Jessica Mendoza

These added charges are largely a reaction to the Trump administration's high tariffs on goods from China. Right now, those tariffs are hitting an average of 165 percent. But there's a second reason the price tags on these products are going up, and it has to do with something called de minimis. De minimis. De minimis. De minimis.

The Trump administration is ending today something called the de minimis exemption. It kind of sounds like a Harry Potter spell, but it's actually a trade provision. Basically, it means companies don't have to pay taxes on goods they're bringing into the U.S. as long as those goods are worth $800 or less.

The Trump administration is ending today something called the de minimis exemption. It kind of sounds like a Harry Potter spell, but it's actually a trade provision. Basically, it means companies don't have to pay taxes on goods they're bringing into the U.S. as long as those goods are worth $800 or less.

The Trump administration is ending today something called the de minimis exemption. It kind of sounds like a Harry Potter spell, but it's actually a trade provision. Basically, it means companies don't have to pay taxes on goods they're bringing into the U.S. as long as those goods are worth $800 or less.

But as of today, the Trump administration has taken away this tax exemption for goods from China and Hong Kong.

But as of today, the Trump administration has taken away this tax exemption for goods from China and Hong Kong.

But as of today, the Trump administration has taken away this tax exemption for goods from China and Hong Kong.

Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Jessica Mendoza. It's Friday, May 2nd. Coming up on the show, what a world without De Minimis means for e-commerce. Did you realize that you were going to have to be an expert on De Minimis?

Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Jessica Mendoza. It's Friday, May 2nd. Coming up on the show, what a world without De Minimis means for e-commerce. Did you realize that you were going to have to be an expert on De Minimis?

Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Jessica Mendoza. It's Friday, May 2nd. Coming up on the show, what a world without De Minimis means for e-commerce. Did you realize that you were going to have to be an expert on De Minimis?

That's our colleague Shen Liu. Lately, she's been covering the administration's efforts to roll back the de minimis exemption. De minimis, by the way, is a Latin phrase, and it refers to things that are small or trifles. What is the purpose of the exemption originally? Like, who was supposed to benefit from it?

That's our colleague Shen Liu. Lately, she's been covering the administration's efforts to roll back the de minimis exemption. De minimis, by the way, is a Latin phrase, and it refers to things that are small or trifles. What is the purpose of the exemption originally? Like, who was supposed to benefit from it?

That's our colleague Shen Liu. Lately, she's been covering the administration's efforts to roll back the de minimis exemption. De minimis, by the way, is a Latin phrase, and it refers to things that are small or trifles. What is the purpose of the exemption originally? Like, who was supposed to benefit from it?

De Minimis was designed to make things simpler so that customs wouldn't have to inspect and tax every small item that American travelers brought back. For a long time, de minimis applied to goods under $200. Then, in 2016, Congress raised the limit to $800. And that new limit caught the attention of businesses because it gave them a way to avoid paying taxes on low-cost imports.

De Minimis was designed to make things simpler so that customs wouldn't have to inspect and tax every small item that American travelers brought back. For a long time, de minimis applied to goods under $200. Then, in 2016, Congress raised the limit to $800. And that new limit caught the attention of businesses because it gave them a way to avoid paying taxes on low-cost imports.

De Minimis was designed to make things simpler so that customs wouldn't have to inspect and tax every small item that American travelers brought back. For a long time, de minimis applied to goods under $200. Then, in 2016, Congress raised the limit to $800. And that new limit caught the attention of businesses because it gave them a way to avoid paying taxes on low-cost imports.

The exemption's popularity attracted government scrutiny. Since 2022, Congress has tried to get rid of the de minimis exemption. But those efforts didn't get far. When Trump announced new tariffs on goods from Mexico, Canada, and China back in February, he also said he would take away the de minimis exemption for all three countries.

The exemption's popularity attracted government scrutiny. Since 2022, Congress has tried to get rid of the de minimis exemption. But those efforts didn't get far. When Trump announced new tariffs on goods from Mexico, Canada, and China back in February, he also said he would take away the de minimis exemption for all three countries.

The exemption's popularity attracted government scrutiny. Since 2022, Congress has tried to get rid of the de minimis exemption. But those efforts didn't get far. When Trump announced new tariffs on goods from Mexico, Canada, and China back in February, he also said he would take away the de minimis exemption for all three countries.

He called de minimis a loophole that gave other countries an advantage over the U.S. and allowed illegal drugs to be smuggled in.