One of the easiest mistakes in the current trade environment is assuming the February 20, 2026 Supreme Court decision restored the old de minimis landscape. It did not.
The Key Distinction
On the same day that the White House ended certain IEEPA tariff actions, it also issued a separate order continuing the suspension of duty-free de minimis treatment for all countries. That order was unaffected by the move ending IEEPA ad valorem duties.
For importers, the message is simple: the low-value parcel story continued even as the IEEPA tariff story changed.
What the Order Says
Effective February 24, 2026, the duty-free de minimis exemption generally no longer applies to covered shipments regardless of value, country of origin, mode of transportation, or method of entry. For non-postal shipments that previously would have moved under de minimis, entry now has to be filed in ACE using an appropriate entry type.
That is a material operating change, not just a legal footnote.
Postal Shipments Work Differently
The order creates a temporary bridge for international postal shipments. Until CBP establishes the new postal entry process, those shipments remain subject to a duty rate equal to the February 20 Section 122 temporary import surcharge.
The order also requires the country of origin and value of the postal item to be declared to CBP. That means data quality becomes more important at the parcel level than many businesses are used to.
Why This Matters Operationally
The de minimis change expands the amount of customs data that low-value programs need to generate and manage. Companies that relied on parcel velocity and simplified treatment now need to think more like regular import operations teams.
The practical pressure points usually include:
— Whether the business has the data needed for ACE filing
— Whether carriers and brokers are aligned on the entry model
— How landed-cost assumptions change at high parcel volume
— Which products now create compliance work that did not exist before
What Importers Should Do Next
The first useful step is to isolate the shipments that relied on de minimis treatment and separate postal from non-postal flows. After that, teams can determine which lane needs a new ACE workflow, which lane may face interim postal duties, and where item-level data is still missing.
This is one of the strongest recent-event topics for trade content because it connects directly to workflows, systems, and margin.
This article is educational only and not legal advice. Importers should evaluate the order against their product scope, shipping channels, and current customs entry process.