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An Post chief joins call for EU to delay €3 customs charge on small parcels
🇮🇪 Ireland /Economy & Trade

An Post chief joins call for EU to delay €3 customs charge on small parcels

From Irish Times · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • An Post's CEO joined 19 other European postal groups urging the EU to delay a new €3 customs charge on small parcels.
  • The charge, set to take effect July 1st, will apply to goods from outside the EU valued at €150 or less.
  • Postal groups argue the July deadline is too soon for businesses and operators to comply, potentially harming SMEs and cross-border e-commerce.

David McRedmond, the chief executive of Ireland's postal service An Post, has joined forces with 19 other European postal operators to call for a six-month delay to a new European Union customs charge. The proposed €3 fee on small parcels originating from outside the EU is scheduled to be implemented on July 1st.

In a letter dated May 29th addressed to European Commissioner Maros Sefcovic, the executives argued that the impending deadline would severely impact small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), consumers, postal traffic, and the broader cross-border e-commerce ecosystem. They highlighted that the final legal text would only be available four weeks before the July 1st due date, making full compliance impossible for businesses, merchants, and operators.

The final legal text will be available only four weeks before the due date of 1st of July, making it impossible for businesses, merchants and operators to be fully compliant.

— Postal group executivesIn a letter to the European Commissioner, the executives explained why the July 1st deadline for the new customs charge is unworkable.

Currently, no customs duty is applied to e-commerce packages entering the EU valued at €150 or less. However, from July 1st, this €3 charge per item will apply to goods purchased online from non-EU countries, including the UK. The postal chiefs acknowledged progress in developing a payment system but stressed that the transition heavily relies on the readiness of non-EU postal operators, e-commerce platforms, and SMEs.

The postal groups warned that the new customs levy could create "unintended trade tensions" and negatively affect European consumers, potentially leading to millions of parcels being returned. They also noted that postal imports constitute less than 5% of total import volume from China in most EU member states and primarily serve fragmented, low-value, and socially inclusive traffic. The lack of clarity and the short implementation period could result in divergent interpretations across different member states.

We therefore request that its implementation be delayed by at least six months to allow sufficient preparation time for all stakeholders.

— Postal group executivesThe executives formally requested a delay in the implementation of the new customs charge.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Irish Times in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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