The EU has adopted a customs reform that will help stop unsafe products sold online from reaching European consumers. Every day, millions of parcels arrive from outside the EU; many containing toys, clothes or electronics that fail to meet EU safety standards. Until now, customs authorities have struggled to control this flood of imports, leaving consumers exposed to risk.

Why it matters

Consumer organisations across Europe have repeatedly found dangerous goods sold on popular online marketplaces such as Temu and Shein, from toys with choking hazards to textiles containing banned chemicals. This reform marks a major step toward closing those loopholes.

E-commerce platforms that import products into the EU will now be clearly responsible for the safety of the products they bring into the Single Market. Authorities will be able to share data more easily to identify rogue traders, and consumers will benefit from greater price transparency without hidden customs fees.

What BEUC did

The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) and its members long warned that customs rules were not fit for the boom in e-commerce and failed to keep dangerous products out of consumers’ homes. They documented test results of unsafe toys, textiles and other products bought on online marketplaces and used these findings to show policymakers the scale of the problem.

Ahead of the reform, BEUC called for modernised customs rules, including:

• making sure online platforms are clearly responsible for the safety and sustainability of what they sell,

• improving cooperation and data sharing between customs and market surveillance authorities,

• ensuring consumers are not treated as “importers” or hit by unexpected customs fees, 

• and requiring effective penalties when companies break the rules.

Throughout the legislative process, BEUC and its members engaged with the European Commission, Parliament and Member States to provide evidence and offer solutions. The final customs reform shows big improvements for EU consumers. Down the line, and if properly enforced, this will better protect consumers from unsafe products sold online.

Timeline

1968 – The EU Customs Union is established among the six founding EEC members: all internal customs duties and quantitative restrictions are removed, and a common external tariff applies.

1992 – Adoption of the Community Customs Code, consolidating customs rules into a single code and making uniform customs legislation directly applicable across the EU.

1993 – Free movement of goods becomes a reality: customs formalities at internal EU borders are abolished.

2016 – The Union Customs Code (UCC) enters into force, further harmonising and modernising procedures and introducing new IT systems (phased implementation up to 2025).

2023 – European Commission proposes the most comprehensive reform of the Customs Union since 1968, including a new EU Customs Authority, a central Customs Data Hub, and new rules for low value parcels.

2025–2026 – Council agrees to abolish the €150 duty free threshold for small parcels and introduce a temporary €3 per item duty (1 July 2026) and handling fee regime (1 November 2026).

March 2026 – Political agreement reached between Council and Parliament on a major overhaul of the Union Customs Code.

September 2026 – Final approval of the Customs Union reform by the Council of the EU and the European Parliament.

1 November 2026 – New handling fees on parcels enters into force. This should proportionally give more resources to customs which are being put under a lot of pressure by these imports.

2026-2028 – gradual establishment of the New EU Customs Authority in Lille (France). The Authority will help strengthen coordination between national customs authorities and develop EU-level risk analysis capabilities.

1 July 2028 – Customs Data Hub is up and running, creating a single EU customs data environment, replacing fragmented national systems. The €3 customs duty on small parcels ends when the Data Hub is launched.