Improve control of low-value e-com goods influx: EU Parliament report

In its position on the EU Customs Code reform, approved in March 2024, the Parliament supported the introduction of processes and rules that place bigger responsibilities on web platforms.

Calling for strong enforcement of relevant existing rules like the General Product Safety Regulation, the Market Surveillance Regulation and the Digital Services Act (DSA), the MEPs said non-EU traders should be incentivised to ship their items to customers from warehouses inside the EU, as controls in warehouses on EU territory may be easier to carry out.

The European Commission communication on e-commerce from February 2025 proposes the introduction of a handling fee of €2 for each shipment to the EU. It also outlines measures to strengthen enforcement of product safety rules.

In the July report, the European Parliament asked the Commission to verify that the proposed €2 handling fee complies with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and is sufficient and proportionate. The MEPs insisted this fee should be paid by the platform, not by the consumer.

Currently, imports of goods valued under €150 are exempt from customs duties. The European Commission proposed a customs reform in May 2023, which would remove this exemption, and the MEPs agreed to this in the July report.

“Too many goods enter the European market without proper checks, putting consumer safety at risk and penalising businesses that play by the rules,” Salvatore De Meo, author of the Parliament’s report on low-value e-commerce goods, noted.

ALCHEMPro News Desk (DS)