For years, the de minimis loophole allowed foreign shippers to send packages valued at up to $800 into the United States duty-free, tax-free, and with virtually no customs scrutiny — so long as the foreign vendor merely alleged the value was below the threshold.
It’s hard to believe the US allowed this to go on for years. Trump finally ended it.
President Trump wrote on social media:
BIG WIN today at the U.S. Court of International Trade on one of the most DESPICABLE loopholes in American Trade Policy — The so-called “de minimis” exemption.
For years, Foreign Shippers could send packages worth up to $800 into our Country, DUTY FREE, NO TARIFF, far less scrutiny. It became a giant loophole for TARIFF Cheats — and a Pipeline exploited by Fentanyl Traffickers, Counterfeiters, and other Criminals shipping dangerous and illegal products into America. The numbers were staggering. In 2024 alone, de minimis cost America an estimated 10.8 BILLION DOLLRS in foregone TARIFF Revenue, and an astonishing share of narcotics and counterfeit seizures came through the de minimis channel.
So, we CLOSED IT. With the stroke of my mighty pen — NO AUTOPEN!!! — we ended this ridiculous giveaway, and made Foreign Goods play by the rules. The Importers sued. Today, THEY LOST. The Court ruled that the President had the Legal Authority to rescind this so-called “privilege.”
America is now SAFER, our Workers are better protected, and BILLIONS in TARIFF Revenue that used to slip through this loophole can instead help pay for our Great Military, Tax Relief, NO TAX ON TIPS, and NO TAX ON SOCIAL SECURITY. AMERICA FIRST TRADE — AND AMERICA FIRST LAW ENFORCEMENT! President DONALD J. TRUMP
Huge news.
The courts just upheld a key component of President Trump’s trade agenda: closing the de minimis loophole.
China and other countries abused our trade laws for too long. Thank you, @POTUS, for saying ENOUGH! https://t.co/Mqm2oZ8SHO
— Rep. Riley M. Moore (@RepRileyMoore) August 13, 2026
In other news, Bolshevik Bernie Sanders, who recently said he wants the US to work with China, also said he wants a pause in all AI development. He thinks the companies are losing control of the technology. There is no evidence of that. There is plenty of evidence the government would destroy it.
If we followed Bolshevik Bernie’s advice, we would be handing AI to China.
Bernie, who is as old as Methuselah, needs to retire before his brain shrinks even more. He is and was always economically illiterate.
Anyway, we got a big win in international trade, and no one is listening to Bernie; we hope.
