De Minimis Is Suspended. Now Every Parcel Has a Job.

The $800 duty-free shortcut is gone for most commercial shipments, and a statutory repeal locks it in for 2027. The real shift is operational: low-value trade moved from an exemption model to an entry-and-data model.

For years, a $50 phone case from overseas cleared U.S. customs under Section 321 de minimis with no duty and almost no paperwork, as long as it stayed under $800. That system scaled enormously: CBP processed more than 1.36 billion de minimis shipments in fiscal year 2024, roughly 4 million packages a day. That model is over. And the change runs deeper than a new duty rate.

There is also an important legal distinction to hold onto. The $800 exemption has been suspended administratively, and Congress has separately scheduled its permanent statutory repeal. Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21, signed July 4, 2025), the de minimis provision in Section 321 is repealed for all commercial shipments effective July 1, 2027. So today's suspension is administrative and, in principle, reversible; in 2027 it becomes law.

What changed, and when

The rollback came in stages. Executive Order 14324, effective August 29, 2025, suspended duty-free de minimis for most commercial shipments from all countries. Executive Order 14388 of February 20, 2026 continued the suspension and directed CBP to collect applicable duties and use appropriate entry procedures. On June 24, 2026, CBP published two interim final rules writing the suspension into its regulations, one for all non-postal modes (effective that day) and one for the international postal network. The new postal informal-entry process became effective July 24, 2026.

The result is not that every package suddenly needs a formal entry. That would be wrong. The real change is that shipments which previously qualified for de minimis now need an appropriate entry process, informal or formal, and are generally subject to applicable duties, taxes, and fees.

The $2,500 number is not a new duty-free line

This is where businesses get confused. For international mail, CBP created a new informal-entry process for eligible merchandise valued at $2,500 or less. But $2,500 is an entry threshold, not a duty-free threshold. A $200 postal shipment can qualify for the informal process and still owe duty. So can a $2,000 one. The $800 free ride does not come back just because the entry is informal.

The data CBP now wants

For the new postal informal-entry process, filers transmit a detailed data set to CBP by email, in Excel or CSV, submitted through the International Mail Duty Worksheet (IMDW) and paid via Pay.gov, due no later than the 7th day of the month following the package's arrival. The required fields include filer code, bond number, merchandise description, country of origin, all applicable 10-digit HTSUS classifications, quantity or weight when a specific duty rate applies, declared value, duty rate, total duty owed, carrier and conveyance, tracking number, and arrival port and date. For a package that arrives April 15, the worksheet and payment are due by May 7. The operational detail lives in CBP guidance at CSMS #69183472.

The postal wrinkle

Two features reshape how e-commerce is run. First, filing under the new postal process requires a basic importation and entry bond. Second, the parties allowed to file are limited to those with the legal right to make entry, generally the owner or purchaser, or a licensed customs broker they designate. The non-broker third parties that handled filings under the earlier interim system are no longer eligible. For a business built around a postal intermediary doing everything, that is not a small administrative change. After October 22, 2026, shipments subject to partner-government-agency data or Chapter 98 and 99 duties must move to another process, such as Entry Type 13 or a formal entry.

Not every shipment is treated alike

There are real carve-outs. Certain articles under 50 U.S.C. §1702(b), including specified donations and informational materials, sit outside the suspension. And goods subject to certain trade remedies, Chapter 98 or 99 provisions, or PGA requirements can fall out of the postal informal process and require another entry procedure. The rule is not "every package gets identical treatment." It is "the low-value shortcut is gone for most commercial merchandise, and the entry process now matters."

The cost is bigger than the tariff

The new landed-cost math can include the duty, plus CBP fees, brokerage, bonding, compliance, processing, and inventory impact. Not every shipment incurs every one. But you can no longer assume a $50 or $200 parcel is automatically duty-free and administratively invisible. CBP itself estimates the new postal process will raise duties by more than $100 million a year. For parcels under about $200, the fixed cost of customs processing often exceeds the duty itself.

What businesses should do now Build HTS classification capability. Low value does not mean classification-free; every parcel needs a correct 10-digit code, at volume. Document country of origin. It drives duty treatment and trade-enforcement exposure, so treat it as a documented fact. Decide who makes entry. Owner, purchaser, or broker. Know the answer before the shipment arrives, because the old postal intermediary may no longer qualify. Put bonding in place where required, especially for the postal informal process, and set a recurring reminder for the 7th-of-month worksheet. Recalculate landed cost. Model the whole transaction cost, not just the tariff. Separate postal from non-postal strategy. Express, air, ocean, truck, rail, and mail do not run under identical entry mechanics.

The most important change is not that the U.S. stopped giving an $800 break. It is that low-value trade moved from an exemption model to an entry-and-data model. The package may still be worth $50, but the compliance job behind it is no longer $50-sized. Customs data is now part of the product economics.

This article is informational and is not legal or customs advice. Requirements vary by merchandise, entry type, and transportation mode. Confirm the applicable treatment with CBP, a licensed customs broker, or trade counsel.

SOURCES

Federal Register / CBP (primaria) — Interim Final Rule postal: nuevo proceso informal, IMDW, campos y plazo del día 7 (ej. arribo 15 abr → pago 7 may): https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/06/24/2026-12669/indefinite-suspension-of-the-de-minimis-exemption-for-mail-shipments-and-new-postal-informal-entry Federal Register / CBP (primaria) — Interim Final Rule todos los modos no postales, efectiva 24 jun. 2026 (CBP Dec. 26-12): https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/html/2026/06/24/2026-12670.html CBP (primaria, operativa) — E-Commerce FAQs (proceso postal, $2,500, bond, HTSUS, IMDW, CSMS #69183472, Cap. 98/99): https://www.cbp.gov/trade/basic-import-export/e-commerce/faqs One Big Beautiful Bill Act (primaria) — P.L. 119-21 (firmada 4 jul. 2025): deroga Sección 321 para envíos comerciales efectivo 1 jul. 2027: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Big_Beautiful_Bill_Act Troutman Pepper Locke (secundaria, confirma IMDW, campos, formato de nombre, Pay.gov, plazo día 7): https://www.troutman.com/insights/no-more-free-ride-navigating-cbps-new-international-mail-entry-process/