India Suspends Postal Services to US Following New Customs and Tariff Regime

A sudden and poorly communicated change in United States customs policy triggered a significant disruption in international trade, culminating in India's Department of Posts announcing the temporary suspension of most postal services to the U.S. effective August 25. The suspension, which excludes letters, documents, and gift items valued up to $100, was a direct consequence of a new U.S. trade directive and the subsequent logistical chaos it created. The precipitating event was the issuance of U.S. Executive Order No. 14324 on July 30, 2025. This order unilaterally withdrew the long-standing de minimis exemption, which had allowed goods valued up to $800 to enter the U.S. without being subject to customs duties. Under the new policy, virtually all goods shipped to the U.S. would be subject to tariffs. The executive order also placed a new and immediate burden on transport carriers and other "qualified parties" to collect and remit these duties to U.S. authorities. 

However, the U.S. government failed to provide the necessary regulatory framework for compliance. While U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued preliminary guidelines on August 15, critical implementation details, such as the process for carriers to become designated as "qualified parties" for duty collection and the technical systems required to do so, were not finalized. Faced with new legal obligations but no clear or technically feasible way to meet them, air carriers responsible for transporting international mail to the U.S. informed India's postal service that they could no longer accept consignments after August 25, citing a lack of operational preparedness. This forced India's hand, leading to the service suspension not as a retaliatory trade measure, but as a matter of logistical necessity. This customs policy change does not exist in a vacuum. It is part of a broader, more aggressive, and protectionist U.S. trade posture. 

During the same month, the Trump administration imposed an additional 25% tariff on imports from India, citing India's continued purchase of Russian oil. This new tariff was stacked on top of a pre-existing 25% reciprocal tariff that had taken effect earlier in August. Furthermore, U.S. officials have signaled a potential redefinition of "transshipment," suggesting that goods with more than 30% content from a third country like China could be hit with a 40% tariff, even if they underwent substantial transformation elsewhere. This would represent a major departure from traditional country-of-origin rules and create immense compliance uncertainty for global manufacturers. 

Source: Times of India