The most useful cost sheet separates duty, VAT, the Union handling fee and operator charges. Each line needs its own scope and application date; a single “new EU tax” label obscures the decision.
The September legal update
Regulation (EU) 2026/2108, the new Union Customs Code, was adopted on September 16 and published in the Official Journal on September 19. It entered into force on September 20. Its general application date is September 21, 2027, with exceptions and later phases specified in Article 287. Entry into force therefore does not mean that every new procedure already applies. [1]
The Commission adopted delegated act C(2026) 6694 on September 21, setting the Union handling fee at €2 per item. The text links application to the tenth day after its Official Journal publication and entry into force. The Council-register document verified for this update does not establish a publication date, so this article does not present the fee as already collectible on September 30. [2]
Three charges, different rules
The handling fee concerns release for free circulation of goods sold in distance sales; the delegated act’s explanation also covers such sales above €150. It is not simply another name for the temporary low-value duty. Check the legal item definition and the transaction model with the customs representative before calculating it. [2]
The separate temporary €3 duty applies to covered low-value flows from July 1, 2026, calculated by tariff-subheading category. [3] Import VAT and a carrier’s processing charges are separate again. The €2 and €3 figures should not be added into a universal price per parcel without checking scope, category count and dates.
Preparing a defensible quote
For each sales channel, identify the seller, platform where relevant, importer or deemed importer, declarant and delivery terms. Reconcile the order, invoice, product description, classification and value. Ask the representative which current rules apply to that flow and which later changes require the data or pricing model to be revised.
A warehouse-replenishment shipment needs its own assessment rather than inheriting a consumer-parcel calculation. Keep future charges in a dated scenario until their application is established for the transaction. A revised logistics model should be justified by the complete landed cost and inventory requirements, not by the reform headline alone.
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