CBP attributes to the suspensions. CBP describes these as workload statistics, not official trade statistics.

For sellers who built a model on shipping single orders from China to US consumers, the cost structure changed in three ways at once: duty on every parcel, an entry or filing on every parcel or monthly batch, and the bond and classification work that formerly sat with nobody.

Common misreadings

"The Supreme Court restored de minimis." It did not; EO 14388 and CBP's own rules keep it suspended.
"Splitting an order keeps it under $800." The threshold no longer exists in practice, and value splitting was always limited by the one-person, one-day rule.
"Small parcels avoid Section 301." They now pay all applicable duties.
"The postal carrier handles customs." Under the postal process the filer classifies, files monthly, pays by the 7th and holds a bond.
"The suspension is temporary." The statutory repeal takes effect on 1 July 2027 whatever happens to the administrative suspension.

Frequently asked questions

Is de minimis still suspended?

Yes. As of October 2026, the de minimis exemption is suspended for shipments from all countries, in all modes, regardless of value. CBP's interim final rules, effective 24 June 2026, suspend it under 19 U.S.C. §1321(b), and EO 14388 had continued the earlier suspension from 24 February 2026. Only articles covered by 50 U.S.C. §1702(b) are outside it.

When does de minimis end permanently?

On 1 July 2027. Section 70531(b)(3) of Pub. L. 119-21, the 2025 law known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, terminates the de minimis exemption in 19 U.S.C. §1321(a)(2)(C) from that date. The administrative suspension already in force since 2025 means the practical effect has arrived earlier.

Do I pay tariffs on a $50 package from China?

Yes. As of October 2026 a low-value package from China pays its MFN rate and all applicable Chapter 99 duties, including Section 301 list duties and the 12.5% forced-labor duty. Duty is collected through formal or informal entry for express and cargo shipments, or through the postal informal entry process or formal entry for mail.

What was the $800 de minimis rule?

It was the Section 321 exemption in 19 U.S.C. §1321(a)(2)(C), which let articles imported by one person on one day with an aggregate fair retail value of $800 or less enter without duty or taxes. CBP processed more than 1.36 billion such shipments in fiscal year 2024 before the suspensions began.

Did the Supreme Court IEEPA ruling restore de minimis?

No. On 20 February 2026, the day of the ruling, EO 14388 continued the suspension for all countries from 24 February 2026, and CBP's CSMS #67845486 said the original suspension was maintained without modification. CBP then suspended the exemption under its own statutory authority from 24 June 2026, independent of IEEPA.

What is Entry Type 13?

Entry Type 13 is CBP's electronic entry type for low-value shipments that are excluded from the postal informal entry process, such as goods subject to Chapter 99 duties or regulated by other agencies. CBP began testing it on 22 September 2026. The compliance date for those mail shipments is 20 January 2027.

De minimis rules for US imports