The South African Post Office has suspended all outbound parcel services containing goods to the United States with immediate effect, becoming the latest postal operator to halt shipments following new US tariff regulations.
The suspension follows new regulations introduced by the Trump administration on 30 July, which removed the duty-free allowance previously available for international parcels valued up to $800. Postal operators worldwide, including SAPO, are now required to collect and pay US duties before parcels can be sent.
“Given the complex processes required to comply with the new regulation, we have no choice but to temporarily suspend these shipments,” said Joint Business Rescue Practitioner Anoosh Rooplal. “We regret any inconvenience this may cause to our customers.”
The South African postal service will continue accepting documents, letters, and exempted mail classes such as military mail, but any parcels already received at SAPO’s Germiston International Mail Centre that cannot be processed under the new rules will be returned to sender.
Global postal disruption
South Africa joins a growing list of countries whose postal services have suspended US-bound shipments. The United Nations’ Universal Postal Union reported that 25 member countries’ postal operators had suspended outbound postal services to the United States, including services in France, Germany, Italy, India, Australia and Japan.
The UK’s Royal Mail took similar steps but announced new services Thursday for customers to continue sending goods to the United States.
President Donald Trump’s administration cited the use of low-value shipments to evade tariffs and smuggle drugs in ending duty-free treatment for parcels. Instead, packages will either be subject to the tariff level applicable to their country of origin, or face a specific duty ranging from $80 to $200 per item.
Trump’s trade adviser Peter Navarro told reporters that closing this “loophole” helps restrict the flow of “narcotics and other dangerous and prohibited items” while bringing fresh tariff revenues.
“Foreign post offices need to get their act together when it comes to monitoring and policing the use of international mail for smuggling and tariff evasion purposes,” Navarro added.
Business impact
The changes have brought confusion and concern to small businesses worldwide that rely on US customers.
UK retailer Liz Nieburg told AFP she had stopped shipping products to US customers while the Royal Mail worked out a system to honor the changes. US buyers form about 20 percent of sales at her online business SocksFox, which sells socks, undergarments and sleepwear.
She sees little choice but to hike prices if new duties are here to stay: “Our margins are too tight to be able to absorb that.”
Cornell University professor Li Chen warned that it takes time for postal services to establish systems for duty collection: “It’s not like there’s a switch you can turn on and turn off.”
“On the consumer side, there will be potential delays, because now all the parcels have to clear customs,” Chen added. Prices may also rise if businesses pass on the tariffs.
He expects the impact on small businesses to be “much greater,” as larger firms can absorb shocks.
Ken Huening, whose California-based business CoverSeal manufactures outdoor protective covers in China and Mexico, has had to eliminate free shipping for customers.
“Textile and manufacturing is not available in the US currently,” Huening said. “It might be in the future, but by that time, we’re all out of business.”
Consumer confusion
“It’s a super confusing time for our customers,” said Haley Massicotte, who runs Canada-based cleaning products company Oak & Willow.
She said US consumers do not always understand how tariffs work, and how they might have to bear added costs. “We are going to do everything in our power to not raise prices,” she stressed.
Similarly, ceramics retailer Sarah Louise Jour in Bangkok is trying to keep shipping costs down after facing issues with Thailand’s postal service, forcing her to tap more expensive services for shipments to US buyers, who constitute some 90 percent of her business.
“I don’t have time to worry, because I have to think about my team,” she said. “I have rent I need to pay for the office.”
While she expects sales to hold up over the holidays, the outlook is murkier afterwards.
US officials maintain that just five percent of duty-free small package shipments arrived via the postal network, while most went through express couriers. However, the monthlong lead time Trump’s order provided has sparked a global frenzy among postal services and businesses.
Massicotte summed up the sentiment among many international small business owners: “This tariff war is just going to hurt the American and the Canadian consumer, especially small business owners.”
ALSO READ: D-Day for world economy as Trump unleashes devastating tariff blitz
