IMPORT GUIDE

The New EU Customs Code and the Digital Product Passport: What Regulation 2026/2108 Changes for Fashion Importers

Published 03.10.2026 · Updated 20.10.2026 · Reading time ~12 min · by Lior Gabriel Graetz · LG Fashion Labs

On 19 September 2026 the EU published a new Union Customs Code: Regulation (EU) 2026/2108, which also sets up an EU Customs Authority and an EU Customs Data Hub and repeals the current Code, Regulation (EU) No 952/2013. It entered into force on 20 September 2026 and applies in general from 21 September 2027; some parts already apply, others are phased in up to 2034.

The new Code names the Digital Product Passport (DPP) only once, in its recitals. The check that ties a passport to the border is still Article 15 of the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), explained in our customs guide. What the new Code changes is the customs framework around that check: who counts as the importer, what that importer must ensure, which data customs needs before releasing goods, and how registry-based checks connect to customs systems. This guide covers those changes, and the rules for low-value e-commerce parcels that already apply, using only the EU's own legal texts and Commission pages.

21 Sep 2027

General date of application of the new Union Customs Code, Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 (Article 287(2)). It entered into force on 20 September 2026.

Art. 27(2)(c)

From 21 September 2027, the importer must ensure that goods entering the EU comply with the "other legislation" customs applies, and keep records of that compliance.

1 Jul 2028

From this date, importers for distance sales must provide their data through the new EU Customs Data Hub (Article 285(2)).

1. What the new Code is — and where the DPP appears

Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 of 16 September 2026 establishes the Union Customs Code, the European Union Customs Authority, based in Lille, and the rules and governance framework for the EU Customs Data Hub (Articles 1(1) and 230). It was published in the Official Journal on 19 September 2026, entered into force the following day and applies from 21 September 2027 (Article 287(1) and (2)). The repeal of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 in Article 284 takes effect on that general date; from then, references to the old Code are to be read as references to the new one.

That reference rule matters for the DPP. ESPR Article 15(4) lets customs use passport and registry data for "risk management, customs controls and release for free circulation in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 952/2013" — from 21 September 2027, that link runs through the new Code.

The Code's only mention of the passport is recital 5, which explains why the customs mission is widening to non-financial requirements such as safety, sustainability and the environment: "New tools, such as the digital product passport established by Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 … are to be introduced to ensure that other legislation applied by the customs authorities, as defined in this Regulation, related to products continues to respond to those expectations." Article 2 writes the wider role into the customs mission: customs authorities "shall contribute to ensuring the safety and security of the Union and its residents and to the protection of human, animal and plant health and life, consumers and the environment", as well as other public interests protected by the other legislation they apply.

What the new Code does not do

It does not create a DPP obligation, and it does not define the passport check at the border. Whether a product needs a passport depends on an ESPR delegated act for its product group. No adoption date has been fixed for the textile (apparel) delegated act. The Commission's first ESPR Working Plan (April 2025) gives 2027 as the indicative year; its Digital Product Passport pages list adoption for Q3–Q4 2027 (DPP timeline, together with aluminium and tyres) and for Q4 2027 (textile-apparel page), both marked indicative. Under ESPR Article 4(4) a delegated act applies no earlier than 18 months after it enters into force, except in duly justified cases. The border check itself is ESPR Article 15.

2. The importer's new compliance duty

The Code defines the importer in two ways (Article 5, point (13)). In distance sales — essentially sales of goods dispatched from outside the EU to consumers in the EU, as defined in Article 14(4), point (2), of the VAT Directive (point (15)) — it is the "importer for distance sales": either the person supplying the goods or the person facilitating the sale (point (14)); the Commission's reform page names online platforms and sellers. Sales to ordinary VAT-registered businesses, such as most wholesale shipments to EU retailers, are not distance sales in this sense. In all other cases it is, in this order, the person who has the power to decide and has decided that goods from a third country are to be brought into the EU, a person who has taken over that power, a succeeding person who has the power to decide and has decided to have the goods placed under a customs procedure, the carrier, or the holder of the goods.

