Does the removal of the $800 USA de minimis commercial shipment threshold affect me?

US Customs are currently adjusting to significant processing changes rolled out by the US Government on the 29th August 2025.

Shipments containing personal effects are exempt from the changes and can still be cleared duty free. More information on how we clear shipments containing your personal belongings into the USA duty free can be found on our USA destination page within the Customs section.

While the changes should not affect shipments containing personal belongings, due to confusion surrounding the implementation of the new rules, we are finding around 5% of our shipments to the USA are currently being miscategorised by US Customs with c. $25-100 in associated fees being applied.

To avoid delays in the delivery of your shipment (including possible return to origin) if you receive a customs fee invoice, we advise that you pay it as soon as you receive it. Send My Bag cannot pay customs fees on your behalf, even if customs has made a mistake. You should then email us (including a copy of the invoice) and we will dispute it on your behalf. Due to the additional administrative work caused by the customs changes we expect US Customs to take c. 90 days to review and refund.

Fees will only be refunded when they are found by US Customs to have been applied incorrectly. If your shipment does not meet the criteria for duty free entry under US Customs' personal effects rules the fees will stand. For example if you are sending commercial goods, since the removal of $800 de minimis threshold there will now always be duties & taxes to pay regardless of the shipping method used.

Country of Origin China & Hong Kong. We believe some shipments are being miscategorised due to customs incorrectly applying rules which relate to commercial shipments originating from China & Hong Kong. When completing your packing list and selecting a country of origin, please select the country in which you purchased and owned the goods. If you bought clothes in the UK, the country of origin for the purposes of shipping them as your own personal belongings is the UK.