De minimis is a legal doctrine by which a court refuses to consider trifling matters. The name of the doctrine is a Latin expression meaning "pertaining to minimal things" or "with trifles",
“De minimis” refers to a trade policy introduced in the 1930s that allowed travellers returning to the US to bring goods with them worth up to $5 without declaring them to customs. Since 2016, the threshold has been $800.
Why is Trump closing the ‘de minimis’ loophole?
The term “de minimis” may mean “of little importance”, but the policy is responsible for a huge volume of consumer goods. About 1.36bn shipments entered the US via the loophole in the fiscal year 2024, more than double the number four years earlier, according to the US customs agency. That represents more than 90% of all the cargo entering the US. About 60% of those packages come from China. Industry associations in the US have complained of unfair competition from Chinese sellers and have been pushing for years for the loophole to be closed.
What's the consequence of closing the loophole?
Prices will probably increase and some options have become unavailable. The Chinese e-commerce company Temu announced in early May that it would stop shipping low-cost items from China and sell directly to US consumers. The fast-fashion company Shein has also reportedly already started increasing the prices of some goods. The average price for the top 100 products sold by Shein in the beauty and health category increased by 51% in April, while a 10-piece set of kitchen towels increased in price by 377%. The average increase for women’s clothing was 8%.