Article 27(2) then lists what the importer must do. Besides providing the required data before release and ensuring payment of duties, point (c) adds a compliance duty: the importer shall "ensure that the goods entering the customs territory of the Union comply with relevant other legislation applied by the customs authorities and provide or make available and keep appropriate records of such compliance". The importer must also be established in the EU, unless an exception in Article 27(3) applies — for example, where it is represented by an indirect representative established in the EU. An indirect representative acting for an importer established outside the EU "shall be considered to be the importer for the purposes of Article 27(2)" (Article 33(3)), so the compliance duty sits with that representative.

The Code defines "other legislation applied by the customs authorities" as legislation other than customs legislation applicable to goods entering, exiting or passing through the EU, "or to goods to be placed on the Union market, in the implementation of which the customs authorities are involved" (Article 5, point (3)). The Commission must draw up, regularly update and publish an integrated list of the Union acts that set requirements for goods subject to customs controls (Article 269(3)).

On the wording of that definition, ESPR fits it for products covered by an ESPR delegated act, because ESPR Article 15 involves customs in their release; the integrated list the Commission must publish under Article 269(3) will show whether it reads the definition the same way. For garments, Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 — under which customs or other designated authorities control products entering the EU market (Article 25) — already lists the REACH Regulation and the Textile Labelling Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 in its Annex I. On that reading, Article 27(2)(c) can reach garments from 21 September 2027 through rules that already apply to them, well before any textile DPP requirement can.

Two different importers

ESPR defines an importer as "any natural or legal person established in the Union that places a product from a third country on the Union market" (Article 2(44)). The Customs Code's importer is a customs role, set by who decides to bring the goods in or, in distance sales, by who sells or facilitates the sale. The same company can hold both roles, but it does not have to: a non-EU brand selling from its own webshop to EU consumers is, under the Code, the importer for distance sales, yet it cannot be an ESPR importer, which by definition is established in the EU. Check both roles separately.

3. What customs needs before releasing goods

From 21 September 2027, goods must meet the conditions in Article 109(3) to be released for free circulation. For product compliance, these are the rules that count:

Rule	What the text requires	Where
Release data	At least the identity of the importer, the seller, the buyer, the manufacturer, the product supplier where different from the manufacturer, and the responsible economic operator in the EU under Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988; the value, origin, tariff classification and description of the goods; the consignment reference and location; and "the list of relevant other legislation applied by the customs authorities"	Article 109(3)(a)
Compliance	The goods "comply with the relevant other legislation applied by the customs authorities"	Article 109(3)(e)
Refusal	Customs must refuse release where they have any evidence that the goods do not comply with that legislation, or evidence that the data provided is not accurate	Article 77(4)(b) and (c)
Suspension	Customs must suspend release where they have reason to believe the goods do not comply, or where other competent authorities request it, and then consult those authorities. Without a reply within the time limit set in the relevant legislation — or within five days where there is none — the goods are released; where the authorities need more time, the suspension may last no longer than 90 days	Article 77(5) and (6)

Two points are worth reading closely. "The release of the goods shall not be considered to be proof of conformity" (Article 77(2)) — the same principle ESPR Article 15(2) applies to the passport check. And the release data must name the manufacturer and the responsible economic operator in the EU under Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and Article 16 of the General Product Safety Regulation (EU) 2023/988 — an EU-established operator responsible for the tasks in Article 4(3) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 for the products those provisions cover. For a non-EU brand that has such an EU party, that party then becomes part of the customs data. Our non-EU brands guide explains how that role works.

DPP AUDIT

Customs will ask who made the product and who answers for it in the EU.

Manufacturer identity, the EU responsible economic operator, tariff classification and product identifiers are also the backbone of a future passport. We help you structure that data once, correctly. Under NDA.

