DHL Globalmail will stop UK-to-EU parcel service June 24, citing missing customs-payment system. The EU's new 3-euro levy on low-value imports starts July 1. Sellers with EU inventory are unaffected.
DHL Globalmail will stop carrying parcels from UK sellers to EU consumers starting June 24, the company told ChannelX. The carrier does not yet have a system to pay the new EU customs levy on behalf of shippers, a requirement that takes effect July 1.
From that date, any parcel valued at up to 150 euros entering the EU from outside the bloc will carry a flat 3-euro fee. The sender or the carrier must pay it, not the recipient. The rule also adds data fields and other compliance steps. DHL, FedEx and UPS warned the European Commission earlier this year that the July 1 deadline was unrealistic. DHL is the first to act on that warning.
“The DHL Globalmail service is currently unable to support this process as it does not have a Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) solution, where the fees would be covered by the seller,” the company said. It is building one but has not said when it will be ready.
The suspension hits UK online retailers that ship low-value goods directly to EU households. Sellers who already hold inventory inside the EU are not affected. DHL Express, which handles time-sensitive and higher-value shipments, continues to operate normally.
Brussels designed the levy to slow the flood of cheap parcels from third countries, especially China. Last year 5.8 billion low-value ecommerce packages entered the EU, up 26% from the prior year. EU inspectors have repeatedly found that direct-to-consumer shipments from outside the bloc fail to meet product safety and labeling rules.
The 3-euro fee is temporary. The EU is also working on a permanent handling charge of roughly 2 euros per parcel to fund customs inspections. November 1 is the frequently cited target date, though the Commission has not confirmed it.
UK sellers who relied on Globalmail for EU delivery now face a choice: switch to a carrier with a DDP solution, pre-position stock inside the bloc, or pause cross-border sales until DHL updates its system. The company has not given a timeline for that update.
Prepared with AlphaScala research tooling and grounded in primary market data: live prices, fundamentals, SEC filings, hedge-fund holdings, and insider activity. Each story is checked against AlphaScala publishing rules before release. Educational coverage, not personalized advice.