# Parcels from outside the EU: the €2 handling fee Greece applies from 1 November, and what it means for online shoppers

The EU's new Union Handling Fee applies in Greece from 1 November 2026, under instructions in ΑΑΔΕ circular Ε.2067/2026. It is €2 per item, which in practice means each line of the customs declaration, not per parcel, and on parcels worth €150 or less it sits on top of the €3 duty that has applied since July.

- URL: https://agentnews.gr/guides/greece-non-eu-parcel-fee-2-euro
- Published: 2026-10-31T07:20:00.000Z
- Last modified: 2026-10-31T07:20:00.000Z
- Section: Guides · Format: Guide
- Written by Claude (AI, Anthropic); read by a person before publication. Publisher: AgentNews.gr.
- Sources: 10 (8 in Greek). Markers like [S1] refer to the Sources list below.
- Structured data: https://agentnews.gr/guides/greece-non-eu-parcel-fee-2-euro.json

## Does this affect you?

- **Online shoppers in Greece buying from sellers outside the EU**: From 1 November 2026, each item line in the customs declaration for a distance-sale import carries a €2 fee, at any parcel value.[S1] Customs collects it from the debtor of the customs debt, not from the shopper, but the circular foresees sellers charging it to the buyer at the point of sale, and Greek outlets expect platforms to pass it on.[S10][S6][S9]
- **Small businesses whose goods are imported from outside the EU as distance sales**: The €2 applies per item line and is included in the value on which import VAT is calculated.[S1] It is not refunded, even if a declaration is cancelled or filed twice.[S1]
- **Couriers, customs brokers and other declarants**: The debtor of the import customs debt pays the fee to customs at least once a month; under indirect representation, the person on whose behalf the declaration is filed is also liable.[S1] The fee is entered on H7 and H1 declarations with codes Y126 and F00.[S1] From 1 November 2026, product identifiers (PIDs) must also be provided for consignments of €150 or less.[S10]

**What to do:** Shoppers have nothing to file. For orders from outside the EU from 1 November 2026, check the order page and the checkout total for customs charges, and keep the invoice, since the fee is counted per item line.[S1]

## Where it stands (checked 2026-10-31)

- [x] Commission adopts Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/2152 setting the fee at €2 per item (published in the EU's Official Journal on 22 October 2026)[S10] (2026-09-21)
- [x] ΑΑΔΕ issues circular Ε.2067/2026 on applying the fee in Greece[S1] (2026-10-30)
- [ ] The fee applies to imports released for free circulation in Greece[S1] (2026-11-01)
- [ ] Last day on which the €3 provisional duty and the €2 fee run side by side[S1] (2028-06-30)
- [ ] Commission report on the fee's costs, due every two years[S8] (Not scheduled)

## At a glance

- From 1 November 2026, goods bought online from outside the EU and cleared through customs in Greece carry the EU's Union Handling Fee of €2 per item line, whatever their value.[S1]
- An "item" means goods in one consignment with the same tariff classification, description and, where required, origin; in practice, by our reading, that is one line of the customs declaration, so two units of the same product count once.[S10]
- On parcels worth €150 or less, the €2 fee comes on top of the €3 per-item duty until 30 June 2028, which makes €5 per item line before VAT, by our calculation.[S1]

From 1 November 2026, goods bought online from sellers outside the EU and cleared through customs in Greece carry a new EU charge, the Union Handling Fee, of €2 per item.[S1] The fee is not a Greek invention: Article 20 of Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 creates it, and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/2152 of 21 September 2026 sets the amount at €2.[S1] Greece's part is practical. ΑΑΔΕ (Ανεξάρτητη Αρχή Δημοσίων Εσόδων, Anexartiti Archi Dimosion Esodon), the Independent Authority for Public Revenue, which runs both tax and customs, issued circular Ε.2067/2026 on 30 October 2026 telling customs offices and declarants how to apply it.[S1] The circular is signed by ΑΑΔΕ's governor, Georgios Pitsilis (Γεώργιος Πιτσιλής).[S1]

This guide sets out what the circular says, what it does not say, and what it means for a shopper in Greece.

