Elimination of the small-dollar exemption limit as of July 1, 2021

As of July 1, 2021, import VAT is also due for shipments from a non-EU country with a value of less than 22 euros.

The second stage of the VAT digital package came into force on July 1, 2021. This will change the general VAT conditions for online retailing in particular. This includes the abolition of the exemption from import VAT for small consignments with a value of up to EUR 22. As a result, customs declarations have to be submitted for all shipments from outside the EU since July 1, 2021.

This task is performed either by the responsible postal or courier service or by the online merchant himself. For this service, however, the postal or courier services usually charge a service fee, which can be several times the amount of the import VAT due for such small shipments. Therefore, if you don't make sure that the retailer takes care of the customs declaration and payment of the VAT due for small orders in non-EU countries, you will quickly pay double the actual invoice amount due to the service fee and VAT. However, nothing has changed at customs as a result of the abolition of the exemption limit - the shipment continues to be duty-free up to a value of 150 euros.