The rate sheet on the forwarder's desk still shows three fixed line items. On November 1, a fourth one appears, and it does not care how cheap the parcel is. From that date the EU charges a €2 handling fee on every individual customs item sold into the bloc through non-EU B2C distance sales. It is not refundable, and it counts toward the VAT base. Who ends up paying it is a pricing decision, not a rule in the regulation.
What the fee is, and when it starts
On 21 September 2026, the European Commission adopted Delegated Regulation C(2026) 6694, creating the Union Handling Fee (UHF) at €2 per item (source: EU Delegated Regulation C(2026) 6694, adopted 2026-09-21). It applies from 2026-11-01 to each individual customs item imported from outside the EU and sold via B2C distance sales (source as above).
Four traits matter. It is charged per item, not on value. It is non-refundable. It is included in the taxable amount for VAT, so VAT is charged on top of it. And it excludes VAT, carrier charges and customs-agent fees (source as above). The fee maps to customs clearance work such as data checks, risk analysis, controls and infrastructure, and is due to be reviewed against cost reports every two years (per official wording).
How much a small parcel actually adds
The UHF is levied separately from the temporary €3 duty on parcels valued at or below €150, and the two can stack (source: EU Delegated Regulation C(2026) 6694 and the 2026-10-05 guidance). A €25 parcel that falls under both carries €5 of fixed cost, roughly twenty percent of its value. For a low-price item, that is enough to wipe out the margin.
The pressure comes from the word "per item." The lower the declared value, the larger the fee's share. Sellers of small, unbranded goods will feel it far more than sellers of high-ticket items.
Does every EU market stack it
No. Once the UHF applies, member states are expected to stop their own national handling fees, so for some markets the UHF replaces a national charge rather than adding to it. What is visible so far: France's €2 national tax is suspended, Romania's 25 lei charge is expected to be cancelled, and Italy's payment, postponed to 1 December, is expected not to take effect (source: notes relating to EU Delegated Regulation C(2026) 6694; defer to official wording for final status).
For those markets the change is closer to a swap. For most other markets it is a genuine new cost on top of duty. That is why the destination country has to be confirmed before any quote is issued.
When the window closes
On 2028-07-01 the two policies expire together. The temporary €3 duty runs only to 2028-06-30, after which normal duty rates return (source: EU Delegated Regulation C(2026) 6694). Separately, goods released from a customs warehouse after distance sale carry a second handling fee, officially described as under €3, with the exact amount not yet set in that regulation (per official wording).
In other words, this is a window running from 2026-11 to 2028-06. How freight channels are structured during that window is worth deciding in advance.
The data requirement that comes with the money
From 2026-11-01, distance sales at or below €150 must declare a product identifier (PID) for each item (source: 2026-10-05 guidance). There are three. The M-PID, the merchant master identifier, is assigned by the seller, platform or marketplace, is unique within the platform, and is always required. The NS-PID, the non-standardised manufacturer product identifier, uses the manufacturer's or supplier's product reference and is required. The S-PID, the standardised product identifier, is used when an international standard such as EAN exists, and an exception code is declared otherwise (source as above).
For sellers, this means keeping product and manufacturer references in order. For forwarders and overseas warehouses, it means being able to handle this layer of declaration. The job is moving from simply moving the goods to also declaring them correctly.
FAQ
Does the seller or the buyer pay the €2?
There is no fixed answer; it depends on pricing. The seller can pass it on, absorb it, or change the channel and spread the per-item cost across consolidated shipments and overseas-warehouse flows.
Is the €2 the same as the earlier €3 duty?
No. They are charged separately and can stack. A €25 parcel under both carries €5 of fixed cost.
Do France, Romania and Italy simply pay the same €2?
Those markets are closer to a replacement of a national charge than a straight addition. Confirm the destination and defer to official wording before quoting.
Will the fee last forever?
As the regulation stands, it and the temporary €3 duty both expire on 2028-07-01, so it reads more like a window-period cost than a permanent line.
About Naili AI Logistics Lab
Shanghai Naili Information Technology Co., Ltd. has run digital marketing for freight forwarding for 10 years, offering full-service marketing-department outsourcing that covers freight-forwarding GEO optimization, AI digital employees, content operations and paid traffic. If your team is working through this handling fee, the PID declaration or a channel reset, the whole marketing-department function can be outsourced to Naili, from topic selection through to lead generation.