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25 member countries have used the Universal Postal Union’s emergency communication system to alert of a suspension in services, said the agency. They join a range of other countries, including Germany and Australia, which have publicly announced restrictions on US deliveries due to the new de minimis requirements.

The de minimis (Latin for “of the smallest thing”) exception was a long-standing tariff rule, in place since 1938, that exempted packages under a certain value – most recently $800 – from being subject to any tariffs or customs. 

The original purpose of the exception was to avoid needless bureaucracy that would yield very few returns: under the old tariff regimes, an $800 package from the EU would only have yielded an average $8 return, which would not have been worth the government’s processing costs.

In recent years, the de minimis exception was widely used by low-cost online retailers like Shein and Temu to send packages directly to US customers from abroad without being subject to import controls or tariffs. 

Without the de minimis exception, costs are expected to rise significantly, especially hitting small businesses with a large US customer base and American consumers relying on low-cost everyday goods from online retailers.

The removal of the exemption will also widely impact postal services worldwide, which will now see all their packages subjected to customs controls and taxes. This will not only raise costs – making shipping packages from some countries that have been hardest hit by tariffs, like China and Brazil, prohibitively expensive – but also make the entire process lengthier and more complicated.

Packages once eligible for the de minimis exemption will now be subject to the same tariffs as all other shipments, which will see countries like India and China face levies of as much as 50% of the package’s worth. 

The only exemption remaining is for purely private shipments of gifts with a value under $100, which most postal services will continue sending. To give postal services time to adapt, carriers will be able to opt for a flat fee of $80-$200 on each package for six months. 

The key difficulty lies in the timing of the tariffs: while any duties associated with a package used to be collected by the US postal services from the recipient, the new requirements are far more stringent and require all duties to be paid in advance. 

This, along with the increased customs control, makes it much more logistically difficult for postal services to manage US shipments, especially with the limited time they have been given to prepare. 

1.4 billion packages a year were subject to the de minimis exemption until now, around 30% from online shopping giants Shein and Temu alone. The exemption also made it possible for postal services to ship most packages to the US with minimal complications, as their value usually lay far below the $800 threshold. 

Many national postal services have halted services, while others have started accepting packages again after working out alternative shipping methods or exceptions.

• Germany’s Deutsche Post stopped accepting packages from both private and business customers bound for the US on 23 August as a result of the new rules.The agency’s statement said it is aiming to resume deliveries as quickly as possible. 

• Australia Post is also no longer accepting shipments except private gifts under $100 while the agency “develops and implements a workable solution for customers”. This is mostly expected to affect small businesses using Australia Post’s services to send packages directly to the US.

• India’s Department of Posts halted all shipments on 25 August, citing issues with US-bound air carriers, who are also refusing to accept packages due to the new rules. 

• Singapore Post has limited all shipments to the US to documents; packages are only being accepted via its more expensive Speedpost Express option. 

• South Korea’s Korea Post is no longer allowing customers to ship any packages to the US, although they may do so through EMS premium, a more expensive private collaboration handled by UPS.