De minimis in 2026: the $800 exemption is gone

For decades, shipments valued at $800 or less could enter the United States free of duty with minimal customs processing. That treatment ended in two waves — first for China and Hong Kong in spring 2025, then for every country on August 29, 2025 under Executive Order 14324. Two later events locked it in. CBP published an interim final rule effective June 24, 2026 making the suspension indefinite for merchandise arriving by any mode other than the international postal network, with separate handling for postal shipments. And the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed in July 2025, terminates the exemption by statute on July 1, 2027 — a hard end date that does not depend on any executive action surviving review. The February 2026 Supreme Court decision striking down the IEEPA tariffs did not disturb the de minimis suspension; it rests on separate authority.

One distinction matters more than any other here, and it is the source of most confusion. Whether the de minimis exemption applies and which tariff rate applies are two different questions with two different answers. The exemption governs whether your shipment can enter without a duty assessment at all. The rate — Column 1 general duty, plus Section 301, Section 232, or any other active program — governs how much you owe once it is assessed. The suspension answered the first question for everyone. The second question still depends entirely on your product's classification and country of origin.

Timeline

Each event links to the government document that created it.

1. 2025-04

   China and Hong Kong suspension

   The first wave removed duty-free de minimis treatment for shipments from China and Hong Kong, the origins that accounted for the largest volume of low-value parcels.

   White House — EO 14324
2. 2025-07-04

   Statutory repeal enacted

   The One Big Beautiful Bill Act sets a hard end date for the de minimis administrative exemption of July 1, 2027, independent of any executive order.

   Congress
3. 2025-07-30

   Executive Order 14324 signed

   The President signed an order extending the suspension of duty-free de minimis treatment to all countries worldwide.

   White House — EO 14324
4. 2025-08-29

   Worldwide suspension takes effect

   At 12:01 a.m. EDT, sub-$800 shipments from every country lost duty-free treatment. Requests for de minimis entry are rejected from this date.

   White House — EO 14324
5. 2026-02-20

   Supreme Court strikes down the IEEPA tariffs

   In Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump the Court held 6-3 that IEEPA does not authorize the President to impose tariffs. This invalidated the reciprocal and drug-trafficking duties — but not the de minimis suspension, which rests on separate authority.

   U.S. Supreme Court
6. 2026-02-24

   IEEPA collection ends; Section 122 surcharge begins

   CBP stopped collecting IEEPA duties at 12:00 a.m. ET and deactivated the associated HTSUS numbers in ACE. A 10% global surcharge under Section 122 took effect at 12:01 a.m. De minimis remained suspended throughout.

   CBP — CSMS #67834313
7. 2026-06-24

   CBP makes the suspension indefinite by regulation

   An interim final rule, effective on publication, requires formal or informal entry procedures for all merchandise valued at $800 or less arriving by any mode other than the international postal network. The comment period ran to July 24, 2026.

   CBP — 91 FR / 2026-12670
8. 2026-07-24

   Section 122 expires; Section 301 replaces it

   The 150-day statutory window for the Section 122 surcharge closed at 12:01 a.m. EDT and Congress did not extend it. A USTR Section 301 forced-labor action took effect the same moment, applying 10% or 12.5% to products of roughly 60 economies. De minimis remained suspended — this changed the rate layer, not the exemption.

   USTR — 91 FR 47318
9. 2027-07-01Scheduled

   Statutory repeal takes effect

   The de minimis administrative exemption is repealed by statute. De minimis is not coming back.

   Congress