Australia Post halts transit shipping to US as ‘chaotic’ Trump tariff deadline looms

Australia Post is suspending some forms of shipping to the United States as a Trump administration tariff deadline creates “chaos” for postal networks and retailers globally.

The development means goods from other countries will no longer be able to be shipped to the US via Australia, a method known as “transit” shipping.

Australia Post’s suspension comes as low-value goods imported into the US face additional tariffs from next week.

Until now, parcels of goods from Australia worth less than $US800 ($1,200) were not taxed when they arrived in the US, under what was known as the “de minimis” exemption.

The tax exemption is due to end on August 29 for imports from all countries globally, with parcels to be slugged with tariffs or flat fees.

‘Chaotic’ moment for global postal services

The decision — formalised in an executive order on July 30 — has caught many postal operators globally off guard.

Kate Muth, who leads the US-based trade association, International Mailers Advisory Group (IMAG), said many of its members are confused about how to collect the duties set to come into play from next week.

“It’s a bit chaotic here,” she told ABC News from Washington, DC.

Australia Post is one of the global postal carriers that has elected to suspend transit mail to the US as it grapples with changes.

“[Transit mail] is where a postal operator in one country will use the services of another postal operator to send it on to the final destination,” Ms Muth explained.

“For example, maybe the Philippines post uses Australia Post to send mail to the United States because Philippines has low volumes or infrequent flights.”

The government-owned entity has not confirmed how many nations use Australia for transit mail, or what volume it handles for other countries, ultimately destined for the US.

Uncertainty around collection of tariffs

ABC News has sighted an “emergency information” letter from the United Nations’ specialised postal agency informing members globally about Australia Post’s decision.

“This measure will take effect on 20 August 2025,” the letter read.

The uncertainty with postage has also created chaos for Australian e-commerce retailers, with one Brisbane based brand, Apéro, deciding to halt shipping to the US this week.

“The volatility in decision making, and the volatility of the market, and, quite frankly, the lack of ability of even Australia Post to be able to address these issues in a timely manner, puts us, and all of Australian fashion, in a really precarious position,” Apéro co-founder Laz Smith told ABC News this week.

IMAG’s Ms Muth said the overarching concern is that many postal carriers are not set up to “collect and remit” the duties specified by Donald Trump’s executive order.

“Australian Post is not set up to do that … they obviously have to work with either an airline carrier who is willing to do [this], and we have not heard of any airline carrier that’s willing to,” she said.

Several postal carriers globally have already gone one step further ahead of August 29 and suspended shipping to the US entirely.

They include Bpost — a logistics company based in Brussels — and several others in Europe.

PostNord — which services Sweden and Denmark — has additionally axed shipments to Puerto Rico.

“Letters without goods will not be affected,” PostNord’s announcement said. “Customers and partners will be kept updated and informed.”

Australia Post would not confirm whether it is poised to halt US shipments entirely.

Australia Post has sent updates to merchant retailers and uploaded information about the end of de minimis on its website.

“Australia Post is investigating paying duties and taxes through an approved third-party platform provider on behalf of our merchants,” it wrote to merchants on Monday.

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