CBP Suspends $800 De Minimis: What U.S. Importers Must Do Now

The $800 de minimis threshold no longer works the way it used to. CBP has suspended duty-free treatment for most low-value shipments entering outside the international postal network, so goods that once cleared for free now need a formal or informal entry. If you ship inventory from China or elsewhere, check your entry type and confirm your HTS classification and country of origin before your next shipment moves.

TL;DR:

• The new mail informal-entry process took effect July 24, 2026; CBP's voluntary Entry Type 13 electronic test began September 22, 2026. Shipments over $2,500, quota merchandise, and AD/CVD goods require formal entry.
• The 10 digit HTS code determines duty rates, agency review flags, and entry type; food, cosmetics, and some electronics may require extra agency data.
• Informal entries typically incur Merchandise Processing Fees, and mail entries may carry a separate dutiable mail fee, so include both in landed cost.
• Sellers without in house compliance staff can use a broker or Delivered Duty Paid provider to combine classification, filing, duty payment, and delivery.
• Misstating declared value can trigger penalties, cargo detention, and loss of trusted trader status; accurate reporting remains required for every entry type.

1. What Section 321 originally allowed

Section 321 is the statutory basis for de minimis entry, codified at 19 U.S.C. §1321(a)(2)©. For decades, it let goods imported by one person, on one day, with a fair retail value under a set cap, enter the United States without duties or formal paperwork. Congress raised that cap from $200 to $800 in 2015 under the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act, a change the Congressional Research Service traces back to the statute’s 1938 origins.

The rule existed for a practical reason: collecting duty on a $15 phone case costs more in processing time than the duty itself raises in revenue. A few mechanics defined how it worked in practice:

• The de minimis cap applied per person per day rather than per shipment or per seller.
• CBP tracked aggregation through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), flagging repeat filers who split orders to stay under the cap.
• Qualifying goods bypassed formal entry paperwork entirely, which is what made de minimis so attractive for high-volume e-commerce.

2. The rulemaking that suspended duty-free entry

Two executive actions and a pair of Federal Register interim final rules (IFRs) changed this. CBP’s IFR on non-postal shipments imposes an indefinite suspension of the de minimis exemption for merchandise valued at $800 or less arriving by any mode other than the international postal network. A companion IFR addresses mail shipments directly, pairing a parallel suspension with a new postal informal entry process.

Key dates and documents to know:

• Both IFRs published in the Federal Register on June 24, 2026, and took effect on publication.
• The non-postal suspension applies immediately to ocean, air cargo, and ground shipments.
• The new mail informal-entry process took effect July 24, 2026; the voluntary Entry Type 13 electronic test began September 22, 2026, according to CBP’s e-commerce FAQ.

CBP’s stated rationale is enforcement, not revenue alone: the agency cites preventing unlawful imports and improving oversight of low-value shipments as the basis for the suspension.

The regulatory text makes clear that shipments formerly reliant on de minimis must now route through an appropriate formal or informal entry, with no automatic duty-free path left for most goods.

3. How the rules differ by shipping mode

The practical effect depends heavily on how your goods travel. Non-postal shipments, meaning ocean freight, air cargo, and express courier, lose de minimis treatment outright and must file through ACE using a standard informal or formal entry, with full HTS, value, and country-of-origin data.

International mail works differently. CBP's parallel IFR created a new informal mail-entry process for eligible shipments valued up to $2,500. The voluntary Entry Type 13 electronic test began September 22, 2026. Shipments over $2,500, quota merchandise, and AD/CVD goods require formal entry. CBP's FAQ says additional categories, including certain Chapter 98 or 99 claims, free-trade-agreement claims, and PGA-regulated merchandise, become ineligible for the new mail informal process on October 22, 2026.

Whether you land in informal or formal entry changes what duties, fees, and documentation apply, which is why classification accuracy now carries more weight than it did under blanket de minimis treatment.

