USPS Can Bill Sellers for Foreign Duties

A new U.S. Postal Service rule places the responsibility for certain foreign customs charges on American merchants selling across borders.

Effective October 19, the rule establishes procedures for collecting or reimbursing foreign duties, taxes, and import fees.

Essentially, the USPS, directly or through a third-party representative, will send a bill to merchants when (i) certain foreign customs fees remain unpaid, or (ii) a foreign party seeks payment.

Responsibility

The rule covers duties, taxes, and potentially broader fees imposed by customs agencies, postal operators, brokers, and other service providers.

If one of those parties reports an unpaid charge, the USPS will now invoice the shipper — called “mailer” in postal parlance.

This does not mean every U.S. merchant sending an international package will receive a bill. Responsibility for customs charges depends on the destination country’s requirements and the shipping method. But additional costs could arise long after an international delivery.

Europe

The USPS linked this rule to the July 2026 end of the European Commission’s de minimis exemption. As a result, fees now apply to low-cost merchandise that would have been duty-free.

The end of the E.U.’s de minimis exemption effectively required the USPS to establish clear rules for managing duties, but the change applies to all countries and regions.

All carriers, including UPS and FedEx, must ensure those charges are paid. Thus switching carriers does not eliminate the underlying risk.

For now, the European Union has implemented a temporary, non-refundable flat €3.00 ($3.36) duty for each unique Harmonized System Code product type, which the E.U. and worldwide authorities use.

A parcel containing, say, three items with the same HS classification pays €3.00 in total. If it contains products in two HS classifications, the parcel’s temporary duty would be €6.00.

E.U. authorities state its flat-fee duty will last through June 30, 2028, when permanent procedures will be in place.

Yet the USPS rule is not limited to Europe.

Dispute Later

Perhaps the most consequential part of the rule is that the merchant must pay the USPS invoice even while disputing an underlying, incorrect assessment.

The USPS is not responsible for determining whether a foreign customs authority, postal operator, or other entity calculated its charge correctly. A merchant must pursue the matter with the entity that assessed it.

And a failed shipment does not necessarily eliminate the fee. The rule states that the shipper remains responsible for applicable charges whether the parcel is delivered, lost, damaged, or returned.

Imagine a merchant shipping a $100 order to a customer in France. The customer declines the package because of an unexpected customs charge, and the merchant refunds the order when it receives the returned product.

The merchant could still owe the unpaid customs charge, with interest. A past-due USPS invoice accrues interest at 6% annually.

DDP

One way to reduce uncertainty is to use USPS’s Delivered Duty Paid service for eligible international shipments and destinations.

With DDP, a merchant obtains a quote and prepays applicable duties, taxes, and fees when purchasing postage. The service works for shipments to 18 countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom.

The USPS does not charge for DDP, but its third-party provider, Zonos, includes a fee in the quote.

The DDP quote is not an absolute ceiling, but it can reduce unexpected charges. Sending without prepayment, where permitted, may leave some of those costs unresolved until the package reaches its destination.

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After Delivery

Global merchants, including those in the U.S., have long managed duties and taxes and explained them to customers. That part is not new.

The USPS rule, however, adds another reason to treat those charges as part of the sale, rather than the customer’s problem.

Hence a merchant selling a low-margin product internationally may need to account for unpaid shipping costs. Returned or undelivered orders could be particularly painful because customs liability can survive after the corresponding revenue is gone.

The change could also affect how merchants use shipping software systems, calculate landed costs, establish country-specific shipping policies, and account for international returns.

The rule itself does not specify how invoices will arrive.

For merchants, the change means international orders could carry a shipping-related liability after delivery, even for returned goods.