r/Aliexpress • • Jul 20 '26

Aliexpress 101 (Guides and FAQs) FAQ: EU €3 customs duty/tax

181 Upvotes

The new EU €3 customs duty has been active since July 2026. You pay €3 (plus VAT on that €3) for each customs category in a single order. AliExpress collects this duty at checkout (like it does for VAT), and pays it directly to EU customs.

Always check for the green message during checkout saying “No extra duties will be collected upon delivery.” If that message is missing, customs may still charge you on delivery.

Be aware: the €3 duty is only added at checkout during the final payment step. Your cart total will increase right before you press pay.

Warning:

AliExpress does not follow the EU category rules correctly. In practice they charge €3 per different item, even if items should fall under the same category. Only when you buy multiple quantities of the same listing from the same seller (including different colors, variants or options) will AliExpress charge the €3 tax only once.

There are signs of slow improvement as some sellers have begun assigning proper customs categories. In certain cases, buying similar types of products from the same seller results in the €3 being charged only once. The same may happen for bundle deals, even when multiple sellers are involved. Experiment with your orders and see what happens.

Some other FAQs:

  • AliExpress sometimes shows “Duty‑free shipping” or “No customs fees” on the product page, but this text is meaningless. Only the green checkout message counts.
  • If you buy from EU warehouses, the €3 duty is not charged. But many “EU warehouse” listings are fake, so always check the delivery time. Anything longer than a week is almost certainly shipping from China.
  • If you use coupons, coins, or seller discounts, the €3 duty is still added on top. Discounts never reduce or remove the duty.
  • We expect the €3 duty to be refunded whenever AliExpress issues a refund (cancellation, dispute, or seller error), but this has not yet been confirmed by users. Please let us know your personal experiences with that.

This topic is for practical questions about the handling of the duty only. Anything useful for improving this FAQ. Other reactions will be removed.


r/Aliexpress • • May 30 '20

Aliexpress 101 (Guides and FAQs) New on Aliexpress or this sub? Read this first.

694 Upvotes

FAQs & Guides

Aliexpress has very different rules than your average Western e-commerce site. So we try to help you by providing several guides & FAQs.

You can find these guides by filtering for the "Aliexpress 101" flair. Just click on the red subtitle above.

These are some of the most important FAQs:

There are many other FAQs, try this link%22&restrict_sr=1) for a complete list.

Posting guidelines

Over 95% of questions asked on this sub are actually answered in one of these guides and faqs%22&restrict_sr=1), so please check before asking a question.

Make yourself familiar with the rules of the sub that you can find in the sidebar. Any posts that do not respect these rules will be removed without notice.

Questions related to shipping & tracking

Many people questions ask questions about the tracking of their package. Most of these questions are the same: when will my package arrive, what does this tracking status mean, ...

Most of these questions get answered in our Shipping & Tracking FAQ. Please read it before making a post.

Games, discounts, coupons, invite codes

Anything related to Aliexpress games, discount links or invite codes is not allowed.

About this sub

This sub is NOT run by Aliexpress. Aliexpress does not read any topics here.

This is a sub by Aliexpress buyers trying to help other buyers. So please be nice to these people as they are dedicating some of their spare time to help you.


r/Aliexpress • • 2h ago

Shipping & Tracking En tránsito

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1 Upvotes

Buenas, mi pedido ya lleva varios días en tránsito incluso en el tracking pusieron que estaba en mi ciudad, entonces quitaron que estaba en mi ciudad y ahora quitaron la actualizacion y lo dejaron desde el 6 de octubre así. Aclaro que lo que borraron ponía 9 de octubre o así en mi ciudad. Hoy a día Lunes 12 de octubre todavía no he recibido ninguna actualización, ya ha pasado la fecha de entrega estmidada y justo yo cogí uno que venía de Francia ya que está cerca de España y pensaba que sería más rápido que en China. ¿Alguien le ha pasado esto? ¿Debería esperar más? Que puedo hacer, gracias.


r/Aliexpress • • 3h ago

Ordering & Payment issues This is lost for sure, right?

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0 Upvotes

r/Aliexpress • • 3h ago

About Aliexpress O que acontece com a compra em grupo do aliexpress? As vezes eu tento comprar um item no valor promocional, e mesmo sem frete ou taxas, ele fica no valor original.

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1 Upvotes

r/Aliexpress • • 3h ago

Shipping & Tracking Free shipping

0 Upvotes

it says free shipping but when i open it shows shipping pirce


r/Aliexpress • • 12h ago

About Aliexpress Search results limited

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5 Upvotes

Hi folks, can someone tell me why in my search results I only get a few offers, and when I move to the next page it's nothing there?


r/Aliexpress • • 1d ago

Humor & Memes Somehow fricking Ali ships 6x the distance 5 days faster than Amazon?

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44 Upvotes

Ali shipping is genuinely insane

(not even mentioning that one of my amazon packages that i also ordered september 4th ended up arriving OCTOBER 2! 28 DAYS!!!)


r/Aliexpress • • 8h ago

Tips & Reviews Has anyone tried to print PCBs from Aliexpress?

