Packages from China are surging into the United States

Under current U.S. law, most imports valued at less than $800 enter duty-free into the United States as long as they are packaged and addressed to individual buyers. It's referred to as the de minimis rule. Efforts to lower the threshold amount or exclude certain countries altogether from duty-free treatment are set to become a major trade fight in this Congress. 

• The rule speeds the pace of commerce and lowers costs for consumers. It also allows U.S. Customs and Border Protection to focus its resources on the bigger-ticket items that generate more tariff revenue for the federal government.

The volume of products coming into the U.S. that benefit from the de minimis rule has soared in recent years. 

• Congress raised the U.S. government’s threshold for expedited, duty-free treatment from $200 to $800 in 2016.
• The volume of such imports has since risen from about 220 million packages that year to 771 million in 2021 — with China accounting for about 60%, according to the government — and 685 million last year.

Packages from China are surging into the United States. Some say $800 duty-free limit was a mistake

BY KEVIN FREKING, ASSOCIATED PRESS - 06/24/23 12:10 PM ET

SHARETWEET

FILE – Trucks line up to enter a Port of Oakland shipping terminal on Nov. 10, 2021, in Oakland, Calif. Conservatives anxious to counter the U.S.’s leading economic adversary have set their sights on a top trade priority for labor unions and progressives: cracking down on the deluge of duty-free packages coming in from China. The changing political dynamic could have major ramifications for small businesses and consumers importing products from China valued at less than $800. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservatives anxious to counter America’s leading economic adversary have set their sights on a top trade priority for labor unions and progressives: cracking down on the deluge of duty-free packages coming in from China.

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Packages from China are surging into the United States. Some say $800 duty-free limit was a mistake

KEVIN FREKING

Sat, June 24, 2023 at 5:19 AM MST·6 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservatives anxious to counter America's leading economic adversary have set their sights on a top trade priority for labor unions and progressives: cracking down on the deluge of duty-free packages coming in from China.

The changing political dynamic could have major ramifications for e-commerce businesses and consumers importing products from China valued at less than $800. It also could add to the growing tensions between the countries.