Ordering non-EU parcels to the Netherlands will be more expensive from July

Starting July 2026, e-commerce parcels ordered from outside the European Union to the Netherlands will be temporarily subject to a new 3-euro duty. Here’s what senders and recipients need to know:

New EU tax on e-commerce parcels

From July 1, 2026, the European Union will levy a duty on e-commerce parcels arriving from outside the bloc. The duty will apply to packages up to the value of 150 euros, which, according to EU figures, make up 93 percent of e-commerce parcels shipped to the EU.

Senders will be charged three euros for every type of item included in the package. For example, if a package contains a t-shirt and a pair of shoes, the levy would be six euros. A package containing two t-shirts and two pairs of shoes would also be taxed at six euros.

The measure is part of the broader EU Customs Reform, which aims to address evidence that a significant share of low-value e-commerce imports “fail to meet EU safety and compliance standards”, “pos[e] risks to consumers” and “undermin[e] fair competition”.

3-euro duty will be scrapped in 2028

However, the measure will only be temporary. The EU currently has a customs duty exemption on small parcels. Once this policy is scrapped in 2028, the three-euro duty will also be scrapped.

Starting in 2028, all e-commerce packages arriving from outside the EU will be subject to a customs duty. The duty amount will vary depending on which product is being sent.

According to the EU Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union, in 2025 alone, around 5,9 billion packages containing low-value items were shipped from third countries to consumers in the EU and were not subject to any customs duties.