The Duty-Free Package Loophole Stays Shut. CBP Just Gave the Mail Trade 90 More Days to Comply, and That Is Smart Enforcement
CBP formally moved a mail-entry compliance date from Oct. 22, 2026, to Jan. 20, 2027, while keeping the de minimis suspension in force. In our view, it is firm policy with practical timing, after more than $1 billion in duties collected on low-cost shipments.
By Clara Hughes
ALTAS WORLD NEWS OPINION | By Clara Hughes, Chief Opinion Editor | October 22, 2026 | 6-min read For years, a flood of cheap foreign packages slipped into America duty-free and largely unseen. President Trump shut that door. Today, Oct. 22, was supposed to be the deadline for the last piece of the new mail system to take effect. Instead, U.S. Customs and Border Protection formally moved that date to Jan. 20, 2027, in a rule published today [1][2]. In our view, that is a sensible 90-day grace period for the mail trade, and the important part has not changed: the de minimis loophole stays closed. Key Takeaways CBP extended the compliance date for new informal-entry requirements on certain international mail from Oct. 22, 2026, to Jan. 20, 2027 [1][2]. The delay covers postal shipments subject to tariffs, free trade agreement claims or other agencies' rules, which must eventually use formal entry or the new electronic Entry Type 13 [1][2]. CBP says there are no changes to mail entry procedures before Jan. 20, and the suspension of the duty-free de minimis exemption for mail remains in force [1][2]. CBP has reported collecting more than $1 billion in duties on over 246 million low-cost shipments since the phaseout of de minimis