The EU €2 handling fee from 1 November 2026: what sellers outside the EU pay
From 1 November 2026, every online order shipped to an EU consumer from outside the EU pays a €2 "Union handling fee" for each item on the customs declaration, whatever the order is worth. It comes on top of the €3 duty that parcels up to €150 pay since 1 July 2026, VAT is charged on it, and it is never refunded. Here is when it arises, who pays it, how to count items and what it adds to typical small orders, with an official source and date on every rule.
The rule
From 1 November 2026 a Union handling fee of €2 per item (per declaration line, i.e. per distinct tariff line) applies to goods sold in distance sales (B2C e-commerce) to EU consumers from outside the EU, at any value, including over €150. It is in addition to the €3 duty, is not part of the customs value, is paid by the declarant (seller/IOSS holder, carrier or representative), has VAT charged on it, cannot be refunded (even on returns), and does not apply to private gifts. The amount is final: Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/2152 was published in the Official Journal (L series) on 21 October 2026.
The handling fee arises when the customs declaration for release for free circulation is accepted, before the goods are released, and it must still be paid if the goods are then not released. It is paid to the customs authority of the EU country where the goods are declared, and it covers goods sold to a private individual before they cross the border, both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business-to-consumer (B2B2C) sales.
The €3 duty is owed by the declarant: the seller or importer (IOSS holder, special-arrangement user or their indirect representative). The consumer pays it only in residual cases.
Who is the declarant depends on how you ship: with IOSS it is usually you or your IOSS intermediary (or the marketplace), by post or courier it is often the carrier, which then bills the fee to you or to the buyer. Ask your carrier or shipping app how it passes the fee on.
How items are counted
An 'item' means each different tariff sub-heading in the parcel. Example: 1 silk blouse + 2 wool blouses = 2 items = €6. Identical goods can be grouped on one declaration line. How items are counted, with examples
An 'item' is one or more goods in a consignment that share the same tariff classification, description and, on a full declaration, country of origin. The €3 duty (and the €2 Union handling fee from 1 November 2026) is charged per declaration line, whatever the quantity on that line. Customs may not group different tariff lines under one line when the €3 duty applies.
So five identical T-shirts are one item (€2), while a T-shirt and a mug are two (€4). Our €3 duty per item guide has more worked examples; the same counting applies to the fee.
What the fee adds to typical orders
Estimates from our calculator for a buyer in Germany, dated 1 November 2026. The fee is the same in every EU country. Carrier fees and VAT are left out here; open a row to see the full breakdown.
| Order | How it ships | Items (tariff lines) | Customs duty | €2 handling fee | Duty + fee | Try it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 hand-made mug, €25 | Sold on Etsy (VAT collected through IOSS), sent by post | 1 | €3.00 | €2.00 | €5.00 | Open in calculator |
| 3 different products in one parcel, €70 | Own shop with IOSS, duty prepaid (DDP), post | 3 | €9.00 | €6.00 | €15.00 | Open in calculator |
| 4 identical art prints, €48 | Own shop with IOSS, DDP, courier: one tariff line | 1 | €3.00 | €2.00 | €5.00 | Open in calculator |
| Silver necklace made in India, €180 | Over €150, courier, buyer pays on delivery | 1 | €4.50 (normal 2.5% rate) | €2.00 | €6.50 | Open in calculator |
The first three rows are orders of €150 or less, which pay the flat €3 duty per item. The last row is over €150, so it pays the normal EU duty rate for silver jewellery (no EU–India trade deal is in force) and the €2 fee still applies. Whether two of your products share a tariff line depends on their exact codes: check them with our HS code lookup links. Since 4 November 2026 our calculator also adds VAT on the fee itself when it is charged at the door (about €0.38 per item at Germany's 19%); open a row to see it.
From 1 July 2026 until 1 July 2028, a flat customs duty of €3 per item applies to consignments of €150 or less that are declared under IOSS or sent as postal consignments. Normal tariff rates are expected to apply once the EU customs data hub is ready.
Above €150, IOSS cannot be used. Import VAT and customs duty (normal tariff rate) are due at import, paid by the buyer (DDU) or prepaid by the seller (DDP via a courier).
Planned, not yet law: on 9 November 2026 EU Member States in the Council agreed to remove the €150 limit of the VAT Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS). Once the Directive is adopted, IOSS and the marketplace 'deemed supplier' rules would cover distance sales of imported goods of any value (excise goods excluded), so platforms would handle the VAT on all sales they facilitate, not only those up to €150. The new rules would apply from 1 July 2028, when the EU Customs Data Hub is operational. The European Parliament will be consulted again before formal adoption; until then IOSS still cannot be used above €150.
VAT on the fee, and refunds
VAT is due on the €2 fee because it counts as an incidental expense of the sale. With IOSS there is no import VAT on the fee, but if the seller charges the fee to the buyer at checkout it becomes part of the price on which IOSS VAT is declared. Without IOSS (the postal or carrier 'special arrangements', or the standard procedure, which covers every order over €150), the fee is added to the amount on which import VAT is charged. If the goods are returned, the VAT on the fee is refunded with the rest of the import VAT.
Dutch Customs says the fee itself is never refunded: not when delivery fails, not when the buyer refuses or returns the parcel, and not when the declaration was filed in the wrong customs system. Customs calculates it for each declaration (2 shirts, 3 sweaters and 1 hat in one parcel are 3 declaration lines, so €6), and declarants must provide a customs guarantee to cover it.
