PHLPost halts mail, parcel services to US

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Postal Corp. (PHLPost) has suspended all mail and parcel services from the Philippines to the United States, citing new US customs rules that ended its long-standing duty-free exemption on low-value goods.

The halt, announced in an advisory posted on social media Tuesday, September 2, applies to all postal items bound for the US that were accepted beginning August 22. 

Customers who lodged shipments during this period may request retrieval and refunds by submitting the required documents, PHLPost said.

PHLPost said the suspension of its US-bound services is intended to prevent “service delays and customer inconvenience” while it aligns with the new customs rules. It has not announced a timeline for resuming the services.

The move follows Washington’s decision to permanently end the “de minimis” exemption, which had allowed goods worth $800 or less to enter the US without duties. 

The exemption was scrapped under an executive order by US President Donald Trump, who described it as a loophole exploited for tariff evasion and drug trafficking. The policy took effect last week.

To ease the transition, postal shippers are being given six months to apply a flat duty per package.

Swiss Post, Japan Post, and postal services in Australia, India, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and several European countries have also suspended shipments to the US.