UPDATE: On February 7, President Donald Trump issued an executive order (EO) addressing the additional duties placed on imports into the United States of products of China. The article below stated that use of duty-free de minimis treatment on imports for shipments under $800 was being removed for shipments from China. The president has since rescinded this provision in his previous EO, and duty-free de minimis treatment under 19 U.S.C. 1321 is again available for these imports until the Secretary of Commerce informs President Trump “that adequate systems are in place to fully and expediently process and collect tariff revenue applicable” for such low-value shipments from China, at which time the de minimis duty-free exception will again be removed.
On February 5, 2025, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a Federal Register notice to implement an additional 10% tariff on products of China pursuant to President Donald Trump’s Executive Order (EO) of February 1, 2025. The CBP notice also notes that such imports “are no longer eligible for the administrative exemption from duty and certain tax at 19 U.S.C. § 1321(a)(2)(C)” (i.e., the de minimis exemption for goods valued at not more than $800).
Per CBP’s Cargo Systems Messaging Service (CSMS) No. 63992482, effective February 4, 2025, such goods will not receive the de minimis clearance to enter the United States duty and tax free. “Requests for de minimis entry and clearance for ineligible shipments will be rejected. The filer/importer has the option of filing an appropriate formal or other informal entry and paying all applicable duties, taxes and fees.” The CSMS notice provides guidance on how the EO will be enforced in ACE by mode of transportation and clearance type. A second CSMS notice, No. 63988468, states that goods the product of China and Hong Kong entered for consumption in the United States, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on February 4, 2025, will be subject to several Chapter 99 Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) classifications and face additional duty rates. This notice reiterates that no drawback is available as to the additional duties imposed pursuant to President Trump’s EO and that the de minimis exemption will not apply to imports from China.
Notably, CBP’s Federal Register notice states that even mail shipments are covered by the exclusion from the de minimis exemption: “In order to protect the revenue of the United States and effectively carry out the Executive Order’s instruction to exclude such articles from eligibility for the de minimis exemption, including with respect to shipments arriving by international mail from China, CBP has determined that … it is necessary to require formal entry for all mail shipments from China. Without regard to their value, no mail shipments from China will be cleared or released by CBP unless and until formal entry is properly filed.”
The new Chapter 99 HTSUS codes do provide limited exceptions from the application of the additional 10% duty rate for: (i) donations of food, clothing, and medicine, intended to be used to relieve human suffering; (ii) informational materials; and (iii) products for personal use included in the accompanying baggage of persons arriving in the United States. There is also a savings clause for transactions already in process, allowing for articles that are the product of China and Hong Kong that: (1) were loaded onto a vessel at the port of loading, or in transit on the final mode of transport prior to entry into the United States, before 12:01 a.m. EST on February 1, 2025; and (2) are entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on February 4, 2025, and before 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on March 7, 2025. Such in transit items will not be subject to the additional duties.