Thailand to EU customs: the €3 duty, the €2 fee, import duty and VAT (2026)

Selling Thai silk, celadon, silver jewellery, rattan baskets, elephant pants or skin care from Thailand to buyers in Germany, France, the Netherlands or anywhere else in the EU, or buying them? Since 1 July 2026 orders of €150 or less pay a flat €3 customs duty per item when VAT is collected at checkout (IOSS) or the parcel goes by post, and from 1 November 2026 a €2 EU handling fee per item is added on every online order. Above €150, goods made in Thailand pay the normal EU duty, because no EU–Thailand trade agreement is in force yet: 12% on cotton T-shirts and porcelain, 8% on silk scarves, 2.5% on silver jewellery, 0% on skincare and candles. Import VAT is due either way. Every rule below has an official source and date.

Last verified 10 Nov 2026 · 17 facts

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The rules in 60 seconds

• The EU's €150 customs-duty exemption for low-value consignments was abolished on 1 July 2026 (Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382). Goods in consignments of €150 or less are now subject to customs duty.

  Verified Sources: EUR-Lex, European Commission – Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 20 Oct 2026 · Effective 1 Jul 2026

• 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.

  Verified Sources: EUR-Lex, Council of the EU, Revenue (Irish Tax and Customs) · Last verified 20 Oct 2026 · Effective 1 Jul 2026

• 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 €2 handling fee explained

  Verified Sources: Official Journal of the European Union (EUR-Lex), Dutch Customs (Douane), Revenue (Irish Tax and Customs), CLECAT (industry association, secondary) · Last verified 23 Oct 2026 · Effective 1 Nov 2026

• 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

  Verified Sources: Council of the EU, European Commission · Last verified 20 Oct 2026

Orders of €150 or less

• 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?

  Verified Sources: European Commission – Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission · Last verified 20 Oct 2026

• Without IOSS, import VAT is collected from the buyer on delivery. The postal operator or courier usually adds its own clearance fee.

  Verified Sources: European Commission – Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 20 Oct 2026

• Consignments of €150 or less that are neither IOSS nor postal (e.g. courier, buyer pays VAT on import) are outside the €3 regime. Since the duty exemption is gone, they appear to pay the normal tariff rate. Check with your courier.

  Partly verified Sources: EUR-Lex · Last verified 20 Oct 2026

• Each consignment is counted separately. Orders shipped separately to the same buyer are separate consignments even if they arrive on the same day, and one order sent in two parcels is two consignments. Orders of two different consumers must always be declared separately.

  Verified Sources: European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 22 Oct 2026

• For the €150 limit, the value is the price of the goods themselves, without transport and insurance (unless they are included in the price and not shown separately on the invoice) and without other taxes and charges.

  Verified Sources: European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 22 Oct 2026

Example: one Thai silk scarf for €40.00 (free shipping), to a buyer in Germany, shipped on or after 1 November 2026. Its normal EU duty rate is 8%. VAT is 19% in Germany. Carrier clearance fees are not included because they vary; see each row in the calculator.

With IOSS the VAT is paid at checkout. The €3 duty and the €2 fee are owed by the declarant, but if the shop does not prepay them the carrier may ask the buyer for them: that is the €5.00 in the first row. A parcel with a scarf, a pair of silver earrings and a bar of soap is 3 items: €9.00 duty plus €6.00 in fees. The courier row uses the normal 8% rate, because courier parcels outside IOSS are outside the €3 regime; this point is only partly confirmed (see above). Read more about how the EU counts "items" and the €2 handling fee.

Orders above €150

• 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).

  Verified Sources: European Commission – Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission, Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 10 Nov 2026

• Goods made in Thailand pay the normal EU duty: TARIC lists no preference for Thailand on any product we checked. Examples: 12% on cotton T-shirts, women's cotton trousers and porcelain tableware, 8% on silk scarves, 5.5% on stoneware, 4% on base-metal fashion jewellery, 3.7% on textile handbags and rattan baskets, 3% on leather handbags, 2.5% on silver jewellery, and 0% on skincare, soap, candles, black tea and toys. Import VAT is due as well.

  Verified Sources: European Commission, DG TAXUD · Last verified 3 Nov 2026

• EU standard VAT rates range from 17% (Luxembourg) to 27% (Hungary), e.g. Germany 19%, France 20%, Italy 22%, Spain 21%, Netherlands 21%, Ireland 23%. Reduced rates apply to some goods (e.g. books).

