At a glance. Customs duty on parcels in Portugal changes on 1 July 2026. Until now, goods entering the EU in consignments valued below EUR 150 were exempt from customs duty. From that date, a fixed duty of EUR 3 applies to each different item, by tariff heading, contained in a small consignment sold through a seller registered in the EU’s Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS). The measure is temporary: it bridges the period until the EU abolishes the EUR 150 duty-relief threshold altogether under the customs reform agreed in March 2026. Import VAT is unaffected; it has applied to all consignments, whatever their value, since July 2021. For residents of Madeira, parcels clear through Portuguese customs on ordinary terms and import VAT applies at the regional rates.
What changes on 1 July 2026
The Council of the EU agreed on 12 December 2025, and gave its final approval on 11 February 2026, to levy a fixed customs duty of EUR 3 on small parcels valued at less than EUR 150 entering the EU, with effect from 1 July 2026. The stated rationale is the volume of low-value e-commerce imports entering the Union duty free: around 4.6 billion consignments under EUR 150 in 2024, the large majority dispatched from China, with consequences for fair competition, product safety and fraud.
Three design features matter for anyone receiving parcels in Portugal.
- First, the duty is charged per item, not per parcel. The EUR 3 applies to each different item in a consignment according to its tariff heading. A single parcel containing three products falling under three different tariff headings attracts EUR 9; three units of the same product under one heading attract a single EUR 3 charge, provided the consignment stays below EUR 150 in value.
- Second, the duty attaches to the IOSS channel. It applies to goods for which the non-EU seller is registered in the Import One-Stop Shop for VAT purposes, which the Council estimates covers 93% of e-commerce flows into the EU. The large online platforms and marketplaces selling into Portugal operate through IOSS, so the typical online order from a third-country seller will be caught. Goods sold outside the IOSS channel are not, for now, subject to the flat duty; the Commission is mandated to assess regularly whether the rate should be extended to them.
- Third, the measure is expressly temporary. It remains in place until the permanent arrangement agreed in November 2025, the outright elimination of the EUR 150 duty-relief threshold under the EU customs reform, enters into application. At that point goods under EUR 150 will be dutiable at the normal EU tariff for each product. The reform’s core instrument, the new Union Customs Code, reached political agreement between the Parliament and the Council on 26 March 2026 and its formal adoption remains pending, with the new Customs Data Hub expected to phase in around 2028.
What does not change
The change is narrower than much of the press coverage suggests, and four points of continuity matter in practice.
Import VAT is unchanged. The VAT exemption for low-value imports was abolished on 1 July 2021; since then, VAT has been due on every consignment entering the EU regardless of value, collected at the point of sale where the seller uses IOSS or at importation otherwise. An expat in Funchal ordering from a third-country platform has been paying Portuguese VAT on those orders for five years. The EUR 3 duty is an addition, not a replacement.
Consignments at or above EUR 150 are unchanged. They were never within the exemption and continue to be cleared with customs duty at the ordinary tariff rates plus import VAT.
Genuine person-to-person gifts remain outside the new measure. Occasional consignments sent by one private individual to another, of a non-commercial character and within the EUR 45 relief ceiling, continue to benefit from the existing duty and VAT reliefs. A family parcel from outside the EU is not an IOSS sale and does not attract the EUR 3 charge, subject to the usual conditions of the relief.
Non-IOSS commercial consignments are, for the time being, outside the flat duty. They continue to be cleared on ordinary terms, with the carrier’s customs-presentation fee and import VAT where applicable. This is a monitored carve-out, not a planning opportunity: the Commission will assess extending the duty to non-IOSS flows precisely to prevent migration away from the registered channel.
Before and after 1 July 2026
| Consignment | Until 30 June 2026 | From 1 July 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| IOSS sale, below EUR 150, one tariff heading | VAT only | VAT + EUR 3 |
| IOSS sale, below EUR 150, three tariff headings | VAT only | VAT + EUR 9 |
| Sale at or above EUR 150 | VAT + ordinary tariff duty | VAT + ordinary tariff duty (unchanged) |
| Private gift within EUR 45 relief | Relieved, subject to conditions | Relieved, subject to conditions (unchanged) |
| Non-IOSS commercial sale below EUR 150 | VAT, no duty | VAT, no flat duty for now; extension under review |
The position in Madeira
Madeira is part of the EU customs territory, and parcels addressed to the Region clear through Portuguese customs on the same legal terms as a delivery to Lisbon or Porto. The EUR 3 duty will therefore apply to orders delivered in Funchal exactly as on the mainland. Two regional specificities are worth stating.
The first is the VAT rate. Import VAT on goods entering the Autonomous Region of Madeira is charged at the regional rates rather than the mainland rates: 22% standard, 12% intermediate and 4% reduced, under the regional rate-setting in force since October 2024. The combined effect of the new duty and regional VAT on a typical low-value order is therefore marginally lighter than the mainland equivalent, though the EUR 3 itself is identical.