For consignments of €150 or less, VAT can be charged at checkout through the Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS), at the buyer's country rate. Marketplaces handle this for sales made through them. Non-EU sellers registering for IOSS themselves generally need an EU-established intermediary. Do I need an IOSS number?
Without IOSS, import VAT is collected from the buyer on delivery. The postal operator or courier usually adds its own clearance fee.
If a buyer returns an order, see international returns and duty refunds for what can be reclaimed.
Etsy, eBay and Shopify
Etsy says that from 1 November 2026, if you buy the shipping label on Etsy, the €2 fee per unique item per package will be accounted for; if you buy labels elsewhere, ask your carrier how it collects the fee. For EU product identifiers, labels bought on Etsy send your listing ID as the merchant product ID and your listing SKU (or the listing ID if there is no SKU) as the manufacturer product ID; with labels bought elsewhere you enter them yourself (the listing ID as merchant ID and the listing SKU as manufacturer ID, adding a SKU first if the listing has none) and should not leave those fields blank.
Selling from your own Shopify or other shop? Whether you need an IOSS number decides who collects the VAT: see Do I need an IOSS number? and DDP vs DAP for Etsy, eBay and Shopify sellers. eBay and other platforms: check your shipping programme's own notices for how it bills the fee.
Checklist before 1 November
- Add €2 per distinct product type (tariff line) to your EU shipping price or EU product prices, on every order, not only those up to €150.
- For orders up to €150 sent under IOSS or by post, the €3 duty per item also applies: €5 per distinct product type in total, plus VAT.
- Give identical goods the same code and description so they share one declaration line, and send an order in one parcel where you can.
- Ask your carrier, postal service or shipping app whether it bills the fee to you or to the buyer, and whether it adds VAT on it.
- Have your product identifiers ready: they are also required from 1 November 2026 for parcels up to €150.
- Use the calculator and set "Number of different items (tariff lines)" for your order.
Posting from Great Britain with Royal Mail? See Royal Mail EU customs charges for the Click & Drop fee lines. Shipping from India? See India to EU: duty, VAT and the €2 fee. From China? See China to EU: €3 duty, €2 fee and anti-dumping. From Great Britain to Ireland? See UK to Ireland customs charges. The fee does not apply to private gifts: see customs gift allowances. Every rule change is recorded in the change log.
This page is general information, not legal, tax or customs advice. National customs authorities and carriers may add their own procedures and fees; check their current pages. See the disclaimer.
Sources for this page
- Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/2152 of 21 September 2026 establishing the amount of the Union handling fee (OJ L, 21 Oct 2026), Official Journal of the European Union (EUR-Lex). Accessed 23 Oct 2026. Verified
- Handling fee for e-commerce (last update 22 Oct 2026), Dutch Customs (Douane). Accessed 3 Nov 2026. Verified
- Union Handling Fee (UHF) – 1 November 2026 (published 30 Sep 2026), Revenue (Irish Tax and Customs). Accessed 22 Oct 2026. Verified
- Commission sets Union handling fee at EUR 2 per item (2 Oct 2026), CLECAT (industry association, secondary). Accessed 20 Oct 2026. Verified
- Handling fee on distance sales (last updated 22 Oct 2026), Swedish Customs (Tullverket). Accessed 3 Nov 2026. Verified
- Guidance and legal text on temporary flat fee on low-value imports (8 Jun 2026, updated 20 Jul 2026), European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union. Accessed 22 Oct 2026. Verified
- Council gives final green light to new customs duty rules for small parcels (11 Feb 2026), Council of the EU. Accessed 20 Oct 2026. Partly verified
- Questions & answers – EUR 3 customs duty guidance (30 Jun 2026), European Commission. Accessed 20 Oct 2026. Verified
- The temporary EUR 3 customs duty and the Union handling fee: Guidance for Member States and Trade (version of 5 Oct 2026), sections 5.1–5.4 and 6.2 (consignment, item, postal consignments, preferential origin), European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union. Accessed 22 Oct 2026. Verified
- Addendum to the VAT e-Commerce explanatory notes: VAT treatment of the EUR 3 customs duty and of the EUR 2 Union handling fee (revised version 6 Oct 2026, PDF), European Commission (VAT One Stop Shop portal). Accessed 28 Oct 2026. Verified
- Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 (abolition of €150 duty relief; €3 per item), EUR-Lex. Accessed 20 Oct 2026. Partly verified
- Customs formalities for low value consignments (IOSS), European Commission – Taxation and Customs Union. Accessed 20 Oct 2026. Verified
- Commission welcomes Council agreement on removing the €150 threshold for the VAT Import One-Stop Shop (9 Nov 2026), European Commission, Taxation and Customs Union. Accessed 10 Nov 2026. Verified
- VAT One Stop Shop: overview of the OSS schemes, deemed supplier and intermediary (import scheme), European Commission. Accessed 26 Oct 2026. Verified
- The temporary EUR 3 customs duty and the Union handling fee: Guidance for Member States and Trade (version of 5 Oct 2026), section 8 Product identifiers, European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union. Accessed 21 Oct 2026. Verified
- Product identifiers for e-commerce imports mandatory from 1 November 2026 (news, 3 Nov 2026), European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union. Accessed 4 Nov 2026. Verified
- Prepare for EU customs updates (Etsy announcement, October 2026), Etsy (official Community announcement). Accessed 28 Oct 2026. Verified
Rules change often: the latest change we tracked was on 10 Nov 2026 (US: the 178 China Section 301 product exclusions are extended to 9 January 2027). Alerts send one short email, with the source, only when a rule changes on a route you pick.