EU plan to impose import duty on cheap goods could dent Shein and Temu
EU plan to impose import duty on cheap goods could dent Shein and Temu
Brussels move to end tax loophole exploited by China-linked marketplaces could also hit Shein’s planned London listing
The EU is moving forward with plans to impose customs duty on cheap goods in a shift that could hit imports from online retailers and harm a hoped-for London listing by the fast-fashion seller Shein.
The potential change comes amid growing disquiet among retailers based in mainland Europe, the UK and the US about rising competition from Chinese-linked marketplaces Shein and Temu, which exploit a loophole that excludes low-value items from import duty.
In the EU, the threshold for the levy is €150 (£127) and in the UK it is £135, enabling retailers such as Shein to ship products directly from overseas to shoppers in those markets without paying any import duty. In the UK, items valued at £39 or less also do not attract import VAT.
Good. Those two are pretty well known for horrible labor conditions.
This isn’t helping their labor conditions though. It’s just helping companies like Amazon to sell the same junk at a higher price, as Amazon sellers buy the same products from Alibaba, and eliminate competition.
I hope this doesn't spread to the US as although it'll stop Temu and Shein, it'll also probably make niche goods and hobbyist parts more expensive. I really don't want to pay the Amazon tax if I can find the same thing on Aliexpress, and a duty would just shorten that gap.
I don't know if I would fuck with Temu...
(That was an actual ad in my feed.)
The Finnish Flash could kick their ass.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The EU is moving forward with plans to impose customs duty on cheap goods in a shift that could hit imports from online retailers and harm a hoped-for London listing by the fast-fashion seller Shein.
The potential change comes amid growing disquiet among retailers based in mainland Europe, the UK and the US about rising competition from Chinese-linked marketplaces Shein and Temu, which exploit a loophole that excludes low-value items from import duty.
In the EU, the threshold for the levy is €150 (£127) and in the UK it is £135, enabling retailers such as Shein to ship products directly from overseas to shoppers in those markets without paying any import duty.
Last year, 2.3bn items below the duty-free €150 threshold were imported into the EU, according to a report in the Financial Times that highlighted the potential change.
Some countries impose import duties of up to 30%, he said, and having to pay that would force Shein to either completely change its business model, put up prices or take a hit on profit.
On Tuesday, Simon Roberts, the boss of Sainsbury’s and Argos, called on a new government to look at unfair taxes including business rates and import duty.
The original article contains 521 words, the summary contains 200 words. Saved 62%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!
? under 150 euro the VAT is already automatically collected via IOSS, or it would be held at customs even if it's declared as gift with 0€ value.
which exploit a loophole on low valued goods
In the article.
In the EU, the threshold for the levy is €150 (£127) and in the UK it is £135
In the UK, items valued at £39 or less also do not attract import VAT.
Last year, 2.3bn items below the duty-free €150 threshold were imported into the EU