Revenue Warns Online Shoppers: New €3 Customs Duty Per Item on Non-EU Purchases from 1 July

Online shoppers across Ireland face new customs charges on purchases from outside the European Union from 1 July 2026, with Revenue urging consumers to check the terms and conditions of websites before they buy.

A new €3 customs duty charge will apply to each individual item purchased online from non-EU countries, including Great Britain. This ends the current exemption under which no customs duty applied to ecommerce packages valued at €150 or less.

The charge applies per distinct item, not per parcel. A package from Asia containing a pen, a notebook, and a key ring would attract €9 in customs duty, plus VAT, as each item incurs its own €3 charge. Two identical pens in the same package, however, count as a single item and would attract just €3 duty, plus VAT.

The change is designed to ensure fairness for Irish and EU businesses.

How the new duty will be paid

Shoppers will encounter the €3 duty in one of two ways. Some websites will collect it at checkout, with the total price inclusive of duty clearly displayed before payment is made. Others will not collect it at checkout, leaving delivery companies, such as postal services or couriers, to collect the charge before handing over the parcel.

Revenue advises shoppers to read a website's terms and conditions before purchasing to understand how customs charges will be applied.

Important: what returns will cost you

The new rules also affect returns. Customs duty is non-refundable when an item is sent back, unless the goods are faulty. Whether VAT is also refunded will vary by retailer; some suppliers will refund VAT on returned goods, but many will not, depending on how individual businesses account for their VAT liabilities.

Shoppers are advised to check each website's returns policy carefully before buying.

Don't be misled by .ie domains or euro prices

Revenue has also flagged a potential source of confusion: some websites may appear to be Irish or EU-based, using a .ie domain or displaying prices in euro, while actually shipping goods from outside the EU. In those cases, the new customs duty will still apply.

Consumers are advised to check the "Terms and Conditions" and "About Us" pages of any website to confirm both its physical business address and the location from which goods will be shipped.

Raphael Ryan, Head of Revenue's National Customs Policies and Procedures:

"Our goal is to ensure consumers are fully informed about these changes before the new rules take effect. We want to help people avoid unexpected costs and make informed decisions when shopping online. We urge everyone who shops online to take a moment to check where their goods are coming from before they buy so that they know if there is Duty to be paid before the goods are delivered."

Further information, including worked examples of how the charge is applied per item, is available at revenue.ie.