Australia Post has temporarily halted some postage to the United States and Puerto Rico, effective immediately and until further notice.
The change is a response to President Donald Trump’s tariff regime and changes to customs rules for parcels. Until now, low-value packages en route to the US were subject to what’s known as “de minimis” treatment, which allowed parcels worth less than US$800 to enter the country duty-free.
But Trump signed an executive order last month ending the de minimis treatment, effective on 29 August. Parcels will be subject to duties equivalent to the tariffs imposed on that country. Australian goods are subject to the baseline 10% tariff.
Gifts under US$100, or about $150 Australian dollars, letters and documents are not affected by the change.
The move is part of his broader tariff war and frustration with China, which Trump claims has undercut local manufacturing.
Australia Post, which is government-owned, said the temporary suspension would affect many customers, including those with business or retail accounts hoping to send packages through the postal network. Any postal goods sent to the US and Puerto Rico lodged on or after 26 August will not be accepted until further notice, unless they fall under the exemptions.
“We are disappointed we have had to take this action, however, due to the complex and rapidly evolving situation, a temporary partial suspension has been necessary to allow us to develop and implement a workable solution for our customers,” said Gary Starr, the executive general manager of parcel, post and e-commerce services at Australia Post.
“Australia Post continues to work with US and Australian authorities and international postal partners to resume postal service to the US as a priority.”
The agency said it was working with a third-party provider authorised by US customs to find a solution that would allow services to resume. Australia Post said those customers would be notified when the system was nearly finished so they can “be ready for when this solution goes live”.
A spokesperson for the Australian government said the new US tariff rule was “disappointing and will only drive up costs for American families and small businesses”.
“The Albanese Government will work with Australia Post to limit disruption for affected customers while they make adjustments to comply with new requirements,” they said.
after newsletter promotion
The shadow minister for small business, Tim Wilson, said it was “very concerning” and urged the ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, to lobby the White House and Congress to “make sure this relationship is sorted”.
Other international postal services have taken similar moves. Japan and Switzerland have both paused shipments to the US.
Trump called the shipping of duty-free parcels a “catastrophic loophole” in his order last month, saying it had allowed packages to “evade tariffs” and “funnel deadly synthetic opioids as well as other unsafe or below-market products that harm American workers and businesses” into the US.
“The de minimis exemption has been abused, with shippers sending illicit fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, precursors, and paraphernalia into the United States in reliance on the lower security measures applied to de minimis shipments, killing Americans,” the order reads. “President Trump is delivering on his promise to ‘put an end’ to the ‘big scam’ of de minimis shipments killing Americans and hurting U.S. businesses.”
