The €3 EU customs duty: who pays it, and what IOSS changes

You ship parcels to EU buyers from outside the EU. Since July 1, 2026, every item in a parcel worth €150 or less pays a customs duty. Before, these parcels came in duty-free.

This guide follows the Commission’s own guidance. It says what counts as an item, who pays, and what IOSS does and does not change.

The short version

• The duty is €3 per item, not per parcel.
• It covers parcels worth €150 or less, sold at a distance and imported from outside the EU.
• It runs from July 1, 2026 until July 1, 2028.
• IOSS does not remove it. IOSS deals with VAT only.
• A €2 handling fee per item is due to start on November 1, 2026.

What counts as one item

The Commission’s guidance gives a plain test. An item is the goods in a parcel that share the same tariff classification, the same description and, where the customs declaration asks for it, the same origin.

So five of the same T-shirt in one parcel are one item. That is €3.

The guidance gives this example for parts and accessories in one parcel:

The Commission's example of how items are counted

	Pieces	Tariff code	Origin	Duty
Line 1	5	Code A	China	€3
Line 2	1	Code A	Thailand	€3
Line 3	2	Code B	China	€3

Eight pieces, three lines, €9. The same code from two countries counts twice.

Count the lines on your own customs declaration. That is your duty per parcel.

Who pays

The guidance says the declarant pays first. The declarant is the person who declares the goods to customs: a platform, a seller, a carrier or an agent. Only as a last resort can another person, including the buyer, declare them.

The guidance sets an order:

Who is the declarant, in the order the guidance sets

	Who
1. You use IOSS	The person allowed to use IOSS, or its indirect representative
2. You use the special arrangements	The person allowed to use the special arrangements, or its indirect representative
3. Neither	The indirect representative of the importer
4. None of these	Any other person who can give all the information customs needs

In plain words: if you use IOSS, the duty is first yours, or your IOSS representative’s. Ask your carrier or agent who declares your parcels, and what they charge you for it.

What IOSS changes, and what it does not

IOSS handles VAT. The €3 is a customs duty. They are two separate charges.

The Commission’s guidance says the €3 applies whichever VAT route you use. What IOSS changes is the VAT at the door:

VAT on a parcel worth €150 or less, with and without IOSS

	With IOSS	Without IOSS
VAT at import	Exempt	Due at the door
Who collects the VAT	You, when the order is paid	The carrier or postal operator, from your buyer
The €3 duty	Due	Due
The €2 fee	Due	Due

The Commission’s VAT addendum adds one rule. If you charge the €3 to your buyer at checkout, it becomes part of the sale price for VAT. It then counts in the amount your IOSS return is worked out on. If you do not charge it, it does not.

Without IOSS, import VAT is due, and the €3 duty is part of the amount that VAT is charged on.

For the three VAT routes in full, read our guide to OSS, IOSS and local VAT.

The €2 handling fee

The EU adds a Union handling fee of €2 per item. The Commission’s Customs Reform page says it applies from November 1, 2026. The VAT addendum calls it “expected”, so check the date before you rely on it.

Two differences from the €3:

• It does not depend on the item’s value. It reaches parcels over €150 too.
• The Commission treats it as part of the price for VAT. If you charge it to your buyer at checkout, it counts in your IOSS return.

One item then costs €3 + €2 = €5. A thousand single-item parcels cost €5,000.

Returns

The guidance says you can no longer ask customs to cancel the declaration of a returned parcel of €150 or less. So the old shortcut for getting duty back is gone. The general refund rules in the Union Customs Code still apply.

For VAT, the Commission says VAT charged on the handling fee is refunded with the VAT on a return.

What to do now

1. Count your item lines. Use the Commission’s test: tariff code, description, origin.
2. Add €3, and from November 1 add €2, to your landed cost. Then check your price.
3. Ask who declares your parcels. Your carrier or agent may be the declarant. Ask what they charge.
4. Decide if you charge the duty at checkout. If you do, it counts in your IOSS return.
5. Check you have IOSS if you ship direct from abroad. A seller outside the EU normally needs an EU intermediary to use it.

How VAT+ can help

VAT+ is a compliance team in Shenzhen. Our IOSS service is powered by VATAi. Their tax specialists register you and file your monthly IOSS return. We stay your contact.

We are not customs brokers, and this guide is not tax or customs advice. The rules for your own parcels depend on what you ship, where from and how.