Extra fee for parcel from outside the EU. Check when and how much you will pay

The additional fee - charged from today - applies to parcels sent from third countries to consumers in the EU and was introduced in connection with the dynamic growth of e-commerce. The aim is to support the financing of activities related to risk analysis, control and customs processing of these shipments. The collection will be carried out by the customs authority where the declaration is accepted.

The Head of the National Tax Administration, Deputy Minister of Finance, Marcin Łoboda, informed that the handling fee will be collected on similar terms as the temporary duty, i.e. flat-rate, which applies to shipments worth less than EUR 150. The KAS authorities will collect this fee from those submitting customs declarations. A customs duty of EUR 3 per item in the customs declaration was introduced from the beginning of July this year, replacing the previously applicable exemption.

The EC informs that the level of e-commerce turnover has dropped significantly since July 1. EC statistics show that the import of parcels containing goods with an actual value of up to EUR 150 in B2C trade (i.e. from entrepreneur to consumer - editor's note) decreased by almost 50%. in countries where it was the largest so far - the Netherlands and Belgium. In Poland, since July this year, the number of notifications for these shipments has decreased by approximately 50 percent, and in relation to the number of goods items in these notifications, it has decreased by up to approximately 75 percent. - said the head of KAS.

According to KAS data, in 2025 over 26 million parcels from outside the European Union were admitted to circulation in Poland. These shipments contained almost 130 million different categories of goods.

Łoboda reminded that the handling fee was introduced by the provisions of the new EU Customs Code and is the first operational stage of applying this new regulation. The new Customs Code entered into force on September 20 this year, but most of its provisions will become applicable from September 21, 2027, and the entire reform resulting from the new regulations will be implemented by 2034.

From the consumers' perspective, the most important changes will concern online purchases of goods from outside the EU. The reform envisages transferring a larger part of customs obligations to entities making distance sales, including sellers and sales platforms. These entities will be responsible for transferring data to customs authorities, settling liabilities and ensuring compliance of goods with EU requirements - explained the head of the National Revenue Administration.