€3 Duty, €2 Fee, €10 Clearance: Parcels from Outside the EU in the Netherlands (2026)

You order a phone case from a shop outside the EU, and a few days later PostNL asks you to pay "inklaringskosten" before it will deliver. Or a relative sends you a birthday parcel and it arrives with a bill attached. Since the summer of 2026, stories like these have become common among people living in the Netherlands.

This article starts from NL Times' report of 26 October 2026 on PostNL's third-quarter results. Two things stood out. International e-commerce volumes fell by almost 32%, almost entirely because of fewer parcels from Asian web shops after new EU customs rules took effect on 1 July. And PostNL said it cannot move to three-day letter delivery in 2027, because changes to the Postal Act have been postponed again.

Below we look at the rules from the recipient's side: what you pay, to whom, and when; how gifts are treated; what happens if you refuse or return a parcel; which goods should not be sent at all; and what the slower letter service means for you. All sources were checked on 26 October 2026.

Main sources: NL Times (26 October 2026); reporting by DutchNews.nl, IamExpat and DutchReview; consumer pages of Dutch Customs (Douane); the European Commission and the Council of the EU; PostNL's fee pages; and the Dutch government's decision on letter delivery times.

1. What is happening: far fewer parcels from outside the EU

PostNL reported third-quarter revenue of €768 million, slightly up from €762 million a year earlier. The bigger story was in the parcel numbers.

PostNL: international e-commerce down almost a third

According to NL Times, international e-commerce volumes fell almost 32% in the third quarter, nearly all due to fewer parcels from platforms such as Shein and Temu. CEO Pim Berendsen said Asian web shops are changing their commercial offers and logistics, which has caused "a strong decline in market volumes".

DutchNews.nl added that parcels from within the EU rose by 40% as shoppers switched to European sellers, but that this growth was more than wiped out by the drop in long-distance parcels. The decline had already begun earlier: in its half-year results, PostNL reported international volumes, mainly from Asian web shops, down almost 15%.

Customs: declarations nearly halved

Dutch Customs published its own figures on 3 September. In its release, e-commerce declarations in July and August averaged 46% fewer than in the first six months of 2026, and declaration lines (individual item types) fell 70%. Standard import declarations rose 20%, as retailers ship goods in bulk to warehouses inside the EU instead of sending millions of separate parcels.

PostNL counts its own volumes, while Customs counts declarations from all carriers. The methods differ, but both show a sharp break in July.

Two ways of reporting the revenue

Reports on the money raised also differ. DutchNews.nl reported €134 million in import duties in July alone, with about a quarter going to the Dutch treasury. Dutch Customs put the extra revenue for the Dutch treasury in July at about €35 million. Customs duty is EU revenue and member states keep a share for collecting it, so the two figures are broadly consistent, but we could not find the €134 million total in an official source.

The size of the drop ranges from 15% to 70% depending on what is counted, so when you see a percentage in the news, check what it refers to.

2. The big picture: four kinds of charges

When a parcel arrives from outside the EU, you may face several charges at once. Dutch Customs' consumer page on extra costs groups everything except shipping and insurance under "inklaringskosten" (clearance costs).

• Btw (VAT): normally 21%; 9% for books and magazines. VAT applies to purchases from anywhere.
• Invoerrechten (import duty): only for goods from outside the EU. Since July 2026, also under €150.
• Accijns (excise): on alcohol, tobacco and similar goods.
• Afhandelingskosten (handling fees): what the carrier charges for filing the customs declaration.

From 1 November 2026, the EU adds a Union handling fee. It sounds similar to the carrier's fee, but it is a separate charge.

Customs sets every amount in this table except the carrier's fee; Customs explicitly says it has no say over what carriers charge.

Pay at checkout or pay on delivery

Many large platforms add VAT and duty at checkout. If they do, the carrier should not ask you for them again. If they do not, the carrier files the declaration, pays the tax up front and bills you for the tax plus its own fee. NL Times reported that unpaid parcels are held in a warehouse and then returned to the sender or destroyed, depending on the shipping agreement.

