France: the national €2 tax on small parcels suspended in favour of the European duty
Introduced on 1 March 2026 to target low-price parcels from China via Shein, Temu or AliExpress, the French tax of €2 per product category was widely circumvented, with around 90% of the volume diverted through other European countries; it was suspended on 1 July 2026, the day the European flat-rate duty of €3 came into effect.
Imechapishwa tarehe · Imesasishwa tarehe
The 2026 Finance Act introduced, from 1 March 2026, a tax of €2 per item category on parcels worth less than €150 imported from a country outside the European Union, in response to the influx of small shipments from Asian online sales platforms.
Within the first few weeks, according to the director general of French customs, around 90% of the volume concerned was diverted: platforms routed their goods by air through other European entry points, notably Belgium or the Netherlands, before bringing them into France by road, since the French tax only applied to parcels entering national territory directly. Actual monthly revenue, of around €2.3 million, fell well short of the €400 million expected for the year.
The French tax was suspended on 1 July 2026, the very day the European flat-rate duty of €3 per declared tariff heading, introduced by Regulation (EU) 2026/382, came into application: France could not stack its own national scheme on top of the harmonised system now in force across the 27 Member States.
An additional measure, also European, in the form of a handling fee applicable to low-value distance-sale shipments, is announced for 1 November 2026 across the Union.
Kinachobadilika kwa muagizaji
For a client shipping small parcels from China directly to individuals or a light structure in France, the national benchmark disappears: only the European rule now matters, applied identically across the 27 Member States, with no possibility of circumvention through another entry point. Sorva helps clients organise their shipments as consolidated freight rather than individual postal parcels, to limit the number of declarations subject to the new flat-rate duty, without standing in for the party ultimately liable for the tax.
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Yanayobadilika kwa sasa
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Soma makala