Guide · United States · 2026 rules

US customs on a China haul in 2026

A parcel of goods from China or Hong Kong has not entered the US duty-free under the $800 de minimis rule since May 2, 2025, and since June 2026 CBP's own regulations suspend that rule indefinitely. Every haul now owes the duty on what is inside it, by mail or by courier. What differs is who files the entry and how the bill reaches you.

Written for US buyers, independent of any agent · Last reviewed

Every rule, rate and date on this page links to the official source it came from. Sources last checked: . This is a plain-English summary, not legal advice.

What changed

From $800 duty-free to duty on everything

  1. May 2, 2025

    Duty-free de minimis treatment ends for products of China, which the order says include products of Hong Kong (E.O. 14256).

  2. Aug 29, 2025

    E.O. 14324 suspends de minimis for low-value imports from every country (as recounted in CBP's June 2026 rule).

  3. Feb 20, 2026

    The Supreme Court rules that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs (Learning Resources v. Trump), and E.O. 14389 ends the IEEPA tariffs. The ruling did not touch de minimis, and E.O. 14388 keeps it suspended (per CBP's rule).

  4. Feb 24 – Jul 24, 2026

    A 10 percent temporary surcharge under Section 122 (Proclamation 11012). Mail parcels paid a duty at that rate under an interim process (E.O. 14388).

  5. Jun 24, 2026

    CBP writes an indefinite suspension of de minimis into its regulations for everything that does not come by mail (91 FR 37789).

  6. Jul 24, 2026

    The same for mail, with a new postal informal entry process (91 FR 37801).

  7. Sep 22, 2026

    CBP's test of Entry Type 13, an electronic informal entry for mail, begins (91 FR 38007).

  8. Oct 8, 2026

    CBP proposes further changes to low-value entry; comments close December 7, 2026 (91 FR 64532). Not yet in force.

  9. Jul 1, 2027

    The One Big Beautiful Bill Act ends the de minimis exemption in law, as CBP's rule notes.

What you owe on a haul

All applicable duties, taxes and fees must be paid, at rates based on each item's classification in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTSUS) and in effect when the entry is made (CBP E-Commerce FAQ). For a haul from China, item by item, that means:

  • The ordinary duty rate for the item's tariff code. You can look the code up in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule.
  • Section 301 duties, if the item is covered. They apply to products of China, not to genuine products of Hong Kong or Macau, and only goods entered under de minimis escaped them (CBP Section 301 FAQ). That route is now closed.
  • Any other additional duty in force on the day of entry. These have changed several times since 2025, so we print no single rate.

The gift exemption does not cover anything bought (CBP E-Commerce FAQ), and splitting a haul to stay under $800 achieves nothing: there is no $800 line left.

Postal vs. express courier

Same duty, two ways through the border

Express couriers and air freight

Anything not sent by mail needs a formal or informal entry (91 FR 37789). Up to $2,500 it can be informal, mainly Entry Type 11; above that, formal entry generally applies.

The courier or the line's broker files the entry and pays CBP. Then it either bills you (duties unpaid, DDU) or has already charged you in the shipping price (duties paid, DDP). An automated informal entry carries CBP's $2.77 merchandise processing fee (CBP User Fee Table). A courier's brokerage fee is the courier's own charge, not a government one.

Postal lines (EMS, China Post, delivered by USPS)

Since July 24, 2026, a postal informal entry can only be filed by the owner or purchaser of the goods, or a licensed customs broker they designate, backed by a customs bond. The filer sends CBP the entry data and pays the duty through Pay.gov by the 7th day of the month after the parcel arrives. CBP officers no longer prepare manual mail entries, and duties are no longer collected on delivery (91 FR 37801).

Mail is exempt from the merchandise processing fee, and a parcel with no filer stays in CBP custody (CBP E-Commerce FAQ). USPS does not offer prepaid duties on inbound mail (USPS). Ask your agent who files on its postal line, and at what cost.

One more postal detail: goods owing HTSUS chapter 99 duties, such as Section 301 duties, leave the postal informal entry when a transition window closes, which CBP ties to the opening of the Entry Type 13 test (91 FR 37801): September 22, 2026 (91 FR 38007). Since then, they go by formal entry or through that test.

Worked examples

The method, not a made-up total

We do not invent rates. Replace each letter with your own item's value and the rates for its tariff code.

A · Courier, duties billed to you

  1. Value of each item: V.
  2. Ordinary rate for its tariff code: r.
  3. Chapter 99 rate for China origin, if any: s.
  4. Duty per item = V × (r + s). Add up the items.
  5. Add the $2.77 processing fee for one automated informal entry (CBP).
  6. Add the courier's own brokerage fee from its schedule.

B · Postal line

  1. Duty per item = V × r. Items with a chapter 99 rate (s) go by formal entry or Entry Type 13 instead.
  2. No merchandise processing fee: mail is exempt (CBP).
  3. Add what the line charges for filing: the line's price, not CBP's.
  4. Nothing is collected at your door.

C · A haul over $2,500

  1. Formal entry generally applies above $2,500.
  2. The processing fee becomes 0.3464% of value, with a $34.58 minimum and a $670.86 maximum (CBP).
  3. On a $3,000 haul, 0.3464% is about $10.39, under the minimum, so the fee is $34.58.
  4. Duties as in A, plus a broker's fee for the formal entry.

What we could not confirm

As of October 2026, we could not confirm the following from an official source:

  • What happened to the Section 122 surcharge after July 24, 2026. Proclamation 11012 ran it until then unless Congress extended it; we found no later notice.
  • One current rate of additional duty on Chinese clothing or shoes. It depends on the tariff code.
  • Who fills the filer role on each agent's postal line under the July 2026 rule.
  • What CBP's October 2026 proposal will change once it is final (91 FR 64532).

Next: what each kind of line means for your parcel, in shipping a haul to the USA, and how to compare agents on US delivery in choosing an agent for the US.

Sources (checked October 2026)

FAQ

US customs questions

Is there still an $800 duty-free limit on packages from China?

No. It ended for goods from China and Hong Kong on May 2, 2025, and since June and July 2026 CBP's regulations suspend it indefinitely for courier and mail shipments alike. A 2025 law ends it permanently on July 1, 2027.

Will USPS ask me to pay duty at the door?

Not under CBP's informal mail entry process in effect since July 24, 2026: duties are no longer collected on delivery. The filer pays CBP through Pay.gov instead. On an agent's postal line, ask how that cost is passed on to you.

Can my haul be declared as a gift?

Not if you bought it. CBP says the gift exemption does not cover articles acquired by purchase. A wrong declaration is a false statement to CBP.

Does a tax-included (DDP) line mean there is no duty?

No. The line pays the duty and charges you for it up front in the shipping price. The amount owed is set by the same rules.