Section 321 (de minimis)
Section 321 is the U.S. de minimis exemption that let shipments worth $800 or less enter duty-free with minimal paperwork. It has been suspended for goods from every country since August 29, 2025, and CBP made the suspension indefinite in June 2026.
Section 321 of the Tariff Act of 1930 allowed CBP to admit a shipment valued at $800 or less, imported by one person on one day, free of duty and without a formal entry. It supported a cross-border fulfillment model in which inventory was held in Mexico or Canada and sent into the U.S. as individual low-value shipments.
An executive order suspended the exemption for all countries effective August 29, 2025. On June 24, 2026, CBP published interim final rules suspending it indefinitely for all modes, including international mail, so low-value commercial shipments by truck now need a formal or informal entry and owe applicable duties, taxes and fees. The separate exemptions for bona fide gifts and for travelers' personal articles were not changed. Separately, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act repeals the exemption by law effective July 1, 2027.
What this means when you move freight
If a shipper's model depends on sending low-value orders across the border duty-free, it no longer works as designed. Expect those shipments to be consolidated and entered as ordinary commercial freight, with the customs broker filing an entry for each crossing. Check the current CBP guidance before quoting any de minimis-based move, because the rule has changed several times since 2025.
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