3. The €3 duty: what counts as "one item"?

The €3 duty is the hardest part to understand. It is set by Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382; the Commission's customs guidance page collects the legal texts.

Per tariff category, not per parcel

The European Commission says the duty applies per item based on tariff classification, not quantity: five T-shirts cost €3, three T-shirts and a watch cost €6. Dutch Customs uses the same logic per "productcategorie": trousers plus a phone case is 2 × €3 = €6. Similar-looking products can fall into different categories; a wool sweater and a cotton sweater may count as two.

The wording differs between sources

The Commission's guidance adds that, because of current IT limits, the €3 is applied per declaration line, and that the same three goods can cost €3 or €9 depending on the type of declaration. In practice, the way the seller declares your order decides how many times €3 is charged. A case covered by consumer programme AVROTROS Radar shows this: three garments from a US shop were declared as three product groups, so the buyer paid €9 in duty.

Only IOSS parcels, or all of them?

The scope was also described differently. The Council's December 2025 release said the €3 would apply to goods sold by non-EU sellers registered in IOSS, covering 93% of e-commerce flows into the EU. The Commission's June 2026 guidance says it applies to all distance sales up to €150 regardless of the VAT scheme. Dutch Customs' business page also describes it as applying to e-commerce goods up to €150 sold by a non-EU seller to an EU consumer. As a buyer, assume any online purchase under €150 from outside the EU carries the €3.

A temporary measure until mid-2028

The flat €3 applies from 1 July 2026 to 1 July 2028. After that, the normal EU customs tariff applies whatever the value, when the EU Customs Data Hub for e-commerce goes live. Product identifiers also become mandatory in declarations from 1 November 2026.

4. Import VAT and IOSS: paying tax at checkout

VAT is usually the larger amount. The EU scrapped the VAT exemption for parcels up to €22 on 1 July 2021, so imported goods have been subject to VAT whatever their value ever since.

How IOSS works

At the same time the EU introduced the Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS). As the Commission's VAT e-Commerce portal explains, a non-EU seller of goods up to €150 can charge EU VAT at checkout and pay it to the tax authorities in one return. Goods declared with a valid IOSS number are exempt from VAT at import, because the VAT has already been paid. Look for "VAT included", "duties included" or "DDP" on the checkout page; it is the best clue to whether a bill will follow.

How VAT is calculated

Dutch Customs calculates VAT on goods + shipping + insurance + duty, so you also pay VAT on the duty. Here is its example of a €4.95 USB cable with €3.80 shipping.

On a €4.95 product, duty and VAT add €5.47. The cheaper the product, the heavier the flat €3 weighs.

Charged twice?

If you paid VAT and duty at checkout and the carrier asks again, Dutch Customs' refund page says to claim the excess from the seller. Keep both the order receipt and the carrier's bill.

5. Fees: the carrier's cut and the new €2

PostNL's clearance fee

PostNL's fee page lists these handling fees per parcel:

Other carriers such as DHL and DPD charge their own fees, and Customs advises asking your carrier for its rate. The figure below combines the Customs example with PostNL's fee to show what difference prepaying makes.

Paying on delivery makes the same order about 1.7 times as expensive. For cheap items, whether the shop collects tax at checkout matters more than the product price.

How to pay, and the 14-day deadline

According to PostNL, you enter your track-and-trace code and postcode, open the invoice and pay with iDEAL | Wero or a credit card. You have 14 days; after that the parcel is returned. PostNL says it never sends a direct payment link: payment always starts from track and trace, and its emails come from noreply@edm.postnl.nl. Dutch Customs says it does not send payment requests to consumers at all.

The EU €2 handling fee from 1 November

Dutch Customs' page on the Union handling fee says that from 1 November 2026 the declarant pays €2 per declaration line for e-commerce consignments delivered directly from outside the EU to an EU consumer. A box with two pairs of trousers, three sweaters and a pair of shoes has three lines, so €6. It also applies above €150, VAT is charged on it, and it is not refunded if delivery fails or the parcel is refused or returned. The legal basis is Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/2152.