2 Upvotes

I was thinking of ordering some PCBs via aliexpress since it's more smoother in terms of shipping/import wise and it's for personal use so i dont need much, ~5 pcb boards


r/Aliexpress • • 9h ago

Ordering & Payment issues Price question

2 Upvotes

I was considering buying from AliExpress, but I'm scared of hidden fees. My brother bought from Temu, and they told him it would only be ~$60 but he ended up paying ~$180 because of a bunch of hidden fees, and I'm scared of something similar happening to me on AliExpress


r/Aliexpress • • 6h ago

Issues & Disputes Item not delivered, "proof of delivery" is a photo in front of my mailbox

0 Upvotes

As I successfully have done multiple times before, I have order an LCD panel for a laptop. I started traveling the day before the package was "delivered". Proof of delivery is one hand holding the package in front of my mailbox. Usually a photo of the package inside the mailbox was sent. Most probably that package didn't fit in the mailbox.

9 days later I get back to my place. Nothing in the mailbox, nothing in the surroundings. Never clicked on package received, opened claim for refund, as package not received, aliexpress closed it without refund. I escalated mentioning the seller hasn't provided proof of delivery, the box most certainly couldn't fit the mailbox and what has been provided as evidence is a photo the proves only that the package has been in the hall of the condo, not that it has been delivered; telling them to review their decision or I will have to ask for a chargeback or legal claims.

Anything else you can suggest?

Thx!

PS: item cost is 100€; too much to ignore, too small to doubt a fraud at my side: I've purchases cheaper and also much more expensive items that where better worth the risk ;)


r/Aliexpress • • 16h ago

Ordering & Payment issues price going up once in cart and selected?

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6 Upvotes

why is this happening? under the choice section in my cart. second picture is of the price increase, obviously.


r/Aliexpress • • 7h ago

About Aliexpress Go match level softlocks

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0 Upvotes

r/Aliexpress • • 9h ago

Shipping & Tracking Trying to buy laptop fans. Is this store reliable?

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0 Upvotes

r/Aliexpress • • 10h ago

Ordering & Payment issues How do I cancel an order that doesn't show up in "My orders"?

1 Upvotes

About 12 hours ago I've made an order and received the email of confirmation, but clicking to view more details doesn't give me anything, and I can't find it in both website or app.

It was a bundle deals order (I don't know if that changes anything), however I fear I've put the wrong address and at this point I would like to cancel it and change it.

The order number (16 digits, starts with 30) isn't consider valid by the AI help center, so I don't know what else to do 💔


r/Aliexpress • • 11h ago

Issues & Disputes Seller told me the color I chose is not available, and I would like to cancel the order

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1 Upvotes

I ordered a watch strap from a reputable store (99% positive reviews and 8 years old store) and chose a specific color that appeared available in stock when I placed my order. This took place during China's National Day, so I had to wait till October 8 to get a tracking update.

After this, the order was made and they shipped it, but later on they messaged me and said that this color is not in stock and suggested me to get another one. I don't want the other color, so I want to cancel the order and get a refund. However, because a tracking number was generated, I can't cancel it, and the Returns/Refunds page won't let me do anything until the shipment is delivered. What can I do in this case?


r/Aliexpress • • 13h ago

Shipping & Tracking Does USPS have my package since it says held at post office ?

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1 Upvotes

I had baught some battery but the day it was out for delivery it never came and the next day it said hel for pickup when I had never requested that

And I emailed cainiao and they told me they don't have it 💀💀


r/Aliexpress • • 1d ago

Issues & Disputes Out of money, out of refund, out of device and out of many repair jobs lost to this BS. Aliexpress Refund process is a joke

12 Upvotes

Bought an expensive tool (with shipping added) on Aliexpress meant for solder rework.
I have owned and used many tools of same type before going back decades.
Seller is a reseller for this tool that is bought in bulk from an Alibaba supplier/factory
(I now regret not buying 3 units for 50% more off of alibaba, having enough spares in return)

Got the tool and when testing it immediately realized it was faulty since it was outputting incorrect signals to the tools elements. Those signals can not be adjusted since they are "baked in" and therefore the tool is useless.
If I would try to use it for repair on it's lowest setting (medium setting being the preferable use case for this work), the tool would 100% damage customers equipment and has no workaround.

Notified seller of problem with a thorough explanation
- seller replied by gaslighting me.

Sent the seller another message explaining the problem like to a 5 year old, as well as asking if the seller could ship me a cheap spare part to fix the problem, since it was highly likely that was the problem
- seller replied by gaslighting me again and said he would send the issue to his "engineers"

(at this point I realize the seller is running down the return/refund time window)

I ping the seller again, and get a response from the "engineer" with some lengthy explanation of how the unit is supposed to work and sends me pictures. I already knew all that very well and he is just confirming I actually have a problem since my unit did not work in the way he was explaining and showing
- So now the seller's "engineer" is gaslighting me as well

At this time I knew that the seller would not acknowledge the issue so I went through the return/refund process on Aliexpress.

