Section 321 is the provision of US customs law — formally Section 321 of the Tariff Act of 1930 — that historically allowed shipments valued at $800 or less to enter the United States free of duty and with minimal formal customs entry. It was the American equivalent of a de minimis exemption, and for over a decade it was the rule that made low-value, direct-from-abroad e-commerce parcels cheap and fast to import.
That exemption no longer applies to commercial imports. Following an executive order, the de minimis exemption for goods from all countries was suspended effective August 29, 2025 — ending duty-free treatment for the low-value parcels Section 321 used to cover.
What did Section 321 used to allow?
| Feature |
Under the pre-2025 Section 321 exemption |
| Value threshold |
$800 or less, per person per day |
| Duties & taxes |
None owed |
| Customs entry |
Minimal — often a simplified electronic manifest filing rather than a full formal entry |
| Typical use |
Individual parcels shipped direct from abroad to a US consumer, order by order |
This is what fueled a wave of low-cost, direct-from-overseas e-commerce into the US: every order under $800 could ship individually, duty-free, without the seller needing a US import setup at all.
What changed for e-commerce sellers?
Since August 29, 2025, the de minimis exemption no longer applies to commercial shipments regardless of country of origin. Parcels that would once have crossed the border duty-free and lightly processed are now subject to standard import rules — duties assessed on declared value, and formal or informal customs entry procedures depending on value and product type. Our guide to shipping to the U.S. in 2025 covers what this meant in practice for European brands mid-transition.
The practical effect reaches beyond cost. Parcel-by-parcel importing into the US now carries real duty and paperwork on every single order — which pushes the economics toward the same lesson cross-border sellers already learn in Europe: import in bulk, clear once, and fulfill domestically from US-based inventory, rather than shipping each individual order across the border.
Section 321 vs. other US import routes
| Route |
How goods move |
Duty treatment today |
| Former Section 321 parcels |
Individual low-value orders shipped direct from abroad |
Duty now applies — the exemption no longer exists |
| Bulk import + domestic fulfillment |
Inventory imported in bulk, cleared once, stored in a US fulfillment center or 3PL |
Duty and formal entry paid once per shipment, not per order |
| Bonded warehouse |
Imported in bulk, stored under customs supervision |
Duty deferred until goods are released for sale, not suspended entirely |
What do brands get wrong about Section 321?
- Still pricing US orders as duty-free. Margins built around the old exemption are now understated across the board — every landed cost model needs to be rebuilt with US duty included.
- Assuming the change only hit giant marketplace platforms. The change removed duty-free treatment broadly for low-value commercial shipments; any brand shipping individual parcels direct from abroad into the US is affected, not just the largest players the policy debate centered on.
- Not restructuring the supply chain in response. The economics now favor bulk import and US-based fulfillment over parcel-by-parcel shipping — brands that haven't repositioned inventory are absorbing avoidable duty and paperwork on every single order.
- Assuming the rule is now permanent and unchanging. US trade policy in this area has moved quickly and could continue to change; treat current rules as the baseline to plan from, and verify before making long-term sourcing commitments.
FAQ
Does Section 321 still exist?
The statutory provision still exists, but the de minimis duty exemption it enabled for commercial low-value shipments was suspended for all countries effective August 29, 2025. In practice, the duty-free treatment sellers relied on no longer applies.
What was the Section 321 value threshold?
$800 per person per day — shipments at or under that value could historically enter the US without duty and with minimal formal customs entry, before the exemption was suspended.
How should sellers adjust after the Section 321 change?
Rebuild pricing and landed cost to include US duty on every order, and consider shifting from parcel-by-parcel shipping to bulk import with domestic US fulfillment — clearing customs once per shipment is generally far more efficient than clearing it on every individual order.
Rebuilding your US pricing, import setup, and fulfillment strategy after a change like this is exactly the kind of work eBrands handles as your operating partner and Merchant of Record — see how it works for physical-goods brands.