  Partly verified Sources: European Union · Last verified 20 Oct 2026

Example: one item worth €200.00 made in Thailand, sent by courier to Germany on or after 1 November 2026, buyer pays on delivery (DDU). VAT is 19% on the price plus duty, and the €2 fee is added per item. Carrier fees are extra.

Codes and rates from TARIC, the EU's official tariff database (European Commission, DG TAXUD, checked 3 Nov 2026, origin Thailand, reference date 3 November 2026). Duty and VAT are worked out on the item price only; customs charges them on the value including transport to the EU border. Your product may have a different code and rate (for example silk blends, plastic-sheeting bags or wood carvings): check it in our HS code lookup links.

Is there an EU–Thailand trade deal?

• An EU–Thailand free trade agreement is still being negotiated (talks relaunched in March 2023; 10th round October 2026) and is not in force, and Thailand has no EU GSP preference in TARIC. Until an agreement applies, Thai origin gives no lower EU duty.

  Verified Sources: European Commission, DG Trade, European Commission, DG TAXUD · Last verified 3 Nov 2026

Goods made in countries with an EU agreement in force can pay 0% above €150 (see Korea → EU, Japan → EU, Vietnam → EU or New Zealand → EU); goods made in Thailand cannot today. If an EU–Thailand agreement is signed and applies, we will update this page and the change log.

Gifts from family and friends in Thailand

• EU gift relief: a gift sent from a private individual outside the EU to a private individual in the EU pays no customs duty or VAT if its value is €45 or less (goods only, not postage), it is correctly declared, it is for personal or family use, the recipient has not paid for it and it is occasional, such as a birthday or anniversary present. If several items exceed €45, duty relief covers as many items as fit within €45 (an item's value cannot be split), but VAT is charged on the whole parcel. Alcohol, tobacco, perfume and toilet water are not exempt from VAT or excise. Customs gift allowances by country

  Verified Sources: Revenue (Irish Tax and Customs), European Commission – Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 29 Oct 2026

For sellers in Thailand shipping to EU buyers

• From 1 November 2026, product identifiers (PIDs) must be declared to EU customs for every item sold to consumers in distance sales (B2C online orders) in consignments worth up to €150. Declaring them has been voluntary since 1 July 2026; enforcement starts on 1 November. B2B shipments are in principle not concerned. Read our PID guide

  Verified Sources: European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 4 Nov 2026 · Effective 1 Nov 2026

• Etsy's international shipping help page lists DHL, FedEx, UPS and YunExpress as commonly used DDP carriers for sellers in Thailand. It lists no recommended third-party shipping service and does not list Thailand Post.

  Verified Sources: Etsy Help · Last verified 3 Nov 2026

1. On Etsy, eBay and other marketplaces, EU VAT on orders of €150 or less is collected by the marketplace. On your own website you need your own IOSS number (through an EU intermediary) or your buyer pays VAT and a carrier fee on delivery: see do I need an IOSS number? and DDP vs DAP.
2. Count the different tariff lines in each parcel: each one pays €3 (IOSS or post) and, from 1 November 2026, €2. Build them into your EU shipping price.
3. Put the HS code, a precise description ("100% silk scarf", "celadon stoneware bowl"), the value and "Country of origin: Thailand" on every customs form: see how to fill in CN22 and CN23.

สรุปภาษาไทย

• Since 1 July 2026, the declaration for goods sold at a distance in consignments of €150 or less can no longer be invalidated just because the goods were returned after release. So the €3 duty is not refunded through that route. The general refund grounds (for example defective goods or goods not matching the contract, Article 116 of the Union Customs Code) still apply.

  Verified Sources: European Commission, DG Taxation and Customs Union · Last verified 21 Oct 2026

The €3 duty and the €2 fee are not refunded when an order is returned; see international returns and duty refunds. Shipping from Thailand to the UK? See Thailand → UK customs charges and the £135 rule. To the US? See Thailand → US: the 12.5% tariff. Selling jewellery? See jewellery import duty. Goods made in China? See China → EU: the €3 duty and anti-dumping. Made in Australia (EU FTA not in force yet either)? See Australia → EU. We record every rule change in the change log.

This page is general information, not legal, tax or customs advice. The Commission's guidance is explanatory and not legally binding; the legal texts take precedence. Tariff rates and carriers' and marketplaces' terms change; check TARIC and their current pages. See the disclaimer.

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.

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