The EU deleted the old €150 duty-free threshold. In its place, from 1 July 2026 until 1 July 2028, a flat customs duty of €3 per item applies to consignments with an intrinsic value of €150 or less.
Source: Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382, deleting Arts 23–24 of Reg. 1186/2009; implemented by Commission Impl. Reg. (EU) 2026/1200.
The binding text ties the €3 to parcels that are VAT-exempt through IOSS, or that move as postal consignments. A courier parcel with no IOSS number may fall outside the €3 entirely — and onto the normal tariff, which for apparel is around 12%, not €3. The Commission’s guidance reads the scope more broadly than the Regulation does, and that tension is unresolved. Until it is settled, the safe assumption is: no IOSS on a courier parcel means you cannot count on €3.
Source: Reg. 2026/382 links €3 to Art. 143(1)(ca) Dir. 2006/112/EC (IOSS) or postal consignments; Regulation-vs-guidance tension flagged by Baker McKenzie / Lexology, unresolved as of Jul 2026.
There is direct evidence the scope is currently narrow: Regulation 2026/382 obliges the Commission to assess, by 1 October 2026, whether to extend the €3 to all goods. A review clause asking “should we widen this?” only makes sense if it is not already wide. So the narrow reading is not just a lawyer’s opinion — it is built into the Regulation’s own homework. Watch that 1 October 2026 assessment; it is the date that may settle the question.
Source: Reg. 2026/382 review clause: Commission to assess extension of the €3 to all goods by 1 Oct 2026. Confirm Art. 2 against the Official Journal.
Ask your carrier, in writing, which basis they declare your parcels on — IOSS, postal, or full tariff. If you ship by courier and have no IOSS number, get one, or budget for the real duty rate rather than €3. The difference on a €40 jacket is roughly €3 versus €5 in duty — small per parcel, large across a catalogue.
Source: Product consequence encoded in the Duty Calculator (RULES.scope, RULES.scopeContested).
Run one product through the calculator — it shows the €3 route and the full-tariff route side by side, and tells you which one your IOSS status puts you on.
Open the tool →Every claim on this page is sourced to the regulation, not to a summary of it. DutyVault verifies against primary EU texts (EUR-Lex, DG TAXUD). None of this has been reviewed by a customs lawyer, and consistency with a text is not the same as being right about your exact situation — it is a starting point that makes a lawyer’s hour cheap.
Verified 14 Jul 2026 · rules current to the €3 interim regime (1 Jul 2026 – 1 Jul 2028) and the March 2028 reform.