The USPS’s de minimis exemption isn’t stopping China, and it threatens China’s price advantage in the face of new tariffs

Shein’s business model has relied on rapid development of new SKUs and shipping them to consumers, which is at risk because of shipping in bulk.

It is unclear how long the USPS suspension will last, but the effort to crack down on the de minimis excemption seems like a longer-term shift in policy, Cooke said.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said China would take “necessary measures” to protect its companies, and urged the U.S. to “stop politicizing economic and trade issues and using them as a tool, and to stop unreasonably suppressing Chinese companies.”

It will likely affect websites like Shein and Temu, popular with younger shoppers in the US for cheap clothing and other products shipped from China.

The move was made Tuesday, a day after the U.S. imposed an additional 10% tariffs on Chinese goods and ended a customs exception that allowed small value parcels to enter without paying tax. Canada and Mexico managed to negotiate a month-long reprieve from 25% tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Cheap, direct postal service helps these companies keep costs low, as did the “de minimis” exemption that previously allowed shipments to go tax-free if their value is under $800.

The USPS did not state a reason for suspension, but the move came after Trump closed the “de minimis” customs exemption that let shoppers and importers skirt duties on packages worth less than $800.

“That will increase logistics costs, which along with the recent scrapping of the de minimis exemption for most products from China, could erode its price advantage.”

The de minimis exception was closed by the Executive order of President Trump after he imposed a 10 percent tax on Chinese goods. Shein and Temu offer goods to US buyers at a lower price than anywhere else in the world. Merchants on eBay and on other websites, such as Amazon, exploit it.

Even though the USPS is once again accepting packages there is still a risk of delays and disruption. The service said it is working together with US Customs and Border Protection on a collection mechanism for the tariffs to ensure that they don’t cause too much disruption. Neither UPS nor FedEx has announced restrictions on shipments from China, but they are undoubtedly struggling to cope with the new requirements.

Over 1.3 billion parcels entered the US using the de minimis exemption in 2024 according to Customs and Border Protection, a number that’s grown by more than 600 percent over the past decade. De minimis hasn’t been removed entirely, but shipments from China are no longer eligible for it.

In addition to enabling the likes of Shein and Temu, de minimis shipments have posed safety concerns, making it easier for low quality products to reach US buyers. In the extreme case, some e-bike and battery manufacturers have used de minimis to skirt safety regulations and avoid product inspection, contributing to hundreds of fires caused by faulty e-bike batteries in New York City alone.