DHL Halts $800-Plus Orders to US Consumers Amid Tariff Pressures

DHL is suspending shipments valued at more than $800 to U.S. consumers.

The new policy, flagged in a report by the Financial Times (FT) Sunday (April 20), is set to go into effect Monday (April 21), in response to regulatory changes by U.S. customs.

According to the report, the pause is due to new customs rules — instituted when new U.S tariffs went into effect on April 5 — requiring formal entry processing on all shipments worth more than $800, down from $2,500. DHL said it is not suspending business-to-business shipping, though those shipments could be delayed.

The FT noted that the Germany-based DHL is the first major commercial logistics provider to take action in response to the U.S. tariffs.

The move “could be a sign that the global trading system is starting to break,” John Manners Bell, chief executive of consultancy TI Insight, told the news outlet.

“This could become a major trend as postal offices and commercial carriers struggle to cope with the weight of tariffs and bureaucratic burdens placed on them,” he said. “The changes will have real implications for the international eCommerce industry, affecting many millions of parcels that flow every day to U.S. importers, inevitably raising costs for U.S. consumers.”

Meanwhile, PYMNTS wrote recently about efforts by retail giants such as Walmart and Amazon to make pricing and procurement decisions based on the tariffs.

Amazon, for example, is surveying its third-party sellers to determine the effect of tariffs on their businesses. CEO Andy Jassy has acknowledged that shoppers could bear the brunt of these costs, as merchants recalibrate to safeguard their margins.

These pressures impact the eCommerce spectrum. Fast-fashion platforms Shein and Temu are planning to raise U.S. prices after the removal of the de minimis exemption, which had allowed them to avoid certain import duties. Other businesses are introducing explicit fees to offset new costs.

“This changing economic landscape is driving innovation in payments, where the mandate is clear: reduce friction and preserve value for both merchants and consumers,” PYMNTS wrote.

Recent research from PYMNTS Intelligence shows that more than half of U.S. consumers now prefer digital wallets more than traditional payment methods — a trend that shows no indication of slowing down.

“As inflation and trade policy reshape pricing strategies, seamless digital payments are becoming an essential buffer, helping to maintain customer satisfaction even as costs rise,” the report added.