President Trump Eliminates De Minimis Duty Exemption for Low-Value Imports from China and Hong Kong
On April 2, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order—Further Amendment to Duties Addressing the Synthetic Opioid Supply Chain in the People’s Republic of China as Applied to Low-Value Imports—that eliminates, for imports from China and Hong Kong, the de minimis duty exemption currently available pursuant to 19 U.S.C. § 1321(a)(2)(C).
Under the de minimis exemption, shipments of goods with an aggregate value of $800 or less are entitled to entry into the United States free from all duties.
President Trump initially abrogated the de minimis exception with respect to the additional 10% tariff he imposed on all imports from China on February 1, 2025. However, on February 5, 2025, he postponed that abrogation until such time as the Secretary of Commerce advised the president “that adequate systems are in place to fully and expediently process and collect tariff revenue … for covered articles otherwise eligible for de minimis treatment.”
The April 2, 2025 executive order effectuates, and expands upon, that initial abrogation of the de minimis exemption, by dividing imports from China and Hong Kong with a value of $800 or less into two categories, each with distinct duty treatment:
- Imports from China and Hong Kong with a value of $800 or less that enter the United States for consumption on or after 12:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on May 2, 2025, which are not “sent to the United States through the international postal network,” are subject to all duties that would be applicable to imports from China and Hong Kong with a value greater than $800.
- For imports from China and Hong Kong with a value of $800 or less that enter the United States for consumption on or after 12:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on May 2, 2025, which are “sent to the United States through the international postal network,” the postal carrier that effects delivery of the shipment into the United States must select between collecting one of the following:
- an ad valorem duty of 30% of the value of the shipment, or
- a specific (flat) duty of $25 per package, which will increase to $50 per package starting at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on June 1, 2025.
Postal carriers are required to periodically remit the collected duties to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), along with an accounting of the number and (if applicable) the value of packages the carrier delivered into the United States during the period.
CBP will also have the discretion to disregard the above rules for a specific package, and instead require formal entry, including payment of all applicable duties.
