Senate Finance Chairman Wyden (D-OR) is expected to soon introduce legislation that will target de minimis reform. The legislation, dubbed the Fighting Illicit Goods, Helping Trustworthy Importers, and Netting Gains (FIGHTING) for American Act, would prohibit goods impacted by Sections 232, 301, and 201, as well as those considered sensitive goods by GSP, from entering the U.S. via de minimis.

This legislation aims to curb the flood of goods currently eligible for de minimis entry. Specifically, it would ban de minimis treatment for any product that doesn’t qualify for duty-free status under the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences program, which benefits developing countries. This would notably impact “sensitive” items such as textiles and apparel, which are excluded from GSP. In addition, the legislation would make goods subject to anti-dumping duties, countervailing duties, Section 232 tariffs, Section 301 tariffs, or Section 201 tariffs ineligible for de minimis entry. It also proposes heftier penalties for shipments that flout de minimis rules and introduces a $2 fee per shipment.

The de minimis provision has been a staple of U.S. customs law based on the idea that the administrative effort to process low-value shipments isn’t worth the revenue they generate. It is named for a Latin phrase which refers to something so minor it can be disregarded. In fiscal 2023, U.S. Customs and Border Protection processed over 1 billion de minimis shipments valued at more than $50 billion, a drastic increase from only 134 million shipments in 2015. CBP estimates the average value of de minimis shipments entering the U.S. is about $54, well below the maximum threshold for duty-free purchases from abroad.