Regulation (EU) 2026/2108, which establishes a new Union Customs Code and the EU Customs Authority, was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 19 September 2026. It replaces Regulation (EU) No 952/2013, the current Union Customs Code.
The regulation entered into force on 20 September 2026 and applies generally from 21 September 2027. Provisions covering distance sales and most EU Customs Authority functions apply from 1 July 2028.
What's Changing
Timeline
- Entry into force: 20 September 2026.
- General application: 21 September 2027. The repeal of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 takes effect on the same date.
- Distance sales provisions, including customs warehouses for distance sales: 1 July 2028.
Union handling fee
- A fixed per-item fee will apply to goods sold in distance sales and released for free circulation.
- A lower fee applies to goods released from a customs warehouse for distance sales.
- The fee is non-refundable. The debtor is the importer for distance sales (the seller or the platform facilitating the sale), and the consumer does not pay it.
- The Commission must set the fee amount by 29 September 2026. The fee applies 10 days after that act enters into force.
Transition to the EU Customs Data Hub
Customs declarations continue under current processes until each group reaches its Data Hub milestone:
- Importers for distance sales and IOSS users: must use the Data Hub from 1 July 2028 for release for free circulation and customs warehousing for distance sales.
- All other importers, exporters and transit holders: continue lodging declarations until 28 February 2031, may use the Data Hub from 1 March 2031, and must use it from 1 March 2034.
Penalties for systematic non-compliance in distance sales
- A systematic infringement carries a penalty of at least 1% and up to 4% of the total value of goods the operator imported into the EU over the preceding 12 months.
- A further infringement within six months raises the range to at least 3% and up to 6%.
- Penalized operators lose AEO or Trust and Check trader status and are classified as high-risk in the Data Hub.
- The Commission will define the control volumes and case thresholds that count as systematic failure by 1 March 2028.
Commission deadlines for delegated and implementing acts
- 29 September 2026: Union handling fee amount
- 1 July 2027: Data Hub rules for the July 2028 e-commerce go-live
- 1 March 2028: Distance sales penalty thresholds
- 1 March 2029: Data Hub rules for optional use from 2031
- 31 January 2033: Data Hub rules for mandatory use from 2034
Review the official text of Regulation (EU) 2026/2108.
What Merchants Should Do Now
Merchants selling into the EU should:
- Watch for the Union handling fee amount, due by 29 September 2026, and add the per-item fee to landed cost calculations once it is set.
- Determine who acts as importer for distance sales for each EU order flow ahead of 1 July 2028.
- Confirm IOSS registration and product data readiness for Data Hub filing from 1 July 2028.
- Review product data, classification and valuation controls, since systematic errors can trigger penalties calculated on 12 months of EU import value.
- Evaluate whether a customs warehouse for distance sales fits your EU model, given its lower handling fee.
- For B2B and non-IOSS imports, plan for optional Data Hub use from March 2031 and mandatory use from March 2034.
FlavorCloud is monitoring the Commission's delegated and implementing acts and will update landed cost and compliance workflows as the handling fee amount and Data Hub specifications are published.