The government wants online stores from outside the EU to pay import tax on all orders coming to the Netherlands. Packages worth up to €150 are currently exempt. The Ministry of Finance has BNR Let us know they want to get rid of this exception.

The move appears to be aimed primarily at Chinese online stores, which benefit greatly from the exemption on cheap packaging. “The problem is that there is no level playing field,” says Jesse Weltevreden, a lecturer in online entrepreneurship at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences.

“Chinese parties do not comply with all European rules, which means that European platforms and e-commerce stores simply suffer from this. This is unfair and that is why it is good that governments are taking action against this.”

According to Weltevreden, there has been a movement for some time to regulate large online stores from outside the EU. “Several measures have already been taken. For example, Timo has already been classified as a V by the European Commission.Big online platform.This means they will have to adhere to certain rules from September.”

These rules apply to platforms with more than 45 million users in the EU and concern, among other things, compliance with fundamental rights such as freedom of expression and children’s rights.

If the plan goes ahead, it remains to be seen whether China’s big online retailers will take notice. “A cable that’s now available online for €2 will soon cost €2.40,” says Jun Lin, an expert on Chinese e-commerce. “But in a Dutch webshop, the same product costs €10 to €15.”

According to him, Western companies can never compete with Chinese e-commerce stores. “The business model of these web stores is more efficient: they connect the consumer directly to the manufacturer. So there is no one in between: no importer, no distributor, no store, no store employee. So you are very close to the source.”

Feltevreden anticipates another problem with the import tax. “If you want to do it right, you have to increase the capacity to implement it. The question is whether that will happen. Otherwise such a measure would be more symbolic than it would have any impact.”

Lin agrees: “It involves a huge amount of small, low-value parcels, which is practically impossible. Customs is not known for having the most innovative IT systems, so this is a losing battle.”

According to Weltevreden, a race with the customer could also arise. “Companies like Amazon and About You in Europe are smelling the hot air of Chinese platforms. That’s why I decided a few weeks ago to He said: We will develop a similar model. But is this the direction we want to go in? Do we want to further boost consumption by competing on price? That’s one. Race to the bottom“It’s good for our wallets in the short term, but bad for the planet.”

Earlier this month, the Financial Times reported that the European Commission wants to impose an import tax on all parcels arriving from outside the EU. But because customs law is regulated at the European level, this would require the agreement of all EU member states. So it remains unclear whether the plan will go ahead.