The EU customs reform enters into force, introducing a new fee for online imports and a common data system

The European Union’s customs reform has entered into force and establishes a new processing fee for goods imported through distance sales, along with increased responsibilities for online platforms and traders. The changes will be implemented in stages. The amount of the fee still needs to be set by the Commission, while the European common customs data platform will become mandatory for e-commerce from July 2028.

In brief

The regulation has entered into force, but the general date of application is 21 September 2027. The EU Customs Authority has already been legally established in Lille, and the Commission estimates that it will begin operations in 2027.

The new processing fee will be set per item and will cover customs costs such as data verification and risk analysis. The amount must be fixed by a delegated act by 29 September; the Commission indicates November 2026 for its application.

Suppliers and platforms acting as importers for distance sales will be responsible for customs information, payment of duties and compliance of the goods. The reform shifts these responsibilities from the consumer to the commercial operator.

The common data platform will be mandatory for e-commerce from 1 July 2028. Other operators will be able to use it from 1 March 2031, before its use becomes mandatory from 1 March 2034.

The new regulation, adopted by the European Parliament and the Council, establishes the Union Customs Code and the EU Customs Authority, headquartered in Lille, France. Published in the Official Journal on 19 September, it entered into force the following day. The general date of application is 21 September 2027; however, some provisions, including the establishment of the authority and preparation of the data infrastructure, already apply, while others have later deadlines.

Pressure on customs comes particularly from online trade. According to the Commission’s explanations, approximately 5.9 billion low-value items entered the EU in 2025, over 90% of them originating from China. Checking them involves both collecting duties and monitoring compliance with rules on product safety, the environment and prohibited goods. Currently, operators work with 27 customs administrations and more than 111 separate interfaces and IT systems.

The new processing fee is intended to cover part of the cost of these operations. Article 20 provides for a fixed amount per item for processing the application for the release for free circulation of goods sold at a distance. The calculation must reflect the approximate costs of data verification, risk analysis, infrastructure and controls. Payment is the responsibility of the customs debt debtor, and the regulation provides that the fee is non-refundable.

The Commission must adopt by 29 September the delegated act establishing the amount. In the communication concerning the reform’s entry into force, the Commission indicates November 2026 for the start of its application. However, the legal text establishes the exact mechanism: the obligation to collect the fee applies ten days after the delegated act enters into force. The amount and the actual timing therefore depend on this act.

The processing fee is separate from the temporary €3 customs duty, applied from 1 July 2026 as part of the removal of the exemption for low-value consignments of up to €150. According to the Commission, the temporary regime applies until July 2028, when ordinary customs duties are due to be charged. The two measures have different functions, and the €3 amount does not represent the amount of the new processing fee.

The reform also changes the person responsible for imports resulting from online purchases. The supplier or platform facilitating the sale will act as the importer for distance sales, under the conditions of the regulation. This party will be responsible for providing customs information, ensuring payment of duties and complying with the legislation applicable to the goods. The Commission explains that the new model shifts these responsibilities from the consumer to the commercial operator.

To better monitor these flows, the EU will build a common customs data platform, EU Customs Data Hub. Operators will submit information through a single point, regardless of where the goods enter the Union. Stable data about a supply chain, such as product information or logistics service providers, may be provided only once. Shared access to information is designed to enable risks to be identified before goods arrive at the border.

The EU Customs Authority will coordinate cooperation and risk analysis at European level and will take over responsibilities for developing and administering the data platform. National administrations retain their own risk analyses and their role in controls. The Commission estimates that the authority will begin operating in 2027; its legal establishment does not mean that the new IT infrastructure is already available.

The timetable in the regulation provides for mandatory use of the platform by importers of distance sales and users of the special import VAT regime, IOSS, from 1 July 2028, for the operations covered by the text. Other importers, exporters and holders of the transit procedure will be able to opt for the platform from 1 March 2031. Its use becomes mandatory for all these operators from 1 March 2034.

Companies authorised under the Trust and Check regime may benefit from additional simplifications, such as carrying out certain controls and granting release for free circulation at their premises. In return, they must meet compliance and solvency requirements and provide customs authorities with electronic data as close to real time as possible. The status is monitored, and the regulation requires in-depth checks, including at the operator’s premises, at least once every two years.

The Commission estimates annual savings of almost €2.3 billion in operating costs for Member States and €2.58 billion in administrative costs for operators, through the gradual replacement of existing systems. These are estimates of future benefits. The next immediate deadline is 29 September, for the act that will set the new processing fee; the full transition to the common data system extends until 2034.

https://2eu.brussels/ro/news/reforma-vamala-a-ue-intra-in-vigoare-cu-o-noua-taxa-pentru-importurile-online-si-un-sistem-comun-de-date