THE European Union (EU) is considering introducing a processing fee for e-commerce imports in response to soaring imports of online parcels.
As part of the trading bloc's Single Market Strategy revealed earlier this week, the eu will look at how it can make intra-European trade more competitive.
This includes making sure that products being imported from outside the bloc meet the same standards as those faced by EU member states, writes London's Air Cargo News.
At the moment, market surveillance authorities are based at a country or even regional level and are faced with the task of ensuring that the 4.6 billion low-value e-commerce parcels imported into the EU last year meet relevant standards.
To tackle this, the EU is considering introducing a market-wide surveillance authority to monitor low-value e-commerce shipments.
Under the proposals, the EU will also scrap the current duty-free allowance of EUR150 (US$170) and introduce a EUR2 handling fee for all packages ordered online and delivered directly to the customer to cover the cost of ensuring compliance.
Parcels that are handled via an EU warehouse would face a fee of EUR0.50.
The proposal will need to be discussed by European governments and the European Parliament.
The UK is also considering stricter rules for e-commerce imports, while the US has already scrapped its tariff exemption for e-commerce goods from China and Hong Kong.
SeaNews Turkey
As part of the trading bloc's Single Market Strategy revealed earlier this week, the eu will look at how it can make intra-European trade more competitive.
This includes making sure that products being imported from outside the bloc meet the same standards as those faced by EU member states, writes London's Air Cargo News.
At the moment, market surveillance authorities are based at a country or even regional level and are faced with the task of ensuring that the 4.6 billion low-value e-commerce parcels imported into the EU last year meet relevant standards.
To tackle this, the EU is considering introducing a market-wide surveillance authority to monitor low-value e-commerce shipments.
Under the proposals, the EU will also scrap the current duty-free allowance of EUR150 (US$170) and introduce a EUR2 handling fee for all packages ordered online and delivered directly to the customer to cover the cost of ensuring compliance.
Parcels that are handled via an EU warehouse would face a fee of EUR0.50.
The proposal will need to be discussed by European governments and the European Parliament.
The UK is also considering stricter rules for e-commerce imports, while the US has already scrapped its tariff exemption for e-commerce goods from China and Hong Kong.
SeaNews Turkey