The fee is paid by the seller or carrier that files the declaration, not by you directly, but Customs warns that it may be passed on and make orders more expensive. In June, IamExpat reported that the Dutch cabinet dropped its own planned €2-per-item surcharge to wait for this EU fee.

6. The two thresholds: €45 and €150

Two numbers decide most cases: €45 for gifts and €150 for online orders.

Above €150: product-specific rates

Above €150 the flat €3 no longer applies; instead each product has its own duty rate. Dutch Customs lists maximum rates for common purchases:

Electronics may be duty-free but still carry 21% VAT and carrier fees. Shoes and clothing are where crossing €150 hurts most. Customs' own example: a €199 bag from the UK with €25 shipping and €10 insurance costs €7.02 in duty (at an illustrative 3%) and €50.61 in VAT, €57.63 in total, before any carrier fee of €16.

The Commission's guidance also leaves room for preferential rates under EU trade agreements when goods are declared in a standard declaration without IOSS. For small personal parcels, though, proof of origin is rarely in place, so do not count on it.

7. Gifts: how the €45 rule works

Parcels from family and friends abroad are usually gifts. Dutch Customs' gifts page says gifts worth €45 or less pay no import duty or VAT. New or second-hand does not matter, but four conditions apply.

If you send money to someone abroad to buy something for you and post it, that is not a gift, because it was not free.

The Customs handbook also excludes private-to-private consignments under €45 from the €3 duty. Above €45, a gift is taxed at normal rates: VAT, duty and, for alcohol or tobacco, excise. The Customs page does not say whether tax applies to the full value or only to the amount above €45, so assume the full value and check with the carrier if unsure. PostNL only charges its clearance fee on gifts worth more than €45.

Tips for the sender

• Tick "Gift" on the customs form only when it really is one.
• Describe contents precisely in English, such as "Cotton T-shirt" rather than "Clothes". Vague descriptions get parcels stopped.
• State the real value. Undervaluation is one of the problems the EU reform targets, and a parcel can be held and taxed.
• Split by content, not by value. Two small parcels can each stay under €45, but frequent splitting may stop them counting as occasional gifts.

If a gift was taxed even though it qualified, you can claim the money back (see section 9).

8. What you cannot receive

Some goods should not be sent at all, whatever their value. Dutch Customs' list of things not to buy online includes:

The Customs page on animal products and foodstuffs says not to bring or order animal products from outside the EU. Infant formula, baby food and special medical food are allowed under conditions (for example, up to 2 kg of infant food in branded, unopened packaging), and sweets where the animal ingredient is no longer recognisable generally need no certificate.

Medicines deserve extra care. The Hague International Centre notes that you cannot have medication shipped to the Netherlands, even when relocating; you may carry medicine for personal use, and substances under the Opium Act need special permission. Sending countries have their own bans too: many postal services refuse perfume, aerosols and loose lithium batteries because they are dangerous goods on aircraft.

Moving house is a different case

If you are moving from outside the EU, your household goods can be imported free of duty and VAT under the removal goods relief. Xpat.nl summarises the conditions: you must have lived outside the EU, have owned and used the goods for at least six months, import them within 12 months of the move and submit a signed inventory. This relief is applied for through a permit, usually by your removal company, and does not cover ordinary parcels from family.

9. Returns, refusals and objections

No tax refund on returns up to €150

Since 1 July 2026, Dutch Customs does not refund VAT or duty on returned parcels worth €150 or less. Above €150, ask your carrier to request that Customs invalidate the import declaration. Whether carrier fees can be refunded depends on the carrier; the EU €2 fee is never refunded.

Refusing a parcel

If you do not pay PostNL within 14 days, the parcel goes back to the sender, which effectively refuses it. You owe nothing to PostNL if you never paid. Whether the shop refunds your purchase price is a matter for your contract with the shop; non-EU sellers are not necessarily bound by the EU's 14-day withdrawal right, so check returns and duty terms before ordering.