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4. How registry checks connect to customs

ESPR Article 15(1) already requires anyone placing a product covered by an ESPR delegated act under release for free circulation to give customs the product's unique registration identifier. Under Article 15(2), customs may then release it "only after having verified as a minimum that the unique registration identifier referred to in Article 13(5) and the commodity code provided or made available to them correspond to the data stored in the registry" — but that verification runs electronically and automatically through an interconnection between the DPP registry and the EU Customs Single Window Certificates Exchange System (EU CSW-CERTEX), and applies only from the moment that interconnection is operational. ESPR Article 15(3) requires it within four years of the entry into force of the registry implementing act — Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1778, in force since 6 August 2026 — so by 6 August 2030 at the latest.

The new Code builds the customs side of that link. Among the actions customs authorities take under other legislation is "collecting specific data for all consignments, including automated checks of Union non-customs formalities, provided that they are stored in a Union central registry" (Article 269(1)(a)). And the EU Customs Data Hub is to integrate EU CSW-CERTEX "to enable interoperability with the Union non-customs systems and formalities" referred to in Regulation (EU) 2022/2399 (Article 38(3)(f); recital 47 covers the transition until that integration is complete).

Data also flows the other way. From 1 July 2028, market surveillance authorities may process Data Hub data, including commercially sensitive data, to the extent necessary to enforce Union rules on placing products on the market and on product safety (Article 41(9)). A customs authority that suspects goods do not comply with other legislation "shall immediately share that information" with the competent authorities (Article 268(6)). Checking whether a passport's content is correct remains a market surveillance task (recital 16, Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1778); see our penalties guide.

5. Selling online from outside the EU

For distance sales the Code adds rules aimed at the sell-direct model. Only a customs representative holding authorised economic operator (AEO) status for customs simplification, or Trust and Check trader status, may place goods sold in a distance sale under release for free circulation (Article 33(7)(b)). From 1 July 2028, importers for distance sales must provide their data through the EU Customs Data Hub (Article 285(2)). Where customs establish systematic failure by the same operator to meet its obligations, the penalty must include charges of at least 1% and up to 4% of the total value of goods it imported into the EU in the preceding 12 months, and at least 3% and up to 6% for a further systematic infringement within six months (Article 276(1) and (4)); the importer for distance sales is then classified as high-risk in the Data Hub (Article 277). Article 287 does not defer Articles 33(7), 276 and 277, so they apply from 21 September 2027, although recital 120 says that the provisions referring to distance sales should apply from 1 July 2028; until 30 June 2028, all goods remain covered by customs declarations (Article 285(1)).

Two changes for low-value parcels already apply. Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 deleted the customs duty relief for consignments worth up to EUR 150 with effect from 1 July 2026 and, until 1 July 2028, replaced it with a customs duty of EUR 3 per item where the import is VAT-exempt under the Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS) scheme or the goods are in a "postal consignment" as defined in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 (Articles 1, 2 and 4). Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022 redefined that term from 1 July 2026 to cover goods in consignments of up to EUR 150 sold in distance sales, other than IOSS imports and goods benefiting from preferential measures. An item means goods in a consignment that share the same tariff classification, description and, where declared, origin. The Commission's own example: five T-shirts in one parcel pay EUR 3; a T-shirt and a watch pay EUR 6. That holds where the identical goods are declared on one line: identical goods declared on separate lines count as separate items (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022, recital 4).

From 1 November 2026, the customs data for goods sold in distance sales must also carry, for each item, the merchant product identifier and the non-standardised manufacturer product identifier, plus the standardised manufacturer product identifier where one exists (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022, Article 2(3) and Annex, point (2)(a)). The Delegated Regulation itself sets no value limit, but the Commission's guidance of 5 October 2026 limits the requirement to consignments with an intrinsic value not exceeding EUR 150. A product identifier is "a unique alphanumeric code assigned to a specific model, batch or article" that ensures traceability along the supply chain (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, Article 1, point (57), as inserted by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022).