The second is practical exposure. Households in Madeira order online at scale precisely because the local retail offer on an island of 250,000 residents is narrower than in a mainland metropolitan area. For a resident who places frequent small orders with third-country platforms, the new duty is best understood as a per-item surcharge that rewards consolidated baskets over repeated single-item orders: ten separate parcels with one item each attract EUR 30 in aggregate, while one consignment can attract less depending on how its contents map to tariff headings.
For expat residents specifically, the change has no immigration or tax-residence dimension. It does not affect personal belongings shipped on relocation, which follow the separate transfer-of-residence relief regime, and it does not alter the treatment of goods accompanying travellers within the personal allowances.
Expat-owned online businesses
A number of MCS clients resident in Madeira operate e-commerce businesses, in some cases through Madeira-incorporated companies, selling goods dispatched from third-country stock into the EU. For these operators the relevant posture before 1 July 2026 is a short verification exercise: confirm whether sales run through an IOSS registration; map the product range to tariff headings, since the per-heading charging rule determines the duty cost of a multi-item order; reprice landed costs where the EUR 3 per item is material to low-ticket products; and review platform terms, since marketplaces operating as deemed suppliers will be the collection point for flows they intermediate. Companies licensed in the Madeira International Business Centre that import or route goods are ordinary importers for customs purposes; the MIBC regime confers a corporate income tax benefit, not a customs one.
Practical takeaways
- From 1 July 2026, expect EUR 3 of customs duty per item, by tariff heading, on online orders below EUR 150 from third-country sellers registered in IOSS.
- Import VAT is unchanged and has applied to all consignments since July 2021; in Madeira it is charged at the regional rates.
- Orders at or above EUR 150 and genuine private gifts within the EUR 45 relief are unaffected.
- Consolidated orders will generally carry less duty than repeated single-item parcels.
- The measure is temporary: once the EU customs reform applies, goods under EUR 150 become dutiable at normal tariff rates, which for some products will exceed EUR 3.
- E-commerce operators should verify IOSS registration, tariff-heading mapping and pricing before 1 July 2026.
Where MCS can assist
MCS advises individuals relocating to Madeira and companies operating from the Region, including on the indirect tax and compliance layer of cross-border activity. We can assist, subject to a review of the specific facts, with the customs and VAT posture of e-commerce operations conducted from Madeira, with the structuring of trading companies inside or outside the Madeira International Business Centre, and with the transfer-of-residence relief applicable to personal belongings on relocation. For private individuals, the new duty requires no action; for operators with third-country goods flows, a pre-July review is the procedural next step.
FAQ
Will I pay customs duty on parcels in Portugal from July 2026? Yes, where the order is below EUR 150 and the seller is registered in the EU’s IOSS: a fixed EUR 3 applies per item, by tariff heading. VAT continues to apply as before.
Does the EUR 3 duty apply per parcel or per item? Per item, according to tariff heading. One parcel with several different products attracts EUR 3 for each distinct heading; several units of the same product under one heading attract a single charge.
Are parcels to Madeira treated differently from the mainland? No. Madeira is within the EU customs territory and the duty applies identically. Import VAT, however, is charged at Madeira’s regional rates (22%, 12%, 4%) rather than the mainland rates.
Do gifts from family outside the EU pay the new duty? Occasional non-commercial consignments between private individuals within the EUR 45 relief remain outside the measure, subject to the conditions of that relief.
What about orders over EUR 150? Unchanged. They were never within the exemption and continue to attract ordinary tariff duty plus import VAT.
Is the EUR 3 duty permanent? No. It is an interim measure pending the EU customs reform, under which the EUR 150 threshold is abolished and goods below it become dutiable at normal tariff rates.
I run an online business from Madeira selling from non-EU stock. What should I do before July? Confirm your IOSS position, map products to tariff headings, reprice landed costs where material and review marketplace terms. We can assist, subject to a review of the operation.
This article is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or tax advice. The EUR 3 fixed customs duty described here was approved by the Council of the EU on 11 February 2026 and applies from 1 July 2026; the implementing and collection arrangements were still being finalised at the date of preparation and should be confirmed against the published EU instrument and any Portuguese administrative guidance in force at the relevant time. VAT rates, relief thresholds and customs procedures change over time, and the regional rates applicable in Madeira are set by regional legislative decree. No decision should be taken on the basis of this article without prior professional advice on the specific facts. Madeira Corporate Services accepts no liability for actions taken in reliance on this content.
Miguel Pinto-Correia holds a Master Degree in International Economics and European Studies from ISEG – Lisbon School of Economics & Management and a Bachelor Degree in Economics from Nova School of Business and Economics. He is a permanent member of the Order of the Economists (Ordem dos Economistas)… Read more
