Marks and Spencer, Next and Primark have joined 12 other UK retailers in urging Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves to impose a £2.60 charge on low-value parcels imported from overseas, arguing the measure would close a customs loophole that benefits Chinese ecommerce groups such as Shein and Temu and could raise at least £1.7 billion for the Treasury.

According to the Financial Times, the retailers sent a letter to ministers last Friday calling for a flat fee on parcels valued below £135, which are currently exempt from import duties and subject to lighter customs checks. The signatories include Marks and Spencer, Next, Primark, Currys and Halfords.

The retailers warned in the letter that the problem was “intensifying through 2026, not 2029” and said there was “an urgent need to act now”. They urged ministers to accelerate customs reforms and deliver “meaningful progress” before the peak 2026 Christmas trading period.

The Financial Times reported that volumes of goods imported under the £135 threshold have tripled in the three years to 2024 to roughly 1.6 million parcels a day, driven largely by rapid growth in direct-to-consumer sales from Chinese online marketplaces. British retailers argue the current regime allows overseas competitors to avoid local taxes and potentially sidestep product safety standards.

The industry intervention comes as the European Union prepares to introduce a temporary €3 charge on low-value ecommerce imports from July for items worth less than €150. Brussels plans a broader overhaul of its customs system from 2028, while the UK government has said its own reforms are unlikely to be fully implemented for another three years.

Retailers told ministers that adopting a charge equivalent to the EU’s €3 fee could generate up to £1.7 billion in additional revenue and reduce the risk of Britain becoming a destination for redirected low-cost imports as other countries tighten customs rules.

The Financial Times reported that the US ended a similar tax exemption last year for parcels valued below $800, prompting Temu to suspend direct shipments from China before resuming them following a trade truce between Washington and Beijing.

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