Suspension of the de minimis administrative exemption for imports $800 or less

Suspension of the de minimis administrative exemption for imports $800 or less personalimportation.org

161 points•burnt-resistor•9 days ago•154 comments•

#x2f #less #suspension #minimis #imports #administrative #exemption #minimis administrative

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/06/24/2026-12...

154 comments

kimos9 days ago

This is actually tragic.

I worked for an online pharmacy in Canada for many years, and it’s fraught and full of grey areas for sure. But so so many Americans count on importing generics to afford their medication. You’re talking several times the price difference for the same pills, life changing amounts of money for older people on fixed incomes with health problems. They will simply not be able to access their medication anymore.

PunchyHamster9 days ago

I'd imagine even with duty added they'd still end up being multiple times cheaper

hexapus9 days ago

Yeah, it would...and yet, they covered that as well with another recent change: Packages from foreign and Canadian online pharmacies will be prohibited from entering the U.S. if the same medication is sold domestically or if the foreign pharmacy targets U.S. buyers.

jojobas9 days ago

Are we talking duties imposed on the generics, or generics imports outright banned?

bayarearefugee9 days ago

goes into effect 12 days before a midterm election that is already starting to look like a blue tsunami.

It's a bold strategy, Cotton. Let's see if it pays off for 'em.

biglyburrito9 days ago

Never interrupt your enemy when they are busy making a mistake.

tremon9 days ago

Never assume your enemy is making a mistake either, unless you possess the gift of perfect knowledge.

ModernMech9 days ago

They are not planning on winning any more elections from here on out, I don't know what other people saw on J6 to make them think that's not the strategy from now on, whenever they lose an election.

sanp9 days ago

Assuming there is no chicanery

adastra229 days ago

midterms are in November?

eli_gottlieb8 days ago

Yes, even-numbered years are Congressional election years and American general elections are held on the first Tuesday in November.

jacobolus9 days ago

"The compliance date for 19 CFR 145.12(a)(2)(v) and (vi) is on October 22, 2026"

mmh00009 days ago

People are downvoting you.

But I'm assuming this was a joke about the conspiracy that midterms will be canceled one way or another due to a "national emergency". Which, sadly, is much more probable than it should be.

parl_match9 days ago

wait until you find out what month is before november lol

cyanydeez9 days ago

you're assuming media gives a lick about doing more than soundbites. The actual affect will be at best, 2 weeks after this is implemented, but probably 2 months while they actually figure out what legal means they can to infer which packages they can safely claim are foreign, along with actual foreign pharmacies giving 2 shits about todays shipping.

Perenti9 days ago

The hoops you poor Americans have to jump through to get affordable health care is ridiculous in what is presented as a developed nation.

solfox9 days ago

The hoops are in place to ensure those at the top continue to get their take.

eli_gottlieb8 days ago

There's a saying that a developed country is not one in which the poor have cars, but in which the rich take public transit (because it's reliable, cheap, and high quality).

We are not a developed country. We are a country that chooses to arrange our economy to give some people power over others, at the cost of overall wealth.

expedition329 days ago

It is deliberate. Americans want the hoops because they hate poor people.

stvltvs8 days ago

And we don't realize that we are the poor just because we can point to poorer people.

Henchman218 days ago

We are a developed nation. Just not a civilized nation. It is incredibly disheartening if you live here to be knee deep in the spectacle. The hate just never ends.

bdangubic9 days ago

you said this as if we were developed nation :)

happyopossum9 days ago

There's nothing in the CBP rule that prohibits importing prescriptions, although there will no longer be a duty exemption for them. The rule is about suspending the 'de minimis' exemption for shipments valued under $800...

hexapus9 days ago

Starting Oct 22, packages from foreign and Canadian online pharmacies will be prohibited from entering the U.S. if the same medication is sold domestically or if the foreign pharmacy targets U.S. buyers.

telotortium9 days ago

Source?

loeg9 days ago

Wasn't that already suspended in, like, 2025?

PaulDavisThe1st9 days ago

SCOTUS ruled that the executive order that included it was illegal. So it went away, even though they never ruled on the specifics of the de minimis system. Now it is back, under a different EO.

yibg9 days ago

I believe it had a phased rollout, which impacts all parcels soon.

dashmeet9 days ago

Now is a good time to mention:

costplusdrugs.com

I have no affiliation. If anyone wants a domestic alternative to low cost pharmaceuticals this is a good one. Also sometimes GoodRx is worth checking out. Don’t hesitate to ask a pharmacist for a discount if you’re not using insurance. Sometimes that is the best price.

thelastgallon9 days ago

https://youtu.be/YvEH8zENOos?si=jROCWiVgT-YBeuI_

Read the full thread on Hacker News →

154 comments

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