The Code also creates a Union handling fee: a fixed amount per item for handling the release of goods sold in distance sales (Article 20(2)). The Commission adopted the delegated act setting it at EUR 2 per item on 21 September 2026 (C(2026) 6694); as of 3 October 2026 it had not been published in the Official Journal. As the first act setting the fee, it enters into force only if neither the European Parliament nor the Council objects within 30 days of notification, or if both inform the Commission earlier that they will not object (Article 282(7)), and the fee applies from 10 days after that entry into force (Article 287(4)). The Commission's reform page says the fee will be introduced by 1 November 2026. For the passport side of online selling, see our e-commerce guide.

6. Timeline: what applies when

Date	What happens	Source
1 July 2026	EUR 150 customs duty relief deleted; EUR 3 per item duty on low-value distance-sale consignments until 1 July 2028	Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382; Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022
20 September 2026	Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 enters into force; some provisions apply at once, including the definition of an item and the rules setting up the EU Customs Authority	Article 287(1) and (3)
21 September 2026	Commission adopts the delegated act setting the Union handling fee at EUR 2 per item; it enters into force only if the European Parliament and the Council do not object (not yet published in the Official Journal as of 3 October 2026)	C(2026) 6694; Article 282(7)
1 November 2026	Product identifiers required for each item of goods sold in distance sales (according to the Commission's guidance of 5 October 2026, for consignments with an intrinsic value not exceeding EUR 150)	Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022, Article 2(3)
21 September 2027	The new Code applies in general, including the importer's compliance duty and the release conditions in Article 109(3)(a) and (e); the additional IOSS data in point (b) follows on 1 July 2028	Article 287(2) and (5)
Second half of 2027 (indicative; Commission DPP pages: Q3–Q4 2027 and Q4 2027)	Planned adoption of the ESPR delegated act for textiles (apparel); no adoption date has been fixed	Commission DPP page (DPP timeline, together with aluminium and tyres); Commission textile apparel page
1 July 2028	Importers for distance sales must use the EU Customs Data Hub; the EUR 3 duty ends unless extended — by 1 December 2027 the Commission must assess whether the IT infrastructure will be ready and, where appropriate, propose an extension	Article 285(2); Regulation (EU) 2026/382, Articles 2 and 3(2)
6 August 2030 at the latest	DPP registry interconnected with customs systems via EU CSW-CERTEX	ESPR Article 15(3)
1 March 2031 / 1 March 2034	Other importers may, and from 1 March 2034 must, use the EU Customs Data Hub	Article 285(4) and (5)

7. What this means for fashion brands now

Identify the customs importer for each import flow — your own EU entity, a distributor, a customs representative or, for online sales from outside the EU, you or the platform — and check whether that party can meet Article 27(2)(c) from 21 September 2027 with records it can produce.

Make sure the release data can name the manufacturer and your EU responsible economic operator, and that tariff classifications are right: classification already drives the per-item duty, and once a textile delegated act applies and the registry is interconnected with customs (by 6 August 2030 at the latest), customs will check the commodity code against the registry before release (ESPR Article 15(2)).

If you sell directly to EU consumers from outside the EU, plan for per-item duties and product identifiers now, and check before 21 September 2027 whether your customs representative holds AEO status for customs simplification or Trust and Check trader status.

Frequently asked questions

Does the new Customs Code make a Digital Product Passport mandatory at the border? +

No. Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 mentions the DPP only in recital 5. Whether a product needs a passport depends on an ESPR delegated act for its product group, and the border check is set by ESPR Article 15: customs may release a covered product only after verifying, as a minimum, that its unique registration identifier and commodity code match the DPP registry, a check that applies once the registry is interconnected with customs systems, which ESPR Article 15(3) requires by 6 August 2030 at the latest. No adoption date has been fixed for the textile (apparel) delegated act. The Commission's first ESPR Working Plan (April 2025) gives 2027 as the indicative year; its Digital Product Passport pages list adoption for Q3–Q4 2027 (DPP timeline, together with aluminium and tyres) and for Q4 2027 (textile-apparel page), both marked indicative. A delegated act applies no earlier than 18 months after it enters into force, except in duly justified cases (ESPR Article 4(4)).

