Starting April 21st, the shipping company DHL Express will temporarily stop delivering packages worth more than $800 from international businesses directly to people’s homes in the United States.
The reason for this temporary stop is because new U.S. customs rules are taking longer to process these higher-value packages when they arrive in the country. DHL announced this change on its website recently (the notice appeared online on Saturday, April 20th).
DHL explained that these new U.S. customs rules now demand a more detailed clearance process (called “formal entry”) for all shipments sent to individuals if they are valued over $800. Before April 5th, this detailed process was only required for items worth $2,500 or more.
However, DHL clarified that shipments going from one business to another business will not be stopped, although they might take longer to arrive due to the customs changes. Also, any packages worth less than $800, whether going to a person or a business, are not affected by this suspension.
The company stated that stopping these shipments is only a temporary measure while they adjust to the new customs procedures.
This announcement comes shortly after DHL commented last week on shipments from Hong Kong. They said they would keep processing those packages according to customs rules and would help their customers understand and adapt to separate changes planned for May 2nd.
These shipping adjustments are happening after Hongkong Post also stopped sending goods by sea mail to the United States last week. Hongkong Post accused the U.S. of “bullying” because the U.S. government cancelled rules that previously allowed packages from China and Hong Kong to enter the country without import taxes (tariffs).
