Businesses must prepare now for impacts of US de minimis suspension
In late June, in response to the indefinite suspension of the $800 de minimis exemption, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), part of the Department of Homeland Security, has introduced new postal informal entry procedures.
This new process, known as Entry Type 13, has been established to bring international mail into parity with other American entry modes.
According to David Taylor, global commercial director at ecommerce logistics specialists Mark 3 International, the changes have been implemented to meet three goals; “Firstly, to capture duty revenues that where historically exempted; secondly, to use richer data to screen for admissibility and IP/consumer-protection violations, and finally to disrupt narcotics smuggling that CBP argues is concentrated in the low-data, low-scrutiny postal channel.”
Taylor added; “In the 12 months since president Trump signed the executive order suspending duty-free de minimis treatment for all countries, the trade environment has become increasingly challenging for exporters.”
The so-called ‘interim final rule’ comes into effect on 24 July 2026 and is expected to present a series of challenges for UK exporters.
Currently, postal entries into the US only attract the 10% Section 122 duty, but from July 24th this expires and all applicable duties come into effect. However, the International Mail Duty Worksheet (IMDW) continues with enhanced data.
The IMDW is used by carriers and mail operators to declare and pay import duties on international postal packages. It must be submitted monthly to CBP along with duty collections, and requires specific data like carrier code, postal item counts, and total duties owed.
On October 24th, IMDW will close for goods flagged by partner government agencies, Section 201/232/301 shipments, and duty-free claims. These, in turn, will move to Type 13 or a commercial entry (Type 11 or Type 01), which include greater complexity such as the need for Harmonised Tariff Schedule (HTS) codes.
In addition, every entry must be filed by a licensed customs broker acting as the Importer of Record (IOR), adding another layer of complexity for importers.
David added; “While the IMDW process remains in place for now, businesses need to prepare for more detailed compliance requirements, including providing 10-digit HTS codes and full product descriptions. Entry Type 13 is not optional infrastructure. It is the only route that works at scale for mail from October 24th.
“Logistics customers are already experiencing greater costs, worsening service, and greater uncertainty, and this will almost certainly impact importers, and the end consumers. Compounding this is the fact that many of the larger carries and postal companies are still poorly equipped to deal with such a seismic change.”
According to a recently published factsheet from the UK government, officials reported a decrease of 10.3% (£6.8bn) in UK exports of goods to the US over the last year.
Taylor concluded, “While UK exports of services have risen in recent months, the exporting of goods to the US has already declined sharply. The changes which the industry is going to experience in the next three months – and possibly longer – will make this process even more difficult.
“As a result, it’s vital that British exporters find trusted partners who can best navigate these complex and evolving changes in the market. By doing so, they reduce the burden on importers and ultimately improve their commercial competitiveness.”