U.S. De Minimis Update: Current Postal Status And The Ops Checklist

TL DR: The United States suspended duty-free de minimis treatment on Aug 29. International mail into the U.S. dropped sharply as many foreign posts paused services, while some operators are re-enabling lanes using prepaid duty solutions. Non-postal shipments continue under standard entry rules. This post gives logistics service providers a reliable snapshot of what is moving, what is not, and a concrete action plan for the next five business days.

Where Things Stand Now

Policy: A White House executive order issued July 30 suspended the duty-free de minimis threshold globally. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued international mail guidance that assigns duty payment to the postal carrier or a CBP-approved qualified party using either ad valorem or a temporary specific-duty method.

Network effect: The Universal Postal Union reports an 80–81 percent drop in global postal traffic to the U.S. at launch, with many operators temporarily suspending parcel services. Several posts are now moving to prepaid duty solutions and selective lane resumptions.

Status By Origin: Selected Operators

Use this table for quick lane checks. Verify operator notices before promising service to customers.

Origin Operator	Status	Gift Policy	Duty Payment Path	Data Needed	Official Update
Royal Mail (UK)	Resumed with prepaid-duty options for U.S. parcels via PDDP services	Personal gifts typically allowed within stated limits	Carrier or qualified party prepays duty; Royal Mail offers calculation and payment to CBP	Electronic customs data; item value and country of origin required	Royal Mail: Shipping to USA
Deutsche Post / DHL Parcel Germany	Business parcels via postal network suspended; DHL Express available	Gifts individual-to-individual up to 100 USD allowed with stricter controls	Postal: paused; Express: duties handled under commercial clearance	Standard postal or express data, depending on product used	DHL press release
Canada Post	Moving with prepaid duty requirement for all postal shipments to the U.S.	See operator page for current limits and conditions	Carrier or qualified party must prepay and remit duty	Electronic data including item value and country of origin	Canada Post: Ship to the U.S.

Note on scope: Postal rules above apply to international mail. Freight, courier, and express shipments continue under standard U.S. entry and brokerage processes.

How International Mail Duty Works

Method 1: Ad valorem: duty equals the effective IEEPA rate for the item’s country of origin applied to the declared value.
Method 2: Specific duty per item: flat duty per item based on the origin country’s effective IEEPA rate: 80 USD for under 16 percent; 160 USD for 16–25 percent; 200 USD for above 25 percent. This method is available for a limited time. A carrier or qualified party applies one method consistently and remits monthly.
Who pays: the postal carrier or a CBP-approved qualified party. CBP maintains and updates the qualified-party roster.

What This Means For Ops This Week

Treat postal lanes as a patchwork of suspensions and resumptions that depend on prepaid duty readiness. Keep non-postal flows on standard entry.

Map exposure by customer and SKU: identify which orders still use international mail versus express or freight. Prioritize high-volume mail SKUs for contingency plans.
Price three paths: mail with prepaid duty, express DDP, and ocean to a U.S. DC with domestic ship. Include admin fees, brokerage, and compliance costs.
Confirm the duty payment pathway: if using mail, name the carrier or qualified party responsible for duty remittance. Verify bond and remittance cadence.
Tighten data SLAs: collect item value and country of origin at order capture. Reject incomplete data before tender to avoid returns.
Lock capacity where needed: hold September space for SKUs likely to shift from mail to express or to bulk ocean replenishment. Align around Golden Week timing.
Update customer macros and FAQs: explain that mail requires prepaid duty, express remains available, and freight is unchanged at entry.
Track lane reopenings: maintain a simple operator log with status, gift policy, and the link to the latest notice.

Plan bulk restocks with live vessel ETAs and B/L tracking in TRADLINX Ocean Visibility while mail lanes normalize.

References

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