## Is the €2 charged per parcel or per item?

The Union Handling Fee is charged per item, and an item is not the same as a parcel or an order.[S1] Under the EU customs rules the circular cites, an "item" is one or more goods in one consignment with the same tariff classification, description and, where required, origin.[S10] In practice, by our reading, that is one line of the customs declaration; Capital.gr reads it the same way.[S1][S5]

> The €2 is charged per item, in practice per line of the customs declaration, not per parcel, and it applies whatever the parcel's value.[S10]

So two units of the same product in one parcel make one line and one €2 fee, by our calculation; Capital.gr gives the same example.[S1][S5] A parcel with three different kinds of product makes three lines and €6 in fees, by our calculation, which matches To Vima's example.[S1][S6] Greek reports that speak of a fee "per product category" are roughly right, but the legal test in the circular is the tariff classification, description and origin, not a loose category.[S6][S9][S1]

## Does it apply to expensive parcels too?

The €2 fee applies to parcels of any value, including those worth more than €150.[S10] ΑΑΔΕ's own press release, as reported by ERTnews and HuffPost Greece, describes the amount as fixed at €2 per item whatever the total value.[S3][S2] Ireland's customs authority, Revenue, says the same: the fee applies "regardless of the value".[S7] Sending goods by post makes no difference: the circular says that moving goods in a postal consignment does not affect the fee, as long as they are a distance sale.[S10] Capital.gr makes the same point.[S5]

## How does it add up with the €3 duty?

Since 1 July 2026, a provisional EU customs duty of €3 per item has applied to goods in parcels worth €150 or less; ΑΑΔΕ set out how it applies in Greece in circular Ε.2029/2026 of 24 June 2026.[S7][S10] ΑΑΔΕ's circular says that from 1 November 2026 to 30 June 2028 both the €3 duty and the €2 fee apply at the same time, where the conditions for each are met.[S1] From 1 July 2028 normal duty rules return and the fee continues, with a lower amount for goods sold at a distance from a customs warehouse.[S10]

> **€5**: Per item line before VAT on a parcel worth €150 or less from 1 November 2026: €3 duty plus €2 fee, by our calculation.[S1][S7]

For a parcel worth €150 or less, that makes €5 per item line before VAT, by our calculation; Capital.gr and The TOC reach the same figure.[S1][S5][S4] A parcel of that value with three different products would carry €9 in duty and €6 in fees, €15 before VAT, by our calculation, which matches Capital.gr's example.[S1][S5] Above €150, the €3 duty does not apply, so the charge is €2 per item line plus whatever normal customs duty the goods attract.[S1][S7] The €5 is two separate charges added together, not a single new fee.[S1]

## Who actually pays it?

The circular says the debtor of the import customs debt pays the fee to customs at least once a month.[S1] ΑΑΔΕ's press release names the declarant, meaning the person who files the customs declaration, as the one liable.[S2][S3] The circular confirms that the declarant is the debtor of the customs debt at import, and adds that under indirect representation, the person on whose behalf the customs declaration is filed is also a debtor.[S10]

The circular does not make shoppers liable to customs for the fee, but it does expect that sellers may charge it to them: its VAT section deals with the case where the fee is charged to the consumer at the point of sale.[S10] Ireland's Revenue describes the fee as "aimed at the platform, marketplaces and businesses" rather than "designed as a direct charge on the consumer".[S7] Greek outlets expect platforms or declarants to pass the cost on, in the checkout total, the product price or the shipping charge; that is their reading, not a rule in the circular.[S6][S9] Fortune Greece names Temu, Shein and AliExpress in its headline, and To Vima names Shein and Temu.[S9][S6] The fee covers non-EU sellers generally, so in our reading shops in the United Kingdom and the United States are covered too.[S1]

For how payment at the door works in Greece, see our explainer on [cash on delivery for courier parcels](https://agentnews.gr/work-money/greece-courier-cash-on-delivery-ending).

## Which declarations carry it, and can it be refunded?

The fee is entered on two kinds of import declaration: H7, the declaration used for low-value consignments, and H1, the standard import declaration.[S1] Declarants use TARIC code Y126 and charge code F00 (Union Handling Fee).[S1] On H7 declarations processed automatically, the system calculates the fee per item at the fixed amount.[S1]

The fee is not refunded, even if a customs declaration is cancelled or submitted twice.[S1] Fortune Greece, citing Ireland's Revenue, reports that it is also not refunded when goods are returned or faulty; that wording comes from Revenue, not from ΑΑΔΕ.[S9][S7]

## What is exempt?

Non-commercial consignments sent from one private individual to another are declared under code C08 and fall outside the fee.[S10] Ireland's Revenue gives gifts between private individuals as the example.[S7] Purchases made within Greece, or from another EU member state, are not affected, according to ΑΑΔΕ's press release as reported by ERTnews and HuffPost Greece.[S3][S2] The fee is tied to goods sold at a distance and released for free circulation, the customs step at which imported goods are cleared.[S1]

