European Union Customs Duty

Key Takeaways

• The EU’s old blanket duty-free exemption for orders under €150 ended on 1 July 2026 - it’s now split by whether the seller uses IOSS.
• IOSS-registered sellers (currently around 93% of EU e-commerce imports) pay a flat €3 customs duty per distinct item type on sub-€150 orders.
• Non-IOSS sellers are still outside the new duty’s scope for sub-€150 orders, for now - only import VAT applies.
• Orders over €150 are unchanged: import VAT, plus customs duty (typically 0-16.5% depending on product category), plus a carrier handling fee of roughly €10-20.

How EU Import Rules Work

Every non-EU order faces import VAT at your own country’s rate - there’s no minimum value exemption for VAT itself, only for the customs duty and handling fee that come with larger orders. The €150 threshold is based on the intrinsic value of the goods, not including shipping.

Since 1 July 2026, whether the seller uses IOSS (Import One-Stop Shop) decides what else applies below that threshold:

Order value	Seller uses IOSS	What you pay
Under €150	Yes	VAT included at checkout, plus a flat €3 customs duty per item type
Under €150	No	VAT collected by the courier on delivery - no customs duty
Over €150	Doesn’t matter	VAT + customs duty (0-16.5%) + carrier handling fee (~€10-20)

For the full country-by-country VAT rate table and a product-category duty lookup, see the dedicated EU import rules guide and EU tariff lookup tool - both stay fully up to date and are unaffected by this page.

Why the Flat €3 Duty Exists

The European Commission introduced the flat duty to close a loophole where sellers were splitting large shipments into many small, technically duty-free parcels. It runs from 1 July 2026 through at least 1 July 2028, after which standard percentage-based duty rates are expected to take over. Non-IOSS sellers remain outside its scope for now, though the Commission has said it’s watching for sellers shifting away from IOSS specifically to dodge the rule.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the EU still have a duty-free threshold?

Partly. Non-IOSS orders under €150 are still duty-free, for now. IOSS orders under €150 pay a flat €3 customs duty per item type instead, in effect since 1 July 2026.

Which EU country has the highest VAT rate?

Hungary, at 27%. The lowest is Luxembourg, at 17%. Your own country’s rate always applies, not the seller’s.

Does this page cover product-specific duty rates?

Not directly - use the EU tariff lookup tool for category-level duty rates (0% on most electronics up to 16.5% on some textile footwear), or the free calculator above for an exact landed-cost estimate on a specific product.