4. A compliance checklist for sellers shipping now

Getting this wrong means detained cargo or duties you did not budget for. Work through these steps for every shipment you plan to move:

1. Classify first. Determine the 10-digit HTS code before booking freight, since this single data point now drives duty rate, PGA flags, and entry type.
2. Confirm country of origin and declared value. ACE filings require accurate COO and value data; understating value to stay under a threshold is a misdeclaration, not a workaround.
3. Check for PGA triggers. Food, cosmetics, electronics with FCC components, and other regulated categories may require additional agency data regardless of entry type. Our customs clearance guide walks through typical ACE filing steps for e-commerce shipments.
4. Budget for fees. Informal entries typically carry a Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF), and mail entries may carry a separate dutiable mail fee; build these into landed cost.
5. Decide who files. A licensed customs broker, a DDP-inclusive forwarder, or self-filing through ACE are your three practical options, and each shifts time and liability differently.

Pro Tip: Run your top five SKUs through HTS classification now, before your next shipment books, so you aren’t discovering a PGA requirement at the port.

For a deeper look at avoiding duty surprises at the classification stage, our HTS classification guide covers common mistakes sellers make when codes are assigned loosely. Sellers running FBA test orders should also review how the suspension affects FBA test shipments specifically, since small sample orders no longer skip entry formalities the way they once did.

5. Why a managed DDP workflow absorbs most of this burden

A Delivered Duty Paid arrangement puts classification, entry filing, duty payment, and final delivery into one workflow instead of several separate handoffs. For a small or mid-size Amazon seller without an in-house compliance team, that consolidation matters more now than it did when de minimis covered most shipments automatically.

A Delivered Duty Paid shipping service handles the pieces that now require attention on every shipment:

• Classification of goods under the correct HTS code and confirmation of country-of-origin documentation before freight moves.
• Filing of ACE entry data required for informal or formal entry, including PGA information where a shipment requires it.
• Management of duty payment directly, so landed cost is fixed before inventory ships rather than discovered at the port.
• Assignment of a dedicated account manager to track each shipment, which matters when entry requirements vary shipment to shipment.

After customs release, the same shipment plan can continue through final delivery to a warehouse or fulfillment center, reducing handoffs during the regulatory transition.

6. Three priorities for importers this quarter

If you take one thing from this transition, it’s that the paperwork burden moved from CBP’s automated systems onto your shoulders. Verify HTS codes and country-of-origin documentation for every active SKU before your next shipment, not after a hold notice arrives.

Decide now whether you’ll self-file through ACE, work with a licensed broker, or route through a DDP partner, since switching mid-shipment costs more than planning ahead. If duty-free entry is gone, DDP arrangements deserve a serious look, and this primer on DDP versus DAP responsibilities is a useful starting point for sellers weighing who should carry duty liability. Finally, build a buffer into your reorder timing. Entry delays during a rule transition are common, and a stockout during a sales peak costs more than an extra week of safety stock.

FAQ

Is the U.S. de minimis threshold still $800?

The $800 threshold still exists in statute, but CBP has suspended duty-free treatment for most shipments at that value. Non-postal shipments now require a formal or informal entry rather than automatic duty-free clearance.

Is de minimis still in effect in the USA?

Duty-free de minimis treatment is suspended indefinitely for goods arriving through non-postal modes, under the Federal Register rule CBP published in June 2026. International mail follows a separate, newly created informal entry path rather than the old exemption.

What is the new mail entry process for low-value shipments?

CBP's mail rule created a new informal process for eligible mail valued up to $2,500, and its voluntary Entry Type 13 electronic test began September 22, 2026. Shipments over $2,500, quota merchandise, and AD/CVD goods require formal entry; CBP lists additional exclusions taking effect October 22, 2026.

Why did the U.S. suspend the de minimis exemption?

CBP states the suspension is meant to improve enforcement, prevent unlawful imports, and bring low-value shipments under more consistent oversight across shipping modes, according to its newsroom release on the change. The move reverses a trade-liberalizing policy that Congress expanded in 2015 when it raised the threshold to $800.

What happens if I misdeclare a shipment's value to avoid duties?

Misdeclaring value to stay under an entry threshold is a customs violation that can trigger penalties, shipment detention, and loss of trusted trader status. Accurate HTS classification, value, and country-of-origin reporting are required on every ACE filing regardless of entry type, per CBP's e-commerce FAQ.