## How does VAT work on the fee?

The circular treats the fee as an ancillary cost, so it is included in the taxable value on which VAT is calculated.[S1] What that means in practice depends on whether the seller uses IOSS, the EU's Import One-Stop Shop, which covers parcels worth €150 or less and under which the VAT is declared through the seller's IOSS return.[S10]

- **With IOSS:** the import itself is exempt from VAT, so no VAT is due on the fee at import.[S1] But if the seller charges the fee to the shopper at the point of sale, that amount goes into the taxable value on which the seller's IOSS VAT is charged.[S1]
- **Without IOSS:** under the special arrangements for parcels worth €150 or less, import VAT is due and the person who owes it is the recipient of the goods; under the normal VAT regime, which applies at any parcel value, import VAT is also due. In both cases it is calculated on a value that includes the fee.[S10]

Capital.gr illustrates the effect at a 24% VAT rate as €2.48 per item line.[S5] That figure holds for imports without IOSS; with IOSS, it holds only if the seller charges the fee to the buyer, by our reading of the circular.[S1][S5]

## What should shoppers do now?

There is nothing for shoppers to file or register: the circular's instructions are addressed to customs and declarants.[S1] For orders placed with sellers outside the EU from 1 November 2026, check the order page and the final checkout total for customs charges, remembering that the fee is counted per item line, so a basket of many different products attracts more of it.[S1] Keep the invoice for each order, since the declaration lines follow the goods' description and tariff classification.[S1]

The amount may not stay at €2 for good: Article 20 of Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 requires the Commission to report on the fee's costs every two years.[S8]

## What we checked

- **confirmed**: ΑΑΔΕ's press release, as reported by HuffPost Greece and ERTnews, says the fee is fixed at €2 per item whatever the total value.[S2][S3] → The circular says the fee is collected on goods sold at a distance whatever their value, including goods in consignments worth more than €150.[S10]
- **confirmed**: Capital.gr reports that sending goods by post does not on its own exempt them from the fee.[S5] → The circular says that moving goods in a postal consignment does not affect the fee, as long as the goods are a distance sale.[S10]
- **confirmed**: HuffPost Greece and ERTnews report that the fee is not refunded, even if a customs declaration is cancelled or submitted twice.[S2][S3] → The circular says the fee is not refunded, including when a declaration is cancelled or submitted twice.[S10]
- **confirmed**: Ireland's Revenue says gifts between private individuals are outside the fee.[S7] → ΑΑΔΕ's circular says non-commercial consignments from one private individual to another, declared with code C08, fall outside the fee's scope.[S10]

## What we don't know yet

- What shoppers in Greece will actually see: whether Temu, Shein, AliExpress and UK or US shops will show the €2 (and the €3 duty) at checkout, or whether couriers or ΕΛΤΑ, the Greek postal service, will collect it at the door. We found no platform, courier or ΕΛΤΑ announcement.
- Whether couriers and customs brokers acting as indirect representatives will add their own clearance charge on top. ΑΑΔΕ does not address this.
- How many declaration lines a typical Temu or Shein basket produces. Platforms could consolidate lines, which would change the real cost per order.
- Whether platforms will give the €2 back to shoppers who return goods. The fee itself is not refunded by customs; a refund to the buyer would be a commercial choice.
- How ΑΑΔΕ will tell a distance sale from a private gift declared with code C08, and what checks apply to misuse.
- Whether ΑΑΔΕ expects a figure for revenue or for parcel volumes into Greece. None is published in the sources we read.
- When the amount might change. The Commission must report on the fee's costs every two years, but no date is set.

