De Minimis Exemption 2026: The $800 Import Rule and What Changes Under IEEPA

What Is the De Minimis Exemption?

Under Section 321 of the Tariff Act (19 U.S.C. §1321), goods imported into the United States valued at $800 or less per person per day are exempt from duties and taxes. This is the de minimis threshold — a provision originally designed to avoid the administrative cost of collecting negligible duties on small shipments.

For decades, de minimis was a footnote in trade law. Then e-commerce happened. Between 2015 and 2024, de minimis shipments into the U.S. exploded from roughly 200 million to over 1 billion annually. Platforms like Temu, Shein, and AliExpress built entire business models around shipping individual packages directly from Chinese warehouses to American consumers — each one conveniently priced under the $800 threshold. No duties. No formal customs entry. No tariffs.

By 2024, approximately 4 million packages per day were entering the U.S. under the de minimis exemption, the majority originating from China. CBP was processing more de minimis shipments than formal entries by a factor of 10:1.

How IEEPA Tariffs Changed the Game

When the Trump administration imposed IEEPA tariffs on Chinese goods in 2025, the de minimis exemption became a massive loophole. The tariffs — reaching 145% on some product categories — applied to formal customs entries. But shipments under $800 slipped through under Section 321, paying nothing.

The administration moved to close this gap. Executive orders issued under IEEPA authority explicitly suspended the de minimis exemption for goods subject to IEEPA tariffs from China. Effective May 2, 2025, any package from China — regardless of value — became subject to either:

• • Ad valorem duties at the applicable IEEPA tariff rate (which ranged from 34% to 145%), or
• • A flat per-item postal duty of $75 per item (rising to $150 per item after June 1, 2025) for packages shipped via international postal services

This was a direct shot at the Temu/Shein model. A $15 t-shirt shipped from Guangzhou that previously entered duty-free now carried either a 34–145% tariff or a flat $75 duty — making the duty potentially five times the product's value.

The Supreme Court Ruling and Current Status in 2026

In February 2026, the Supreme Court ruled in Learning Resources v. Trump that the administration's use of IEEPA to impose tariffs was unconstitutional. This 6-3 decision struck down all IEEPA-based tariffs — including the suspension of the de minimis exemption for Chinese goods.

The practical implications:

• • IEEPA tariffs are void. All duties collected under IEEPA authority are being refunded. See our complete IEEPA refund guide for details.
• • The de minimis suspension tied to IEEPA is void. Since the suspension was issued under the same IEEPA authority the Court struck down, it fell with the tariffs.
• • Section 122 replacement tariffs are now in effect. The administration imposed a 15% global tariff under Section 122 authority. This is a different legal basis than IEEPA.
• • De minimis under Section 122 remains legally murky. The administration has signaled intent to restrict de minimis for Section 122 tariffs as well, but the legal authority to do so under Section 122 is untested. As of March 2026, CBP is still processing sub-$800 shipments under de minimis for non-China origins, while the treatment of Chinese-origin goods under the new tariff regime remains subject to evolving guidance.

What This Means for E-Commerce

The de minimis suspension — and its partial unwinding — created cascading effects across e-commerce supply chains:

Temu and Shein

Both platforms saw material order volume declines after the May 2025 de minimis suspension. Temu reported a 30%+ drop in U.S. GMV in Q3 2025, while Shein accelerated its shift to U.S.-based warehousing and third-party marketplace models. After the SCOTUS ruling, direct-from-China shipments resumed under de minimis for a brief window, but both companies had already restructured significant portions of their supply chains. Neither has fully reverted to the pre-2025 model.

Amazon Third-Party Sellers

Many Amazon 3P sellers sourcing from China were impacted twice: first by IEEPA tariffs on their bulk imports (formal entries), and second by de minimis suspension on smaller supplemental shipments. Sellers who used mixed fulfillment strategies — some inventory through FBA (formal entry) and some direct-to-consumer (de minimis) — saw their direct channel effectively shut down. The refund of IEEPA duties helps on the formal entry side. The de minimis question affects ongoing sourcing strategy.

Small Importers and Dropshippers

Small businesses that relied on de minimis for dropshipping or small-quantity imports from China were hit hardest proportionally. Many lacked the infrastructure to file formal customs entries, and the flat $75–$150 per-item duty made their business models unviable overnight. Some pivoted to non-China suppliers; others shut down. The SCOTUS ruling offers potential refunds for duties paid during the suspension period, but many small sellers never filed the paperwork to claim them.

The Bigger Picture: Is De Minimis Going Away?

Regardless of the IEEPA ruling, there is bipartisan momentum to reform or eliminate the $800 de minimis threshold. Several bills introduced in the 119th Congress would:

• • Lower the threshold from $800 to $200 or even $10 for certain countries
• • Exclude specific product categories (textiles, electronics, and goods subject to antidumping/countervailing duties)
• • Require enhanced data for de minimis shipments, including a 10-digit HTS classification (currently not required)
• • Create country-specific exclusions denying de minimis to goods from countries on certain trade restriction lists

The SCOTUS ruling doesn't protect de minimis from congressional action. If Congress passes legislation restricting the exemption, that would supersede any executive authority questions. The political tailwinds for reform are strong on both sides of the aisle — Democrats cite labor and environmental concerns; Republicans cite unfair competition with domestic manufacturers.

What Importers Should Do Now

Whether you're a large importer, e-commerce seller, or small business relying on low-value imports, the de minimis landscape demands attention:

• 1. Claim your IEEPA refund. If you paid duties on shipments that would have qualified for de minimis treatment before the IEEPA suspension, those duties are refundable. Use our refund calculator to estimate your exposure.
• 2. Don't assume de minimis is permanent. Congressional reform is a matter of when, not if. Build your supply chain and pricing model to survive a reduced or eliminated threshold.
• 3. Diversify sourcing. If your business depends on sub-$800 Chinese imports, the regulatory risk is elevated regardless of the current legal status. Suppliers in Vietnam, India, Mexico, and other markets offer increasingly competitive alternatives.
• 4. Invest in customs compliance infrastructure. If de minimis goes away or shrinks, you'll need the ability to file formal entries, classify goods under HTS, and manage duty payments. Setting up that infrastructure now — before it's mandatory — gives you a competitive advantage.
• 5. Monitor Section 122 developments. The replacement tariff regime is still evolving. CBP guidance on de minimis treatment under Section 122 could change with limited notice.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or tax advice. Consult qualified counsel before making decisions about your tariff refund claims or import compliance strategy.

For the full IEEPA refund process, see our Complete IEEPA Refund Guide. For methodology, see our Methodology.