If your small business imports samples, components, or finished goods in parcels under $800, you lost a duty-free lane that had been open since 2016 — and for low-value imports generally, since the 1930s. On August 29, 2025, the U.S. indefinitely suspended duty-free de minimis treatment for goods valued at $800 or less from all countries, ending the expedited, duty-free entry of roughly four million parcels per day and replacing it with formal customs entry and applicable tariffs of 10–50% depending on origin and product.
China and Hong Kong lost de minimis on May 2, 2025; the rest of the world followed August 29. International mail gets a parallel change on July 24, 2026, when CBP suspends Section 1321(a)(2)(C) de minimis for postal shipments and replaces it with a formal postal entry process under 19 C.F.R. Part 145. Here is what changed and the bookkeeping shifts small importers need now.
What De Minimis Was — and Why It Mattered to Small Businesses
Section 321, 19 U.S.C. §1321, allowed goods valued at $800 or less per person per day to enter duty-free with minimal paperwork — often a single manifest line, no formal entry, no duty. For small e-commerce sellers, Etsy and Shopify merchants, and product businesses that source components abroad, de minimis was the operating model: air parcels of $300–$700 in samples or finished goods arrived in days, duty-free, with the platform handling the manifest.
That model is gone. CBP's modernized low-value shipment processing now requires an informal or formal entry and payment of all applicable duties for every shipment, regardless of value: general duty plus any Section 301, 232, or 201 additional duties. A $200 parcel of goods from a 25% Section 301 country now owes $50 in duty on entry, plus MPF and HMF where applicable — a cost that was zero on August 28.
The July 30, 2025 executive order that ended de minimis did so almost two years ahead of the tax-and-spending bill's deadline, making the August 29 date the operative one for planning.
The New Postal Wrinkle — July 24, 2026
For international mail, CBP separately suspended de minimis under Section 1321(a)(2)(C) effective July 24, 2026, replacing the old mail de minimis with a formal postal entry process. After that date, even a $30 sample sent by international post requires a postal entry filing rather than the prior informal mail clearance. If you receive supplier samples or returns by post, factor a formal entry fee and duty into the landed cost where you previously assumed duty-free.
What Small Importers Must Do Now
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Classify every SKU. Every low-value import now needs a tariff classification (HTSUS) and a country-of-origin duty rate, including Section 301 etc. add-ons. A product that was "under $800, no entry" last year is now "classified, entered, and dutied" — the same as a container.
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Budget landed cost, not product cost. A $500 shipment with a 25% duty, $26.79 informal entry MPF minimum, and a broker fee of $25–$75 has a landed cost of $676–$726 — 35–45% above product cost. Price and margin must reflect landed cost, not FOB.
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Choose a customs broker for low-value entries. You can self-file, but most small importers will use a broker for informal entries (up to $2,500) or formal entries above that. Establish the broker relationship before the next shipment, provide the HTSUS and valuation, and ensure the broker has a continuous bond or single-entry bond where required.
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Reconcile platform landed-cost postings. If you sell imported goods, your inventory system's landed cost — product plus freight, duty, and fees capitalized to inventory — must tie to the CBP entry and broker invoice. Duty is inventory cost, not period expense, until the goods sell.
The Compliance Checklist
- HTSUS for every imported SKU on file
- Duty rate by origin (general + 301/232/201) on file
- Broker engaged for informal/formal entry, with bond in place
- Landed cost (product + freight + duty + MPF/HMF + broker fee) computed per shipment
- Inventory valuation updated to landed cost, not FOB
Simplify Your Financial Management
De minimis made low-value importing feel like domestic purchasing. Its end makes every parcel an import with a duty, an entry, and a landed cost. Beancount.io keeps every shipment, every duty, and every broker fee in plain-text, version-controlled accounting — so landed cost is auditable and margin is real, not assumed. Get started for free and make every small shipment count correctly.