The European Union has called for a bloc-wide handling fee on small packages ordered online from platforms such as Shein, Temu and Alibaba to be imposed in early 2026, over two years earlier than scheduled, in a bid to crack down on billions of cheap Chinese imports each year, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing a letter from trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic to EU finance ministers.
The European Commission urged EU finance ministers meeting on Thursday to agree the faster implementation to protect domestic retailers from unfair competition, the report said.
First, Chinese retail platforms like Temu, Shein, AliExpress and others deploy their own supply chains. Only Shein recently announced it would open up its sweatshops to other businesses, but so far this didn’t happen afaik.
And, more importantly, local European retailers would immediately be shut down by the authorities if they sold the toxic and dangerous stuff sold on these Chinese platforms. They face much stricter regulations regarding consumer (and worker) protections than in China, which is one reason why they are more expansive.