# Plain Language Summary: End China's De Minimis Abuse Act

## What This Bill Does

This bill closes what lawmakers view as a loophole in U.S. customs law that allows small packages to enter the country duty-free. Currently, individual shipments valued under $800 can skip normal tariffs and customs inspections. The bill aims to prevent companies from exploiting this rule by splitting larger orders into multiple small packages to avoid paying import taxes—a practice the bill's sponsors say is particularly common with Chinese sellers.

## Key Changes

The bill makes three main modifications to customs rules:

1. **Blocks split shipments**: Companies can no longer break up a single order into multiple small packages to each qualify for the $800 exemption
2. **Restricts exemptions for certain countries**: Products from countries already subject to trade restrictions (like those under Section 301 tariffs targeting China) cannot use the small-package exemption
3. **Requires detailed tracking**: Importers must provide detailed product classification codes to U.S. Customs for all small shipments, making it harder to hide what's being imported

## Who Is Affected

- **E-commerce sellers and platforms** (especially Chinese sellers using services like Shein and AliExpress) would face stricter requirements
- **U.S. Customs and Border Protection** would gain better tracking capabilities
- **Consumers** might see higher prices on cheap imported goods, as sellers pass along new compliance costs
- **Violators** face significant penalties: $5,000 for the first violation and $10,000 for each subsequent one

End China’s De Minimis Abuse Act

Murphy, Gregory F.

End China’s De Minimis Abuse ActThis bill prohibits certain U.S. imports from receiving&nbsp;de minimis treatment and establishes related civil penalties. (Current law allows for U.S. imports under a de minimis threshold of $800 per shipment to enter free of tariffs, fees, and taxes.)The bill prohibits imports from receiving de minimis treatment if those imports are subject to specified trade remedies, including<ul><li>antidumping and countervailing duty tariffs (Subtitle A or B of Title VII of the Tariff Act of 1930),</li><li>safeguard measures (Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974),</li><li>actions in response to unfair trade practices (Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974), or&nbsp;</li><li>actions for national security purposes (Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962).</li></ul>The bill requires imports from countries that are subject to trade restrictions under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, in order to receive de minimis treatment, to have a 10-digit classification of the import under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) that is provided to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. (HTS sets out the tariff rates and statistical categories for all U.S. imports.)The bill also establishes civil penalties for any person who enters, introduces, or attempts to introduce an import in violation of this bill.