Japan, Australia, and Taiwan have recently joined several other countries in suspending specific parcel shipments to the United States in response to new regulations implemented by President Donald Trump’s administration, which will abolish tariff exemptions. The ‘de minimis’ exemption, allowing goods valued at $800 or less to be imported into the U.S. without duty, will cease to exist starting this Friday.
This policy change aims to curb the influx of low-cost imports to support domestic manufacturing but has led to significant disruptions in global postal networks and e-commerce supply chains. Countries such as India, Thailand, South Korea, and New Zealand have already suspended services indefinitely due to logistical issues and uncertainty surrounding the U.S tariff policies.
Several postal services across the Asia-Pacific region are temporarily halting operations to the U.S., affecting low-value parcels sent from individuals and small enterprises. As of Wednesday, Japan Post announced a suspension on delivering small packages valued over $100 to the U.S., as stated in their recent announcement.
Similarly, Australia Post revealed it would “temporarily partially suspend postal services to the United States and Puerto Rico, effective August 26, 2025, until further notice.” The organization remarked, “This response is in-line with action taken by numerous postal operators internationally.”
The Australian public broadcaster ABC reported that this uncertainty in postage has created turmoil for local e-commerce retailers. Laz Smith, co-founder of maternity wear brand Apéro, told ABC, “The volatility in decision making, and the volatility of the market, and, quite frankly, the lack of ability of even Australia Post to be able to address these issues in a timely manner, puts us, and all of Australian fashion, in a really precarious position.”
Starting Tuesday, Taiwan’s postal service has also suspended deliveries of small parcels going to the U.S., as announced in a Monday statement. Chunghwa Post explained that it halted deliveries due to the lack of a global postal service providing a means for senders to prepay customs duties, coupled with their contracted carriers announcing the suspension of merchandise mail deliveries.
The elimination of the de minimis exemption is anticipated to impact discount retailers such as Amazon Haul and TikTok Shop, and online marketplace platforms like Etsy and Shopify, all of which connect U.S. consumers with international businesses. Facing the impending termination of the tariff exemption, international postal service DHL has also ceased accepting shipments to the U.S. as of August 25, following the lead of several European services.
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection has reported that over 1.36 billion de minimis shipments entered the country in the last fiscal year, with more than 4 million such shipments processed each day. The recent executive order indicates businesses could incur a charge of $80 per item for countries with a tariff rate below 16%, increasing up to $160 for tariffs between 16% and 25%, and $200 for countries with tariffs exceeding 25%.
