President Donald Trump rode into office preaching that he’d bring prices down “on Day 1,” yet his policies have almost comically worked to do the exact opposite. Now he’s set to deliver the most obnoxious and visible price hike to Americans—and in particular, his core base.
For nearly a century, the de minimis rule has allowed goods valued at $800 or less to enter the United States duty-free. It was designed to streamline trade-in low-value items, spare consumers from customs paperwork, and keep the mail moving. About 1.4 billion packages came into the country under this exemption last year. Starting Friday, that loophole vanishes.
Those lower-cost goods—once waved through without fuss—now carry a crushing new burden.
The numbers are dramatic—subject to a 10-50% tariff depending on origin or a flat fee of $80, $160, or $200 per package. Letters or gifts under $100 are still safe—for now—but everything else from trinkets to T-shirts to cookware is about to cost a lot more, take longer to arrive, or vanish altogether from availability.
Just think about all the stuff you buy on Amazon without ever checking the country of origin.
A FlavorCloud analysis found that $30 cotton slippers from China will now cost $45, a $37 nutritional supplement from Canada will cost $60, and a Japanese chef’s knife formerly priced at $240 will now cost just shy of $300. And if that wasn’t bad enough, returns will now be subject to a second round of tariffs, making them expensive and likely impractical.
The first MAGA rumblings about this surfaced back in April. We all had a good laugh at the Trump voter who was outraged that her $100 shipment of cheap SHEIN crap had a $42 tariff slapped on it.
“Before anyone wants to add their blame Trump for everything bs and say that’s what you get for voting for Donald J. Trump I know what Trump said he said the tariffs would be on China New Mexico and Canada not on American citizens,” she said.
Some people might willfully retain their blinders, but there’s going to be a lot more blaming Trump for everything. And given how much he’s bragged about tariffs being his go-to solution for everything he thinks ails the United States, not even his deepest sycophants will be able to shift away blame.
Remember, Trump was the first Republican to win low-wage earners, while Democrats easily won those who make more than $100,000 per year. Young voters, not knowing any better, also voted for Trump in distressingly large numbers. But who are the two groups most impacted by the elimination of the de minimis exemption? These two, of course—driving a stake deep into the heart of Trump’s job approval ratings, which have already been steadily falling. If there’s one thing voters hate more than higher prices … actually, there’s nothing they hate more.
Postal systems from Germany, France, Mexico, India, Thailand, South Korea, Singapore, New Zealand, Japan, and Australia have already paused or limited U.S. shipments while scrambling to figure out duty collection. What used to be a swift package delivered in days will now be stuck in limbo—delayed, redirected to costlier private couriers, and tagged with extra hidden fees that hit consumers mid-delivery.
Even if the delivery logistics are worked out, consumers will now see a new line item on any potential purchase, labelled “tariff,” that will serve as a constant reminder of Trump’s new tax on their purchases—if they can even afford to place orders in the first place.
And remember, this is just one sliver of the tariff pie, as U.S. consumers and businesses face steep cost hikes on everything else coming from overseas, including the raw materials that even “made in America” products require.
Voters were too stupid to understand what they were voting for as Trump nonsensically promised pain-free tariffs paid by other countries. Now, their education begins.