Chinese discount shopping website Temu has halted shipments of goods from China to the United States, as President Donald Trump ended a loophole last month that had allowed duties, or tariffs, to be lifted on small shipments.
The Wall Street Journal reported that a Temu spokesperson confirmed that the company would not be shipping goods from China to U.S., and explained that the “shift is part of Temu’s ongoing adjustments to improve service levels.”
Per the outlet, in “recent days,” Temu has been “shifted to labeling everything as ‘local,’ meaning items that had already been imported to the U.S. in bulk and are sitting in U.S. warehouses:
In recent days, its website shifted to labeling everything as “local,” meaning items that had already been imported to the U.S. in bulk and are sitting in U.S. warehouses. Those items are typically more expensive than products that came under the de minimis provision and were shipped directly to consumers.
In a White House fact sheet from April 2, it was revealed that Trump had signed an executive order “eliminating duty-free de minimis treatment to low-value imports from China.”
The move was described as being a “critical step in countering the ongoing health emergency posed by the illicit flow of synthetic opioids” into the country.
“Following the Secretary of Commerce’s notification that adequate systems are in place to collect tariff revenue, President Trump is ending duty-free de minimis treatment for covered goods from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Hong Kong starting May 2, 2025 at 12:01 a.m. EDT,” the fact sheet says.
The Wall Street Journal added that in fiscal year 2024, “about 1.36 billion shipments” using the de minimis loophole, entered the country. This was an increase from “637 million four years earlier.”
– News International Editor Frances Martel previously reported that Temu and Shein had announced that they were planning to increase prices on April 25, in response to Trump closing the loophole.
The two companies have for years benefitted significantly from an American duty loophole known as de minimis, which exempts shipments from abroad worth less than $800 from duties, tariffs, and rigorous inspection to ensure the products comply with American labor laws. The vast majority of purchases on both sites is far below the $800 limit, ensuring that the companies were exempt from paying duties that other retailers were subject to.
The fact sheet added that “carriers transporting these postal items must report shipment details to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), maintain an international carrier bond to ensure duty payment, and remit duties to CBP on a set schedule.”