When does the new Union Customs Code apply? +

It entered into force on 20 September 2026 and applies in general from 21 September 2027 (Article 287). Some provisions already apply, including the definition of an item and the rules setting up the EU Customs Authority. Others apply from 1 July 2028, including the use of the EU Customs Data Hub by importers for distance sales. Other importers may use the Data Hub from 1 March 2031 and must use it from 1 March 2034 (Article 285).

Is the customs importer the same as the ESPR importer? +

Not necessarily. ESPR defines an importer as any natural or legal person established in the Union that places a product from a third country on the Union market (Article 2(44)). Under the Customs Code, the importer is a customs role: in distance sales, the person supplying the goods or the person facilitating the sale; in other cases, first of all the person who has the power to decide and has decided to bring the goods into the EU (Article 5, points (13) and (14)). One company can hold both roles, but each role carries its own duties.

We sell online to EU consumers from the UK or the US. What changes? +

From 21 September 2027, when the new Code applies in general: if you sell from your own webshop, you supply the goods and are therefore the importer for distance sales; on a marketplace, the platform facilitating the sale can be the importer instead (Article 5, point (14)). If you are not established in the EU, an indirect customs representative acting for you is considered the importer for the duties in Article 27(2), including ensuring compliance with the other legislation customs applies (Article 33(3)). Only a representative with AEO status for customs simplification or Trust and Check trader status may place goods sold in distance sales under release for free circulation (Article 33(7)(b)). From 1 July 2028 the data goes through the EU Customs Data Hub. Two rules apply before 21 September 2027: customs duty on low-value consignments since 1 July 2026, and, from 1 November 2026, product identifiers for each item of goods sold in distance sales. The Delegated Regulation itself sets no value limit, but the Commission's guidance of 5 October 2026 limits the requirement to consignments with an intrinsic value not exceeding EUR 150 and says that the Commission is amending Annex B to clarify this.

Does the EUR 3 duty apply per parcel or per garment? +

Per item, and an item is defined by tariff classification, description and, where declared, origin — not by quantity. In the Commission's example, five T-shirts in one parcel pay EUR 3, while a T-shirt and a watch pay EUR 6; identical goods declared on separate lines count as separate items. The duty applies from 1 July 2026 until 1 July 2028, unless extended, to goods sold in distance sales in consignments worth up to EUR 150, where they are imported under the IOSS scheme or are goods in postal consignment, a term that excludes goods benefiting from preferential measures (Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382, Article 2; Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, Article 1, point (24), as amended by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022). Separately, the Commission has adopted a delegated act setting the Union handling fee for goods sold in distance sales at EUR 2 per item; it enters into force only if the European Parliament and the Council do not object, the fee applies 10 days after that, and the act had not been published in the Official Journal as of 3 October 2026.

