Last week (August 9th), a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers introduced a bill to curb de minimis abuse by Temu, Shein etc. (If you don’t know what de minimis means, I’ve written a quick explanation at the end of this post)
👉 Key Points of the Bill:
– A $2 fee per import shipment through this import route.
– Prohibit textiles and apparel from being imported through the de minimis provision.
– U.S. Customs and Border Protection could be granted more authority to ban/destroy goods entering the U.S. via de minimis
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🤔 What’s de minimis?
When you travel back into the U.S. from abroad, you’re not required to pay duties on goods up to a certain limit.
But this same provision also allows commercial shipments valued under $800 to enter the country without paying import duties.
Companies like Temu and Shein exploit this loophole extensively, shipping products directly from China as one-off shipments.
In 2023, over one billion packages entered the U.S. through this provision, many originating from China.
This practice has triggered complaints from various quarters
– Textile manufacturers argue they face unfair competition
– Human rights advocates are concerned about insufficient scrutiny of goods potentially made with forced labor
– Law enforcement leaders say that de minimis shipments are sometimes used for smuggling fentanyl
You know this is a mainstream topic when even SNL has made a sketch about it
Sources –
1. https://www.finance.senate.gov/chairmans-news/wyden-lummis-brown-collins-and-casey-release-bipartisan-legislation-to-halt-the-flood-of-illicit-packages-into-the-united-states
2. https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-lawmakers-move-to-restrict-trade-provision-favored-by-chinas-e-commerce-giants-bcd8fd43?mod=djemlogistics_h
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKTN2OiR2R8