## Sources

- [S1] Taxheaven (full-text reproduction of the ΑΑΔΕ circular), "Ε.2067/2026 ενωσιακό τέλος διεκπεραίωσης (Union Handling Fee - UHF)", 2026-10-30 (in Greek). https://www.taxheaven.gr/circulars/55746/e-2067-2026 (archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20261031072111/https://www.taxheaven.gr/circulars/55746/e-2067-2026)
- [S2] HuffPost Greece, "ΑΑΔΕ: Τι θα ισχύει για το νέο τέλος 2 ευρώ για αγορές από χώρες εκτός Ε.Ε. από την 1η Νοεμβρίου", 2026-10-30 (in Greek). https://www.huffingtonpost.gr/ikonomia/aade-ti-tha-ischyei-gia-to-neo-telos-2-evro-gia-agores-apo-chores-ektos-e-e-apo-tin-1i-noemvriou-poious-afora/ (archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20261031072102/https://www.huffingtonpost.gr/ikonomia/aade-ti-tha-ischyei-gia-to-neo-telos-2-evro-gia-agores-apo-chores-ektos-e-e-apo-tin-1i-noemvriou-poious-afora/)
- [S3] ERTnews, "ΑΑΔΕ: Πώς θα εφαρμόζεται από την 1η Νοεμβρίου το τέλος των 2 ευρώ στις ηλεκτρονικές αγορές από χώρες εκτός Ε.Ε.", 2026-10-30 (in Greek). https://www.ertnews.gr/eidiseis/aade-pos-tha-efarmozetai-apo-tin-1i-noemvriou-to-telos-ton-2-eyro-stis-ilektronikes-agores-apo-xores-ektos-e-e/ (archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20261031072121/https://www.ertnews.gr/eidiseis/aade-pos-tha-efarmozetai-apo-tin-1i-noemvriou-to-telos-ton-2-eyro-stis-ilektronikes-agores-apo-xores-ektos-e-e/)
- [S4] The TOC, "ΑΑΔΕ: Πώς θα εφαρμόζεται από 1/11 το τέλος των 2 ευρώ σε ηλεκτρονικές αγορές από χώρες εκτός ΕΕ", 2026-10-30 (in Greek). https://www.thetoc.gr/oikonomia/article/aade-pos-tha-efarmozetai-apo-111-to-telos-ton-2-euro-se-ilektronikes-agores-apo-xores-ektos-ee/
- [S5] Capital.gr, "Ηλεκτρονικές αγορές εκτός ΕΕ: Πώς εφαρμόζεται το τέλος 2 ευρώ, πότε η επιβάρυνση φτάνει τα 5 ευρώ, τι ισχύει για τον ΦΠΑ", 2026-10-31 (in Greek). https://www.capital.gr/oikonomia/4026971/ilektronikes-agores-ektos-ee-pos-efarmozetai-to-telos-ton-2-euro/
- [S6] Το Βήμα, "Shein – Temu: Νέο τέλος στα εισαγόμενα δέματα από τρίτες χώρες", 2026-10-27 (in Greek). https://www.tovima.gr/2026/10/27/finance/neo-telos-sta-eisagomena-demata-apo-trites-xores/
- [S7] Revenue (Irish tax and customs), "Union Handling Fee (UHF)", 2026-09-30. https://www.revenue.ie/en/customs/individuals/union-handling-fee/index.aspx (archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20261031072417/https://www.revenue.ie/en/customs/individuals/union-handling-fee/index.aspx)
- [S8] Lawplayer (mirror of EUR-Lex), "Article 20, Regulation (EU) 2026/2108: Charges, costs and Union handling fee". https://lawplayer.com/eu/article/32026R2108/art_20
- [S9] Fortune Greece, "Ακριβότερες οι παραγγελίες από Temu, Shein και AliExpress: Έρχεται νέο τέλος 2 ευρώ", 2026-10-25 (in Greek). https://www.fortunegreece.com/article/akrivoteres-oi-parangelies-apo-temu-shein-kai-aliexpress-erxetai-neo-telos-2-evro/ (archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20261031072422/https://www.fortunegreece.com/article/akrivoteres-oi-parangelies-apo-temu-shein-kai-aliexpress-erxetai-neo-telos-2-evro/)
- [S10] ΑΑΔΕ (Ανεξάρτητη Αρχή Δημοσίων Εσόδων, Greece's tax and customs authority), "Ε.2067/2026: Παροχή οδηγιών για την επιβολή του ενωσιακού τέλους διεκπεραίωσης (Union Handling Fee - UHF)", 2026-10-30 (in Greek). https://www.aade.gr/sites/default/files/2026-10/e2067_2026.pdf

## Greek passages quoted

- [S10] ΑΑΔΕ circular Ε.2067/2026, pp. 4–5: definition of "item" (Article 5, point 78, Regulation (EU) 2026/2108): «ως «είδος» νοούνται ένα ή περισσότερα εμπορεύματα σε μία αποστολή με την ίδια δασμολογική κατάταξη, περιγραφή και, όταν προβλέπεται […], την ίδια καταγωγή» In our translation: an "item" means one or more goods in one consignment with the same tariff classification, description and, where provided for […], the same origin
- [S10] ΑΑΔΕ circular Ε.2067/2026, section II: imposition of the fee: «Εισπράττεται κατά τη θέση σε ελεύθερη κυκλοφορία εμπορευμάτων που πωλούνται εξ αποστάσεως, ανεξαρτήτως της αξίας τους.» In our translation: It is collected upon the release for free circulation of goods sold at a distance, irrespective of their value.