Temu has fallen from third to tenth place on the list of Danish consumers’ most-used webshops, and Dansk Industri points to new EU customs charges on low-value parcels as a likely cause.
The Chinese-owned platform has lost significant ground in Denmark over the past year, DR reports, citing figures from Dansk Industri’s E-commerce Tracker distributed by the news agency Ritzau. In the third quarter of 2025, Temu held third place among the webshops Danes used most. In 2026 it sits in tenth.
The same figures show that the German fashion retailer Zalando remains the most-used webshop among Danish consumers. Danish cosmetics chain Matas has taken over the third place that Temu previously held.
The charges behind the drop
Since the summer of 2026, parcels with a value below 150 euros have been subject to a customs duty of three euros per item line, according to DR. Many of those shipments were previously duty free. The change removed the price advantage that very cheap direct-from-China deliveries had over Danish stores.
Mie Bilberg, chief consultant for e-commerce at Dansk Industri, told Ritzau that the new rules are a probable reason for Temu’s decline. She described how a packet of hair elastics could once be ordered directly from China and delivered in Næstved for a couple of kroner. With duty added, she said, the price rises to around 28 kroner, which can make it cheaper to buy the same item in Føtex.
A second charge takes effect this weekend. From November 1, 2026, a handling fee of two euros applies to distance-sale goods imported from outside the EU, according to a document published by the European Commission on October 22, 2026. DR notes that the fee is added per item line on top of the existing duty.
The consultancy PwC stated on October 29, 2026 that the handling fee is meant to cover the cost of customs processing and applies regardless of a parcel’s value. According to PwC, both the three-euro duty and the two-euro fee can apply to a single purchase worth up to 150 euros. That means a small order can carry about five euros in charges before shipping and VAT.
What the new import charges mean for internationals in Denmark
The charges apply to goods entering the EU customs territory, so they hit anyone ordering from outside the bloc to a Danish address. That includes platforms such as Temu and Shein, but also shops in the United Kingdom, the United States and China. Danish import VAT at 25 percent has applied to all such parcels since 2021, regardless of value, and the new duty on orders under 150 euros sits on top of that.
For foreign residents who regularly order items that are hard to find in Danish stores, the practical effect is a higher floor price on every small non-EU parcel. Dansk Industri’s figures suggest many consumers in Denmark have already shifted to shops inside the EU, where the duty and handling fee do not apply. Readers comparing options can factor the charges into a household budget alongside delivery costs, since the fees are levied per item line rather than per order.
Neither DR nor the European Commission document states how long the three-euro duty will remain in place beyond its description as a temporary measure. The handling fee’s start date of November 1, 2026 is confirmed by the Commission. What is not yet known is how the combined charges will affect parcel volumes into Denmark over the coming months, or whether the EU’s wider overhaul of low-value imports will change the amounts.