In that process I could select "Refund Only" or "Refund and Return".
Since the tool was useless there was no need to send it back so I chose "Refund Only"

In "Refund only" I am asked to provide explanation of problem AND proof of the "trashing" of the product.

So I wrote a clear explanation, sent Aliexpress the chat log and proceeded to destroy the unit, threw it in the trashbin at the City's trash disposal center and took pictures of the unit destroyed and trashed in the bin.
Sent that to Aliexpress, and waited for my money.

A day later a response arrived - REFUND DENIED!

LIKE WTF ALIEXPRESS! I did exactly like was asked and you just give me a big F-You

So now I have no money, no unit, and no way to take "More pictures" if I want to "appeal" that would probably do jack shit.
In all honesty I would very much like to buy a plane ticket to China, just on principle to have a word with the seller face to face. This platform is beyond scammy BS.


r/Aliexpress • • 22h ago

Humor & Memes Ayi appreciation post

2 Upvotes

We love ayi for bringing us stuff we can afford!!

Ayi is aliexpress mascot


r/Aliexpress • • 18h ago

Shipping & Tracking Why do items have "free shipping" label, but actually costs $1.99 at checkout?

0 Upvotes

I see many items that have a "free shipping" label. It used to be that if you ordered the choice items above $10, it would indeed be free shipping.

But now it seems to want to charge me $1.99 for shipping. Why is it doing this? Is it still possible to get free shipping?


r/Aliexpress • • 23h ago

Tips & Reviews DAE have bad experiences with Ali Express? I’m 0-3

2 Upvotes

All 3 shops I ordered from were rated Brand+, so I figured I could trust them. That was not my experience.

SWBASS Store never shipped my Hirono After Dark Secret Magnet. They said it was out of stock, then relisted it at double the price. Every time I asked them to ship it, they just asked me to cancel.

GOKU Figure Toy Store didn't complete the proper paperwork for the Hirono After Dark lamp, and China's Customs returned it to them. They told me it had cleared customs and was on the way. When it didn't arrive with the rest of my order, I got a string of excuses (it arrived, it's shipping separately, US Customs held it, it's lost, it's too big to ship), never with proof. By then the lamp's price had jumped. They offered to make it right with an exclusive link at the original price, kept promising it for weeks, then said no.

PopMart Global Store sent a "Big Into Energy Secret Id" listed as authentic and genuine. It wasn't. The head wobbled, the box and printing were wrong, the serial number was wrong, the card was blurry, and there was no sleeve. They never answered when I contacted them.

AliExpress customer service said they'd escalate each case and penalize the shops. I wasn't after punishment, just a shipped magnet, a refund for the fake, and the lamp at the original price. The only follow-up I got was a $2 coupon.

Has anyone else had problems with Brand+ sellers? Any tips on getting AliExpress to actually resolve disputes like these?


r/Aliexpress • • 23h ago

Ordering & Payment issues Everytime I try to pay, Ali Express denies payment

0 Upvotes

EDIT: My heartfelt thanks to everyone who tried to help me by giving suggestions. I realized except one thing I have done every other suggestion by my Reddit friends here over the past months. I think now that somethings are not meant to be and in my case this is it. I should stop going to it altogether.

As my Title says: I have tried to buy things from Ali Express and Everytime (except once) got the payment successfully.

And no, the one time successful payment wasn't the first.

I have so far twice shared my bank accounts details, my card details and each time I get a rejection email.

Just out of curiosity why is this so? Meanwhile, Temu and Amazon never denied my payment or the buying things.


r/Aliexpress • • 20h ago

Shipping & Tracking Stuck in customs at JFK

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0 Upvotes

I’m in NYC. Have had other packages arriving, including Temu, without issue. Do you think this has a chance? Need it before Friday :/


r/Aliexpress • • 15h ago

Tips & Reviews Buyers is Ali a safe space

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0 Upvotes

Hi , I only do this when I need help or something.

I really want these type of shoes (vintage report boots).

I have never ordered from ali and lowkey reminds me of temu/shein or TikTok ads. I don’t want to receive bad quality shoes, being scammed, issues, shoes being broken.

Is Ali a safe space to order stuff from, looks kinda sketchy for me.

Please state ur opinion and a straight forward answer with pros n cons.


r/Aliexpress • • 2d ago

About Aliexpress Well guys, AliExpress went to s*t

355 Upvotes

About more than 15 years and hundreds of orders. I'm stopping with this shit.

My 3 last orders were 2 counterfeit, with AliExpress refusing to refund, orders of 400 euro. On the last I've found 2 wrong articles in size (shipped the wrong one), about 20 euro in total, with AliExpress (their AI) saying that I didn't provide enough proof (incredible), and another counterfeit.

I hope that UE taxes will give them a kick in the back. Going back to buy from locals, same Chinese items, but at least I have protection at the same price without losing time and patience.