Amid President Donald Trump’s successive tariff impositions, customs procedures for goods entering from overseas, particularly China, have become more complex, while product deliveries are experiencing widespread delays.

According to CNN and other sources on the 28th of last month, the Trump administration’s decision on the 2nd to impose universal tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico, along with the withdrawal of duty-free exemptions for items valued at $800 or less, has led to confirmed delays in customs processing and shipping.

Previously, the federal government had implemented a “de minimis exemption” policy since 1938 to reduce administrative burdens. This was based on the judgment that imposing tariffs on small-value personal imports amounted to a waste of administrative resources. The exemption applied to goods valued at $800 or less. The Trump administration’s move to end this exemption is widely seen as targeting Chinese online e-commerce giants like AliExpress and Temu. Reuters explained, “Since the exemption threshold was raised from $200 to $800 in 2015, the volume of shipments under the de minimis rule has significantly expanded,” adding, “As of 2023, China’s small-package exports to the U.S. are estimated to reach $4.7 billion.”

Although the Trump administration announced a temporary suspension of the de minimis exemption withdrawal on the 7th, frontline border and logistics operations have reportedly been thrown into chaos due to heightened uncertainty. CNN noted, “The removal of the de minimis exemption means that orders from China must now undergo stricter inspections by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP),” adding, “The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has even temporarily halted the delivery of parcels from China.”

According to The New York Times (NYT), the USPS has not officially addressed the connection between this parcel suspension and Trump’s executive order but stated that the suspension would remain in place until further guidance is provided. NYT reported, “Under the executive order, individual packages must now include detailed information about the shipped items, applicable tariff codes, and whether the tariffs have been paid.”

Customers who purchased goods directly from China and other countries through online shopping platforms are reportedly growing frustrated with the delayed shipping process. For instance, one woman purchased 600 hibiscus seeds from China via eBay on January 22 but only received the items about 20 days later on February 12. Tracking details showed the shipment arrived at a U.S. port on the 4th, but it took a full five days to clear the port. This is more than double the time it took (9 days) to receive the same product from the same seller in December of the previous year. Heidi Newberg, a university professor in New York, ordered two shirts from a Chinese online commerce site on the 1st as a birthday gift for her husband, but the shirts arrived on the 13th—two days after his birthday. An online shopping site, LTTStore.com, announced on the 10th, “All shipments outside the Canadian border are currently on hold, with no known delivery dates at this time,” citing U.S. tariffs as the reason for the delay.

As delivery delays spark customer complaints, e-commerce businesses are reportedly facing operational paralysis. One online shopping platform posted a notice stating, “Due to overwhelming demand caused by recent U.S. tariff changes, response times from our customer support agents are currently delayed.” The company estimated a customer support wait time of up to 10 business days. CNN reported, “As delays in shipping from China persist, more customers are turning to U.S.-based companies like Amazon for their purchases.”

<Hongyong Park>