Update as of 3 July 2026:
The first days of July are behind us, which means only one thing — the official validity of the new customs rules and the end of the customs exemption for products up to 150 €. We want to let you know that the way products work in EU warehouses doesn’t change at all, they are already covered by the price including VAT and also customs duty. The new customs duty is paid directly in the cart, but only for products from Chinese warehouses. How it works you can find below in the article.
We’ve already told you on China Planet about the end of the customs exemption for cheap shipments up to 150 €. already informed you. Now, however, we’re coming back to this topic with an important practical update. We already know what it will look like directly when shopping on AliExpress. The new customs duty is starting to appear on some products already now, and based on the platform’s current behavior, AliExpress will most likely select it automatically right when you pay for the order.
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New customs duty appears directly in the cart for products from Chinese warehouses
For products from Chinese warehouses, AliExpress shows an item “Estimated dutie” which, when clicked, displays the details of the new customs charge. This is really important because many people naturally worried that the new customs duty would have to be paid only when the parcel is delivered to the courier or the post office.
AliExpress collects the new fee already on the shopping side and pays it on your behalf via the IOSS system. In other words, you can see the final price even before confirming the order. This is a much clearer solution, because you immediately know how much you’ll actually pay.
Even though the customs duty itself is €3, the platform charges up to €3.7. The reason is that VAT is also paid on top of the customs duty, which exactly matches the 23% rate. So this is another cost increase on the customer side.
No more confusing deductions of VAT and customs duty together
The first version of this customs duty wasn’t fully successful, and the platform displayed VAT and customs duty on the same line in the cart: it first deducted it from the price and then added it back. That was quite confusing, and people thought they were paying more than they should. Now they show everything clearly and implemented a new display.
VAT is included in the price, so it isn’t shown anywhere separately — which we think is correct, because what matters to the customer is the final price. The customs duty amount in the cart is marked as “Estimate duties”, with a value of €3.7 for one product category.
We noticed something interesting – for products marked as Choice, everything is included in the price. The price you see on the product page is the final price, and the cart does not show an additional customs duty line. However, we’re planning a separate article about that.
Temporary customs duty of €3
According to official information, from 1 July 2026 a new customs charge will apply across the entire European Union for shipments up to a value of 150 €, but AliExpress is introducing it already now, because shipments from China can arrive in July. As we informed you in the past as well, customs duty should be €3 for each type of goods in the shipment, with the type of goods determined based on the customs tariff code.
That’s an important detail. If you order a single product, it currently looks like an extra €3. However, if your order includes multiple different types of products, the fee may be multiplied. For example, three identical cables should count as one type of goods, but a cable, a phone case, and a charger may fall under different customs codes.
Good news: it shouldn’t involve an extra charge on delivery
The biggest practical advantage is that AliExpress, based on what it shows right now, handles the new customs duty already at checkout. If this model is confirmed after the rules fully roll out, customers shouldn’t be surprised by an extra charge on delivery. The price is simply displayed in the order before you click “Place order”.
For the average customer, this is definitely a better solution than unclear customs processing after the package arrives in Europe. Still, you need to watch the final total in the cart and not rely only on the product price on the product page. What matters will be the final amount after shipping, coupons, VAT, and any customs duty fee.
EU warehouses will be even more important
This change will make European warehouses even more significant. If the product is already physically in an EU warehouse, customers don’t deal with customs duty, VAT, or customs clearance. The price is final, and delivery is usually much faster. The overwhelming majority of bestsellers on China Planet come from warehouses such as Spain, Poland, or Germany—so for the most important products, nothing is changing.
Big platforms like AliExpress are clearly preparing for the new rules in advance. It’s very likely that more and more sellers will push their stock into EU warehouses, or they’ll handle the new fees automatically already in the order.
What do we recommend for your next purchases?
For every order, check the final price in the cart and don’t ignore the “Tax” item. If you can expand it, check whether it includes only VAT or also the new customs duty fee. For cheap products, compare multiple sellers and watch whether there’s an EU-warehouse version available. For more expensive products, coupons will still be the deciding factor, along with seller reliability, shipping type, and the total price.
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It’s also important that people don’t panic. It doesn’t mean AliExpress stops being usable. It only means that buying from China will have to be calculated more carefully. Cheap stuff for a few euros might not be as good anymore, but for bigger items, coupons, and EU warehouses, really great deals can still show up.
What do you think about removing the customs exemption up to €150?
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Discussion (3)
So I tried it with the new customs duty—either AliExpress, or the sellers turned it into a proper business. Everything I bought right before the customs duty had a price about €3–4 higher, but the worst part is that in the cart at checkout they automatically add €3.xx—but for every item/type. I tested it with a phone case: I added 4 similar cases for the same phone model, and for each one it added €3.xx, together roughly €14, regardless of which warehouse it came from, even though it was supposed to be just €3. If people keep going like this, they’ll probably stop buying on Ali..
I won’t buy through a globalist middleman—I’ll buy directly from the Chinese person. You’re not from China, you’re lying.
Buy through whoever you want—we bring people added value in the form of reviews, product tips, but most importantly discount coupons. A lot of times, without us people wouldn’t know what discount can be applied. Your product price doesn’t go up when you shop through us. 🙂