Objection and refund deadlines

Normally the carrier files for you. If it asks you to do it yourself, you receive the import declaration number and possibly an authorisation, and you write to Customs in Heerlen at the postal address on the refund page. For a refund request, cite Article 117 of the Union Customs Code. Enclose the receipt, the carrier's invoice, proof of payment, the declaration number and your name, address and signature; Customs will not process incomplete requests.

Rule changes in transit

In the Radar case, a parcel ordered in June reached the Netherlands in late June but was cleared on 6 July, so duty applied. PostNL said the clearance date counts, not the date the parcel crossed the border, and refused a refund. The same could happen around 1 November with the €2 fee.

10. Letter delivery: two days now, three days later?

The second half of the NL Times story concerns letters and cards, not parcels.

Two working days since July 2026

The legal standard used to be next-day delivery. A government decision of 19 December 2025 amended the Postal Decree: from 1 July 2026, letters may take up to 48 hours (posted Monday, delivered Tuesday or Wednesday), and from 1 July 2027 up to 72 hours. Mail still comes five days a week, Tuesday to Saturday, and medical and funeral mail stays at 24 hours, six days a week. The government notes that letter volumes have fallen 54% since 2014. The Staatsblad 2026, 141 sets the targets: at least 90% of letters by the second working day until June 2027, then 92% by the third.

Will three-day delivery start in 2027?

Reports diverge. The government's decision sets three days from 1 July 2027, and DutchNews.nl wrote that the deadline is due to be stretched next July. But according to NL Times, PostNL said it will not be able to introduce three-day delivery in 2027 because the government postponed crucial amendments to the Postal Act. Berendsen said three-day delivery and net cost compensation in transition years are necessary. Until this is settled, plan on two working days and post important letters early.

NL Times reported on 20 October that PostNL has asked the government for €80 million for 2027 mail delivery, that the new Postal Act has been in parliament since 2020, and that PostNL also wants to drop Saturday delivery.

Prices keep rising

The next-day and funeral-card prices come from NL Times. The regulator ACM sets the cap on PostNL's weighted average universal-service price; in its August 2026 decision the 2027 cap rose to €3.5929 from €3.1882. PostNL sets the actual stamp prices and often raises them by less than the cap. Note that some guides are out of date: Expatica's postal guide, last updated in November 2024, still lists a domestic stamp at €0.91.

11. Common mistakes

Scammers exploit rule changes. Fake "customs payment" texts and emails linking to look-alike sites are a well-known trick; ACCESS has advice on avoiding scams. Only pay through the carrier's own app or a page you reach by typing your tracking number yourself.

12. What to do: step by step

1. Before ordering, check whether the price includes VAT and duty. Look for "incl. VAT", "duties included" or "DDP".
2. For non-EU items under €150, add €3 per item type, 21% VAT and a possible carrier fee before comparing prices. Check whether the same item ships from an EU warehouse.
3. Tell family abroad how to send gifts: tick "Gift", describe items precisely in English, state the real value and aim for €45 or less.
4. Share the list of banned goods: medicines, meat and dairy, fresh plants, counterfeits; and, on the sending side, perfume, aerosols and loose batteries.
5. When a bill arrives, open it from the carrier's tracking page and note the 14-day deadline.
6. If the amount looks wrong, ask the carrier to object within six weeks. Keep receipts, invoices and proof of payment.
7. Post important letters at least two working days ahead, or use next-day or registered mail.

13. Example cases

These are fictional examples to show how the rules apply. Amounts are estimates based on the official figures above.

Case 1: a birthday parcel from a sibling

A sibling in Canada sends a scarf and a book worth about €35 in total, marked "Gift". It is private, unpaid and under €45, so there is no duty, no VAT and no PostNL fee.

Case 2: stationery from a non-EU web shop

A student orders a notebook, pens and washi tape for €40, plus €15 shipping, from a shop that does not collect EU tax. Three item types could mean €9 duty; VAT is (40 + 15 + 9) × 21% ≈ €13.44; add PostNL's €10 and the bill is about €32. From November, the seller may also add the €2-per-line EU fee to its prices.

