The large-scale EU-wide customs control operation published in early January makes one thing clear: a significant proportion of e-commerce goods shipped directly from third countries to EU consumers do not comply with European product and safety standards. Shipments from China are particularly affected. “These figures are not a one-off anomaly – they reflect a structural problem,” says Rico Back, Managing Partner of SKR AG. “European customs authorities are facing import volumes that cannot be handled with traditional control mechanisms.”
The results of the EU-wide customs control operation, which was carried out in cooperation with national market surveillance authorities, confirm this assessment. Of the approximately 20,000 toys and small electronic items inspected, more than half did not comply with applicable EU product regulations. A selection of these products was also tested for safety in laboratories – 84 per cent of the items tested were classified as dangerous.
Over 12 million parcels flood the EU every day
Since 2022, the volume of small consignments shipped to the EU has doubled every year. In 2024 alone, 4.6 billion parcels were imported into the EU market, with over 90 per cent of the goods originating from China.
This growth continued in July 2025, with a further increase of 36 per cent compared to the same month last year. Online platforms are driving this development, particularly providers such as Temu and Shein.
At the same time, only around 0.008 per cent of all consignments are inspected across the EU. That is equivalent to 82 items per million products cleared. “With millions of shipments arriving every day, customs can only conduct spot checks,” Rico Back says. “The issue is not a lack of will on the part of the authorities – it’s a trade and logistics system that is growing faster than any inspection capacity.”
The sharp rise in rejection figures also underscores this development: in 2024, 48,139 items from China were rejected – an increase of 180 per cent compared to 2022. “These numbers clearly show that the existing system structurally cannot keep pace with the dynamics of online retail,” Rico Back adds.
3-euro customs duty does not alleviate the core problem
From 1 July 2026, the EU intends to end the current customs exemption for shipments under €150 and introduce a flat-rate customs duty of €3 on small parcels. From SKR AG’s perspective, however, this measure does not address the underlying issue.
“This amount is too low to materially change the business models of major platforms, and it doesn’t solve a single inspection problem,” Rico Back says. “Platforms will adapt – with container imports, centralized customs clearance, EU warehouses, and local delivery. The structures will change, but the volumes will remain.”
According to SKR AG, the current EU customs control campaign makes it clear that this is not a matter of tougher individual measures, but a fundamental systemic issue.
“The key question is not whether we physically inspect more or introduce new levies,” Rico Back says. “It is how product safety and fair competition can be enforced in a market built around millions of import parcels every day. As long as that question remains unanswered, even well-intentioned measures will be piecemeal.”
Product safety needs a system, not symbolism
As long as product safety and fair competition are to be enforced in a system that handles millions of import shipments every day, traditional control mechanisms will inevitably reach their limits.
A structural overhaul would therefore be an obvious solution – for example, in the form of a uniform digital customs platform for the entire EU. On such a platform, all e-commerce shipments would have to be reported before they arrive in Europe. Platforms would be required to provide standardised information on the product, manufacturer, origin, responsible company in the EU, and conformity and safety certificates. Customs authorities, market surveillance and product safety agencies would be able to access the same database across Europe – instead of working in 27 separate national systems, as is currently the case.
“As long as the EU clings to the illusion that product safety can be checked parcel by parcel, there will be neither fair competition nor effective consumer protection,” Back says. “Without structural reform, any measure will remain purely cosmetic.”
