Guide for sellers outside the EU · checked 14 October 2026

How to bundle orders so you pay the EU €3 duty once

Since 1 July 2026, every parcel worth €150 or less sent to an EU buyer pays €3 of customs duty for each product type inside. Not each item: each type. That one detail decides whether the duty costs you €3 an order or €12.

What counts as one product type

Goods that share the same 6-digit tariff code and the same country of origin are one type and pay one €3 together, however many there are. The code describes what the item is made of and what it's for, not your listing.

The same item made in two countries is two types: earrings you made, plus a pair you bought in from China and resell as-is, pay €6.

Six ways to pay it fewer times

1. Offer multi-buy deals on the same product type. "Any 3 prints" or "2 pairs of earrings for €X" adds items without adding duty. The duty per item falls from €3 to €1 on a three-item order.
2. Build sets from one category. A gift set of three silver pieces pays €3. A "mixed gift box" of a candle, a mug and a print pays €9.
3. Ship one buyer's orders together. If the same customer places two orders before you post, sending them in one parcel can save a €3, as long as the parcel stays at €150 or less.
4. Keep customs descriptions consistent. Use the same tariff code for the same product every time, so identical goods land on one line. Our EU checker groups items by code the same way customs does.
5. Put the €3 in the price of low-value items. On a €12 sticker pack, €3 is a quarter of the price. Raise EU shipping or prices on your cheapest items and use a free-shipping threshold to push buyers towards bigger baskets.
6. Never change a code just to group items. Declaring a brass ring as silver to save €3 is a false customs declaration. The saving isn't worth the risk to your parcels.

What happens above €150

A parcel worth more than €150 doesn't pay the flat €3. It pays each product's normal EU duty rate instead, plus import VAT collected at the border, because the IOSS scheme marketplaces use to collect VAT at checkout only covers parcels up to €150.

• For many handmade goods the normal rate is low. A €160 order of silver jewellery pays about €4 of normal duty (2.5%), while a €140 parcel with four product types pays €12.
• Clothing is much higher, around 12% for many garments, so going over €150 costs more.
• Unless you ship duties paid, the buyer is asked for the VAT and duty before delivery, usually with a carrier fee on top. That causes refused parcels.

So don't push orders over €150 to dodge the €3 unless you've checked the normal rate for your code and how your carrier handles the VAT.

Other parcel charges to watch

France added its own €2 charge per low-value parcel from outside the EU on 1 March 2026, and Romania has one too. Bundling helps there as well: they're charged per parcel, so one parcel with three items pays them once. The €3 itself is set to run until 1 July 2028, when the EU plans to replace it with normal duty rates through a new customs data hub.

Check what my EU parcels pay

Selling from the UK? Read the EU €3 duty for UK sellers. Need to know whether you must register for IOSS? IOSS and OSS checker.

Sources: European Commission, Access2Markets (the €3 per tariff line rule, 6-digit codes and origin); VATCalc on France's €2 levy. Read 14 October 2026. Not customs advice; check your codes in the EU TARIC database.