White House moves to exclude Chinese e-commerce from duty-free import

Following up on earlier action this week aimed at controlling the influx of unidentified e-commerce shipments from China, U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Friday proposed that low-value imports no longer qualify for duty-free entry if the products are subject to tariffs or other national security restrictions.

The proposal could result in higher consumer prices for small shipments and dampen demand, but logistics and trade professionals expect Chinese online retailers will be able to quickly adapt. 

The tentative measure formally covers a broad swath of goods – including washers, dryers and steel – from many countries but will predominantly apply to goods from China subject to Section 301 tariffs imposed during the first Trump administration. That’s because the de minimis exemption under U.S. trade law applies to goods valued at $800 or less that a single person in one day can import free of duty and taxes. De minimis shipments also have less rigorous information requirements. Appliances and industrial products typically have higher values and already require a formal declaration describing details of the shipment and its value for determining duty payment.

The agency on Monday proposed a rulemaking that would require shippers to provide more data on shipments with multiagency oversight or if they want an expedited clearance process.

The Biden administration in September signaled its intent to clamp down on t…

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