In a new DC News Now segment, Alison Layfield, Vice President of Product Development at ePost Global, shared key insights on how the elimination of the de minimis exemption is set to impact American shoppers and global merchants alike.
Layfield explained that the removal of the longstanding $800 duty-free threshold on international goods means consumers will start seeing new charges at checkout – either as import fees, higher base prices, or additional “shipping and handling” costs.
“This might be the angle right; consumers might rethink, do I buy from abroad, or do I buy local? Because that price point is going to increase for consumers,” she told reporter Tosin Fakile.
She also clarified that while consumers might avoid surprise door fees thanks to USPS limitations, the added costs will still show up earlier in the purchase process:
“They’re not going to get sticker shock through the postal stream… but there will be at the checkout,” Layfield said.
Merchants, she added, are already scrambling to adapt some pulling inventory into bonded U.S. warehouses ahead of the deadline, while others have halted U.S. shipments altogether to avoid being liable for customs fees.
“If you ship it out without that HS code, it’s probably not going to be a good outcome for the consumer,” she warned.
