The volume of small packages entering Denmark from outside the European Union has fallen by half within a single week following the introduction of new customs charges aimed at curbing a flood of low-value e-commerce consignments, primarily from China.
Under rules that took effect on 1 July, the EU's previous duty-free threshold of 150 euros for imported parcels has been eliminated and replaced by a flat levy of three euros per product category within each shipment. In Denmark, parcels valued under 150 euros dropped from 400,000 to 200,000 in the first week of enforcement, according to customs data.
The measure targets the rapid growth of platforms such as Temu, Shein, and AliExpress, which captured 5.3 percent of German online retail revenue in the second quarter and grew sales by more than 20 percent year-on-year. Germany's retail association welcomed the tariff as a step toward fair competition.