BRUSSELS/LONDON: The European Union has imposed a new three-euro fee on low-value e-commerce imports from China, targeting online retailers such as Shein, Temu and AliExpress as it seeks to curb what it describes as unfair competition from ultra-cheap imports.

The charge, which took effect on July 1, applies to goods that previously entered the bloc duty-free under the EU's long-standing exemption for imports valued below 150 euros.

Under the new system, the fee is charged for each customs classification in a shipment. A parcel containing three different categories of products would incur a nine-euro charge, while one containing multiple items of the same type, such as dresses or toys, would incur a three-euro charge.

The move follows similar action by the United States, which ended its "de minimis" exemption for Chinese imports in May and for all imports at the end of August.

Duty exemptions for low-value imports have existed for decades, with the current 150-euro threshold introduced in 2008. However, the number of qualifying e-commerce parcels entering the EU has surged from 1.4 billion in 2022 to 5.8 billion in 2025.

"In a different trading world this made a lot of sense, but that world doesn't exist anymore. It's been turned on its head by e-commerce, especially from China," EU lawmaker Dirk Gotink said.

"The exemption was abused and misused on an industrial scale to create a competitive advantage at the expense of EU businesses."

Derek Lossing, an e-commerce and air cargo consultant at Cirrus Global Advisors, said shipments of e-commerce goods into Europe by air could fall between 10 percent and 35 percent in the weeks following the introduction of the fees, with broader implications for global air cargo volumes.

The three-euro charge is a temporary measure that will remain in place until July 1, 2028, when it is scheduled to be replaced by category-specific duties under the EU's new Customs Authority.

The additional costs are expected to raise consumer prices as retailers pass on at least part of the charges.

AliExpress said product listings would indicate when prices include duties and value-added tax, while customers purchasing imported goods would see a breakdown of charges before completing their orders.

Amazon said 97 percent of its EU shipments last year were fulfilled from warehouses within the bloc. For products shipped from outside the EU, customers will also be shown applicable import charges before checkout.