Trump ended the $800 de minimis exemption, causing countries to suspend mail to the U.S. How does tariff policy affect international trade relationships?

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In July 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14324, suspending duty-free de minimis treatment for all international mail valued under $800, effective August 29, 2025, under IEEPA and section 604 of the Trade Act of 1974 (). When major postal operators like Deutsche Post, Royal Mail, and Korea Post halted U.S.-bound parcels due to unclear new customs data and tariff collection procedures, carriers lacking resources to rapidly integrate CBP systems were forced to stop shipments (, ). The U.S., with a $25 trillion GDP and advanced customs infrastructure, can absorb these disruptions; smaller postal networks and SMEs, which depend on cross-border e-commerce and lack capital to overhaul legacy IT and secure international carrier bonds, endure disproportionate costs and lost business, revealing that economic power dictates who can impose and who must concede in trade policy.

Trump ended the $800 de minimis exemption, causing countries to suspend mail to the U.S. How does tariff policy affect international trade relationships?

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