UN says 25 countries halt postal services to US in response to tariffs

At least 25 countries have suspended package deliveries to the United States amid growing concern over President Donald Trump’s new tariff measures, the UN’s Universal Postal Union (UPU) said Tuesday.

The Trump administration announced last month that it would scrap a tax exemption on small packages entering the US starting August 29, triggering a wave of responses from postal operators in France, Britain, Germany, Italy, India, Australia, Japan, and others, which said most US-bound parcels would no longer be accepted.

The UPU confirmed it had been formally notified by 25 member states that their postal services have suspended outbound shipments to the US, citing uncertainty over how transit arrangements will be handled. The suspensions will remain until Washington clarifies how the new rules will be implemented. The agency did not disclose the names of all countries involved.

Major operational changes
The UPU, which represents 192 member states, warned that the new US measures would force “considerable operational changes” across the global postal network. Starting Friday, postal operators sending packages to the US will be required to collect customs duties upfront on behalf of US Customs and Border Protection.

India’s communications ministry noted that while Trump’s executive order requires carriers or other approved “qualified parties” to handle duty collection and remittance, critical details on how this system will function remain undefined.

Under the new policy, individuals may still send documents and gifts worth up to $100 duty-free, but shipments exceeding that threshold will face tariff rates equal to those applied to other imports from the sender’s country—15% for the EU and 50% for India. Germany’s DHL also warned that even exempted items could face stricter checks to prevent misuse for commercial trade.

Seeking sustainable solutions
The UPU said it is working to prepare member countries for the disruption and has raised concerns with Washington, with Director-General Masahiko Metoki writing to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday. The union highlighted the short implementation timeline and warned of potential setbacks to cross-border e-commerce.

It added that discussions are ongoing with US authorities to clarify operational requirements and that parallel efforts with postal stakeholders aim to build long-term mechanisms for efficient duty collection and remittance across the global network.