The European Commission continues its efforts to curb the import of harmful products. As part of these efforts, it aims to introduce new fees on e-commerce imports, with a significant portion of these “harmful” products coming from China.
The US Postal Service (USPS) had previously announced that it would suspend packages from China and Hong Kong. The European Commission has now taken similar steps, which could impact low-cost e-commerce platforms like Temu and Shein.
“Number of imported e-commerce packages has reached 12 million per day”
Henna Virkkunen, EU’s Chief of Technology, stated that the number of imported e-commerce parcels had doubled from 2023 to 2024, reaching 12 million per day. She explained, “Many of these products have been found to be unsafe, counterfeit, or even dangerous. This action aims to address growing concerns about the impact of these products on the health and safety of European consumers.”
Virkkunen also added, “It also aims to tackle the significant environmental and climate damage caused by these shipments and the unfair competitive environment created by rogue traders for our SMEs and businesses.”
“90% of packages are coming from China”
The Commission has called on EU lawmakers and member states to review the “inspection fee” for e-commerce parcels. This fee would cover the “necessary costs” of ensuring compliance with EU regulations. According to the Commission, around 90% of the affected packages come from China, many of them sold by the rapidly growing e-commerce platforms Temu and Shein. Both platforms, founded in China, are suspected by Brussels of not doing enough to prevent the sale of products that do not meet European standards.
The new regulations are not only focused on health and safety concerns but also take into account the negative environmental impact of these products. The European Commission highlighted the environmental and climate-related harm caused by the transportation and production of these packages. It also stressed that “rogue” sellers are damaging SMEs in the EU, calling for an elimination of unfair competition.
The Commission is also urging the implementation of a customs reform package aimed at reducing Europe’s dependence on low-value products. This reform would include removing the customs duty exemption for parcels worth less than €150, a measure designed to prevent cheap Chinese products from creating unfair competition in the EU market.
Shein and Temu have not immediately responded to the new regulations, but Shein had previously stated its willingness to cooperate with the EU and national governments to enhance consumer safety.
Investigation into Shein and Temu
Meanwhile, an investigation has already been launched into Temu. The platform, known for selling a wide variety of low-priced products and rapidly expanding in Europe, has faced criticism from consumer protection organizations like BEUC. Some of the products sold on Temu were found to be dangerous, and the platform has been accused of failing to prevent the sale of unsafe items.
Additionally, the Commission has published a new communication calling for stricter enforcement of consumer protection and environmental standards in online commerce, focusing on Chinese marketplaces. It also announced the launch of an investigation into the clothing retailer Shein. The Commission has also issued a “toolbox” to address the challenges posed by online shopping from Chinese websites that fail to meet EU standards in terms of quality, environment, and fair trade practices.
