Hungary collects 11.3 billion forint in customs fees under new EU parcel rule

Hungary’s National Tax and Customs Administration (NAV) reported that in the first nine days after the EU’s new low‑value parcel rule took effect on July 1, more than 3.2 million small packages arrived from outside the Union. During this period NAV processed 10.6 million customs entries and collected over 11.3 billion forint in a flat 3‑euro (approximately 3 EUR) customs fee applied to shipments under €150.

The fee is levied per product category within a parcel, not per package, and 75 % of the revenue is transferred to the EU’s common budget, with the remaining quarter retained by Hungary. Daily averages showed nearly 359 thousand customs declarations, peaking at over 437 thousand in a single day. NAV highlighted that the transition was smooth, with no disruptions to customs handling, thanks to pre‑emptive coordination with postal and courier operators and recent IT upgrades.

The new regime targets parcels ordered from non‑EU online retailers and is intended to simplify customs procedures for low‑value shipments while ensuring revenue for both national and EU budgets.