Case 3: regular care packages from parents

A family in The Hague receives food and children's clothes from parents in the US every two months, worth about €70 each time. Each parcel is above €45, so VAT, duty and PostNL's €10 apply every time, and meat or dairy products could be stopped. They agree to send fewer, larger parcels with no animal products, and to buy groceries locally.

The same kind of parcel can cost nothing or €30+, depending on whether it is a gift or a purchase and which side of €45 it falls.

14. What not to do

15. Checklist

• I checked whether the price includes VAT and duty
• I added €3 per item type for non-EU items under €150
• My family knows to tick "Gift" and describe items in English
• Gifts stay around €45 with the real value stated
• No medicines, meat, dairy or fresh plants in the parcel
• I pay only from the carrier's tracking page, within 14 days
• I keep receipts, invoices and proof of payment
• Important letters go out at least two working days ahead

16. Summary

• Since 1 July 2026, non-EU online purchases up to €150 pay €3 customs duty per item type, as a temporary measure until 1 July 2028.
• Import VAT of 21% (9% for books) applies to goods, shipping and duty together; if not prepaid, the carrier collects it on delivery.
• From 1 November 2026, a €2 EU handling fee per declaration line is added, separate from PostNL's €10/€16 clearance fee.
• Private gifts of €45 or less are free of duty and VAT; senders should mark them as gifts and state the real value.
• Parcels up to €150 get no tax refund on return; objections go through the carrier within six weeks.
• Sources describe "one item" differently, so how goods are declared can change how often €3 applies.
• Letters now take up to two working days; three-day delivery is planned for July 2027, but PostNL says it cannot implement it then.

Sources

News and expat media

• PostNL delays plan to slow down mail delivery; Sharp drop in packages from outside EU — NL Times: 26 October 2026, Q3 results
• International parcels drop by 32% after EU imposes surcharge — DutchNews.nl: EU parcels up 40%
• Cheap Chinese parcels to the Netherlands fall 46% after EU levy — DutchNews.nl: €134 million reported for July
• €3 import fee now applies to cheap packages from outside the EU — NL Times: unpaid parcels
• PostNL wants €80 million from government — NL Times: compensation and Postal Act
• PostNL to charge nearly €4 for next-day mail — NL Times: next-day and funeral mail prices
• Temu and Shein orders drop in the Netherlands after EU tax — IamExpat: RTL Nieuws survey
• Dutch surcharge for packages from China scrapped — IamExpat: national €2 plan dropped
• New EU parcel duty will hit Dutch shoppers from July 1 — DutchReview: per-item explanation
• A guide to the postal service in the Netherlands — Expatica: collection rules (updated November 2024)
• Exemption from Customs Duties — Xpat.nl: removal goods relief
• How can I avoid scams? — ACCESS: avoiding scams
• Border control — The Hague International Centre: prohibited goods and medicines
• Diana betaalt invoerrechten — AVROTROS Radar: clearance date case

EU sources

• €3 customs duty on low-value parcels — European Commission
• Guidance and legal text on the temporary flat fee — European Commission: Regulation 2026/382
• Council agrees to levy customs duty on small parcels — Council of the EU
• Council gives final green light — Council of the EU
• VAT One Stop Shop — European Commission: IOSS

Dutch official sources

• Extra kosten bij online bestellingen — Douane
• Gifts from abroad — Douane
• Terugvragen extra kosten — Douane
• Handling fee — Douane: Delegated Regulation 2026/2152
• Paying import duties for e-commerce — Douane
• Online shops adapt their procedures — Douane
• Dit mag u niet online kopen — Douane
• Animal products and foodstuffs — Douane
• Inklaringskosten — PostNL and paying for a parcel from abroad — PostNL
• Resilient HY 2026 performance — PostNL
• Delivery time decision — Rijksoverheid and Staatsblad 2026, 141
• Tariff cap for the universal postal service 2027 — ACM

All sources were checked on 26 October 2026. Fees, rates and procedures can change, so check the official pages before ordering or paying.

Original article

PostNL delays plan to slow down mail delivery; Sharp drop in packages from outside EU — NL Times