Canada Post suspends parcels to 12 European Union countries
New EU customs duties on imported goods take effect Wednesday, forcing postal service to pause service.
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Canada Post is suspending parcel service to a dozen European Union countries, effective Wednesday, July 1, over new customs rules for low-value shipments.
The postal service says it is no longer accepting packages destined for Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal, and Spain until further notice.
The European Union is introducing a three-euro customs duty on parcels imported from outside the bloc valued up to 150 euros, or approximately $240 CAD. The duty applies per item based on tariff classification.
The EU says many parcels have been undervalued or falsely declared to avoid customs duties, giving non-EU sellers an "unfair advantage" over businesses that manufacture or sell products in Europe. "The new measure will help create fairer competition for EU businesses, better protect consumers from unsafe products, tackle customs fraud and address environmental concerns over mass shipping," the EU said Tuesday.
Canada Post says it will continue accepting shipments to other EU destinations such as Poland, Latvia, and Sweden while it works to implement compliant solutions in the affected markets.
