Hongkong Post to Suspend Parcel Services to US as Tariff Hike Looms

Only documents without any commercial goods will not be affected by the change and can still be sent.

Hongkong Post will stop accepting parcels destined for the United States about a week before the tariffs are implemented. Guo Weili/The Epoch Times

Hongkong Post has announced the suspension of certain parcel services to the United States in response to the U.S. government’s decision to eliminate the “de minimis” exemption for low-value imports from Hong Kong and China. The change, which will take effect on May 2, will significantly increase shipping costs for international parcels.

Under the previous arrangement, goods valued under $800 could be imported into the United States without incurring customs duties. This exemption was widely used by small businesses and individuals to send low-value goods across borders at lower costs. However, under the new policy, all such shipments will be subject to the new tariffs.

In a statement issued on April 16, Hongkong Post announced it would immediately stop accepting surface mail parcels containing goods bound for the United States. Surface mail, which typically takes longer to arrive, poses a higher risk of reaching the United States after the new tariffs take effect. Air mail services will remain available until April 27, after which, they, too, will be suspended for parcels containing goods. Mail that contains only documents without any commercial goods will not be affected by the change and can still be sent.

Cheung Wai-kuen, president of the Hong Kong Postal Workers’ Union, said on a radio program on April 11 that Hongkong Post will not collect customs duties on behalf of others and will announce a suspension of parcel acceptance before the customs duties are implemented. He noted that tariffs are calculated based on the day the package enters the United States, and it takes about a week for a package sent from Hong Kong to reach the United States.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on April 2 to impose universal tariffs on all goods entering the United States, canceling previous exemptions for small-value parcels from China and Hong Kong, which will take effect on May 2. Soon after, in response to the CCP’s imposition of tariffs on the United States, Trump increased tariffs on small packages from China and Hong Kong, first to 90 percent, then to 145 percent, and then to 245 percent on some items. While reciprocal tariffs for most other countries were paused for 90 days, no pause was granted for China or Hong Kong.

On April 11, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection published an updated guidance that some electronics would be excluded from the reciprocal tariffs.

The move is expected to affect cross-border e-commerce, individual senders, and small businesses that rely on international shipping, leading to higher costs and logistical disruptions in the coming months.