Sources

The new Union Customs CodeRegulation (EU) 2026/2108 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2026 establishing the Union Customs Code and the European Union Customs Authority, and repealing Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 (OJ L, 2026/2108, 19.9.2026). Recitals 5, 47 and 120; Articles 1, 2, 5 (points (3), (13), (14), (15) and (78)), 20, 27, 33, 38(3)(f), 41(9), 77, 109, 230, 268(6), 269, 276, 277, 282(7), 284, 285 and 287. CELEX 32026R2108 ↗
ESPRRegulation (EU) 2024/1781 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for sustainable products, amending Directive (EU) 2020/1828 and Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 and repealing Directive 2009/125/EC (OJ L, 2024/1781, 28.6.2024). Articles 2(44), 4(4) and 15. CELEX 32024R1781 ↗
DPP registry rulesCommission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1778 of 16 July 2026 laying down the implementation arrangements for the digital product passport registry set up under Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L, 2026/1778, 17.7.2026); entry into force on the twentieth day following its publication. Recital 16. CELEX 32026R1778 ↗
Market surveillanceRegulation (EU) 2019/1020 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on market surveillance and compliance of products and amending Directive 2004/42/EC and Regulations (EC) No 765/2008 and (EU) No 305/2011 — consolidated version of 12 August 2026. Articles 4 and 25; Annex I. CELEX 02019R1020-20260812 (consolidated) ↗
General product safetyRegulation (EU) 2023/988 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 on general product safety, amending Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive (EU) 2020/1828 of the European Parliament and the Council, and repealing Directive 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Directive 87/357/EEC (OJ L 135, 23.5.2023). Article 16. CELEX 32023R0988 ↗
EU Single Window for customsRegulation (EU) 2022/2399 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 November 2022 establishing the European Union Single Window Environment for Customs and amending Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 (OJ L 317, 9.12.2022). Article 4 (EU CSW-CERTEX). CELEX 32022R2399 ↗
End of the EUR 150 duty reliefCouncil Regulation (EU) 2026/382 of 11 February 2026 amending Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 as regards the elimination of the threshold-based customs duty relief (OJ L, 2026/382, 18.2.2026). Articles 1 to 4. CELEX 32026R0382 ↗
Items, postal consignments, product identifiersCommission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1022 of 30 April 2026 amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 as regards definitions, customs declarations and data elements related to the temporary EUR 3 customs duty on distance sales of imported goods in a consignment with an intrinsic value not exceeding EUR 150 (OJ L, 2026/1022, 1.7.2026; date corrected by corrigendum, OJ L, 2026/90556, 3.7.2026). Recital 4; Article 1, point (1) (Article 1, points (24) and (57) to (61), of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446); Article 2; Annex, point (2)(a). CELEX 32026R1022 ↗
Union handling fee — adopted, not yet publishedCommission Delegated Regulation C(2026) 6694 final of 21 September 2026 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing the amount of the Union handling fee. Article 1. Commission document register ↗
European CommissionEU Customs Reform ↗ (importers for distance sales; Union handling fee by 1 November 2026).
European CommissionGuidance and legal text on temporary flat fee on low-value imports which will apply until 1 July 2028 ↗, news of 8 June 2026 (per-item example).
European CommissionThe temporary EUR 3 customs duty and the Union handling fee – Guidance for Member States and Trade ↗ (English only), version of 5 October 2026, section 8.2 (product identifiers: scope and planned amendment of Annex B).
European CommissionCommunication from the Commission, Ecodesign for Sustainable Products and Energy Labelling Working Plan 2025-2030, COM(2025) 187 final of 16 April 2025 (indicative timeline for adoption, textiles/apparel: 2027). CELEX 52025DC0187 ↗
European CommissionGeneral Digital Product Passport page ↗ (DPP timeline: adoption of the ESPR delegated acts for textiles, aluminium and tyres, Q3–Q4 2027, marked indicative).
European CommissionTextile Apparel and the Digital Product Passport (DPP) ↗ (planned adoption of the ESPR delegated act for textiles, Q4 2027, marked indicative).

The legal acts were read in their Official Journal versions published by the EU Publications Office (EUR-Lex), and their corrigenda were checked; Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 was read in its consolidated version of 12 August 2026, a documentation tool without legal effect, the authentic text being the Official Journal. The Commission delegated act C(2026) 6694 was read in the version published in the Commission's document register; the European Commission pages were accessed on 03.10.2026; the Commission's general Digital Product Passport page, its textile-apparel page and the Working Plan (COM(2025) 187 final) were checked again on 13.10.2026. This is general information, not legal, financial or investment advice.