Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 deletes Chapter V of Title II of Reg (EC) No 1186/2009 (Art 1). From 1 July 2026 until 1 July 2028, instead of the relief that deletion eliminates, a customs duty of €3 per item applies in a consignment of an intrinsic value not exceeding €150 where the import is exempt from VAT under IOSS (Directive 2006/112/EC Art 143(1)(ca)) or the goods are in a postal consignment as defined in Art 1(24) of Delegated Reg (EU) 2015/2446 (Art 2); that definition excludes goods which benefit from preferential measures, including those provided for in customs union agreements (Art 1(24)).
Source: Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 Arts 1, 2 and 4. The amending acts are listed in the Commission guidance on the €3 duty and the handling fee, version of 5 October 2026, §2.1.2: Delegated Reg (EU) 2026/1022 and Implementing Reg (EU) 2026/1200.
The €3 flat duty applies to distance sales in consignments up to €150 whatever the VAT scheme (IOSS, special arrangements or standard VAT), whether it travels by post or courier — Commission guidance on the €3 duty and the handling fee, version of 5 October 2026, §4; Reg (EU) 2026/382 Art 2. It does not apply if the sale is not a distance sale (for example the buyer arranges the transport) or the consignment is over €150.
If you do not use IOSS and your goods qualify for a trade-agreement preference, the preferential rate can apply instead of the €3; it must be declared in H1 (Commission guidance on the €3 duty and the handling fee, version of 5 October 2026, §5.4).
The €3 duty and the handling fee also apply to goods brought into parts of the EU customs territory where the VAT Directive does not apply (Commission guidance on the €3 duty and the handling fee, version of 5 October 2026, §4.1).
It is charged per item, not per parcel: goods sharing the same tariff classification, description and, where the declaration carries it, origin count as one item, so 5 identical T-shirts = €3 and a T-shirt and a watch = €6. For the H7 declaration, Commission guidance on the €3 duty and the handling fee, version of 5 October 2026 says the duty applies per declaration line irrespective of the quantity (§5.2), and its H7 example declares goods with different descriptions under one HS6 code on one line (§5.2); the guidance is not legally binding. The €2 Union handling fee is separate and also per item. Union handling fee: €2 per item (delegated act C(2026)6694, which the guidance describes as under scrutiny). Under Reg (EU) 2026/2108 Art 287(4) the fee applies from 10 days after the entry into force of that delegated act. The guidance (version of 5 October 2026) says the fee is therefore expected to apply from 1 November 2026, that from then declarants include TARIC document code Y126, that declaring it triggers the fee, that it also applies to distance sales above €150, and that it is not limited in time. Above €150, or where the sale is not a distance sale, normal duty applies. IOSS changes who collects the VAT, not the €3 duty.
Source: Reg (EU) 2026/382 Art 2; Art 1(24) UCC-DA as amended; Art 1(61) UCC-DA; Commission guidance on the €3 duty and the handling fee, version of 5 October 2026, §4.
The €3 is temporary: it applies until 1 July 2028 (Reg (EU) 2026/382 Art 2). By 1 October 2026 and every month thereafter, the Commission must assess whether a diversion of trade flows occurs; if it determines that one has occurred, it must, where appropriate, submit a proposal for the transitional measure laid down in Article 2 to cover all goods in a consignment of an intrinsic value not exceeding €150 (Art 3(1)). This page does not report any outcome. By 1 December 2027, the Commission must assess whether a centralised Union IT infrastructure to levy import duties on distance sale consignments will be realistically operational by 1 July 2028; if it determines that it will not, it must, where appropriate, submit a proposal to extend the transitional measure laid down in Article 2 (Reg (EU) 2026/382, Art 3(2)).
Source: Reg (EU) 2026/382 Arts 2 and 3.
Count items, not parcels: group the goods in each consignment by tariff classification, description and, where the declaration carries it, origin, and allow €3 for each group; add the €2 per-item Union handling fee once it applies. If a consignment is over €150, or the buyer arranges the transport, budget for normal duty instead.
Source: Reg (EU) 2026/382 Art 2; Art 1(24) UCC-DA as amended; Art 1(61) UCC-DA; Commission guidance on the €3 duty and the handling fee, version of 5 October 2026, §4.
The duty calculator classifies each line before it counts items. Automatic classification isn’t live yet, so today it stops before a result.
Open the tool →Every claim on this page is sourced to the legal text or to the Commission's guidance, cited where it is used. DutyVault verifies against primary EU texts (EUR-Lex, DG TAXUD). None of this has been reviewed by a customs lawyer, and consistency with a text is not the same as being right about your exact situation — it is a starting point that makes a lawyer’s hour cheap.
Reviewed on 18 Oct 2026 against Reg (EU) 2026/382, Delegated Reg (EU) 2015/2446, Reg (EU) 2026/2108 and the Commission guidance (version of 5 October 2026).