New €2 EU handling fee on online purchases from outside bloc starts 1 November

A new EU customs fee of €2 per unique item bought online and shipped to Malta from outside the bloc will be introduced next month, on 1 November.

The Union Handling Fee (UHF) comes on top of a similar €3 customs duty introduced in July, which also applies to items purchased online from non-EU countries. The earlier measure was dubbed the “Temu tax”, in reference to the Chinese retailing giant that has become increasingly popular in Western countries in recent years, but it applies to all non-EU countries, such as the UK and US.

The “Temu tax” applied only to goods worth under €150 and technically expires in July 2028. The upcoming charge will remain in place permanently and apply to all items equally, regardless of their sale value.

On Thursday, the Malta Tax and Customs Administration (MTCA) issued a guidance document explaining how the new charges will be calculated, ahead of the Christmas shopping season.

How the fee will be calculated

One of the most important distinctions outlined in the document is that products sharing the same customs classification and description can be treated as a single item when calculating the fee.

In practice, a parcel containing three identical T-shirts bought online from outside the EU will incur a single €2 handling fee. A parcel containing a jacket, a pair of shoes and a handbag will incur a total charge of €6. Several identical products may therefore attract a single charge, while different products within the same parcel may incur separate fees.

However, if three identical products are shipped in two separate parcels, they will be treated as separate consignments, potentially resulting in a total handling fee of €4. The fees are non-refundable once the customs declaration has been accepted, even if the goods are subsequently returned.

From 1 November, the fee will apply to qualifying online purchases shipped from outside the EU, including from countries such as China, the UK and the US. It will apply regardless of the purchase value, meaning orders worth €10, €50 or €500 may all be subject to the charge.

It will also be imposed on top of the existing €3 customs duty on applicable items in consignments worth €150 or less. An online purchase worth €50 containing one customs item could therefore incur a total of €5 in customs duty and handling fees, excluding VAT and any additional delivery or processing charges.

Sellers, online platforms, carriers or customs representatives are normally responsible for paying the fee to the MTCA, but the cost may ultimately be passed on to consumers through higher prices or additional charges. The fee will not apply to goods already in free circulation within the EU, regardless of whether they were purchased online.

The €3 customs duty was introduced in the EU on 1 July 2026 and is a temporary measure scheduled to run for two years, whereas the €2 handling fee is permanent. According to the MTCA, the fee is intended to help cover the costs of processing and supervising the large number of parcels entering the EU through online shopping. These include customs checks, risk assessments, inspections and maintaining the infrastructure needed to process imports.