The Belgian government is considering introducing a levy on parcels imported from outside the European Union, mainly targeting overwhelming volumes of low-value online purchases from China.
The proposed charge of €2 per parcel would affect Chinese online retailers such as AliExpress, Shein and Temu.
Authorities intend to use the revenue to help reduce the national budget deficit.
The proposal comes from the governing party, Les Engagés, and would apply to parcels worth up to €150. It could take effect as early as next year and is expected to generate several hundred million euros, with Belgian customs anticipating around 1.4 billion imported parcels this year.
Becom, a trade association representing Belgian e-commerce, welcomed the initiative as “a first step towards a fairer playing field for Belgian retailers”, citing the high proportion of unsafe products entering Europe from China.
However, the federation stressed that the issue required a Europe-wide approach.
Managing director of Belgian e-commerce association (Becom), Greet Dekocker, warned that if other countries did not introduce similar levies, the measure could lose its intended effect or even reduce revenue.
“The speed with which Belgium is tackling this is admirable, but more needs to be done,” she said.
Becom also called for part of the revenue to be reinvested in infrastructure, including scanning technology, digitally trained staff, and a shared data pool to better detect offenders.
Belgium’s plan precedes a similar proposal from the European Commission, which seeks to introduce a fixed €2 fee on parcels from outside the EU, to be paid by online platforms. Parcels shipped to European warehouses would incur a €0.50 charge.
Unlike the Belgian plan, the EU measure would primarily reinvest fees in enforcing existing regulations, allowing member states to conduct more inspections to combat unsafe products and counterfeits.
Experts have cautioned that the fee is too low to significantly reduce the popularity of Chinese platforms. The EU measure still requires approval from the European Parliament and member states and could come into effect in March 2028. At that point, the current exemption from import duties – which benefits international platforms – would also be abolished; for now, shipments from outside the EU valued up to €150 remain duty-free.
