WASHINGTON, D.C. — May 22, 2025 — U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) today introduced the Closing the De Minimis Loophole Act, bipartisan legislation to end the “de minimis” exemption, which allows packages valued at less than $800 to be imported to the United States without facing any tariffs or inspection.
“Given the explosion of e-commerce and increasingly complex global supply chains, we need to modernize our customs laws to better stop cartels and international criminals from slipping deadly fentanyl into our communities. Closing the de minimis loophole will also protect Rhode Island workers and manufacturers, while punishing shady foreign companies for skirting our trade laws to undercut domestic companies,” said Whitehouse, who helped convene the Rhode Island Textile Innovation Network and has for years championed the state’s textile industry.
“This legislation closes a loophole in order to protect Americans from fentanyl and other illicit drugs that are flowing into our country. It also safeguards South Carolina manufacturers, ensuring they can remain competitive in the global market. I’m glad to work with my colleagues on this important effort,” said Graham.
Chinese e-commerce giants as well as criminals and cartels abuse gaps in U.S. customs law and the law’s implementation to move their illicit or illegally produced products into the United States. These foreign bad actors are exploiting a customs process known as “de minimis” entry, which allows packages valued under $800 to enter the country without tariffs and through a simplified process. As the number of these shipments has surged in recent years, Customs and Border Protection has struggled to identify and block packages containing illicit fentanyl precursor chemicals, counterfeit goods, items produced with forced labor and other illegal products.
The Closing the De Minimis Loophole Act would:
- Immediately end de minimis treatment for packages from China and phases out de minimis for all other countries after a four-month transition period.
- Direct the Treasury Secretary to oversee a rulemaking process during the four-month transition, ensuring that U.S. Customs and Border Protection has the necessary tools and procedures to implement the termination of de minimis for all countries smoothly and efficiently.
- Direct the Treasury Secretary to consult with the Postmaster General to establish appropriate fees and entry procedures, aiming for consistency between postal and other shipments wherever feasible.
The Closing the De Minimis Loophole Act was previously introduced in the House of Representatives by Congresswoman Linda Sánchez (D-CA). The legislation is endorsed by the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), the United Steelworkers (USW), National Association of Police Organizations, Facing Fentanyl, Rhode Island Textile Innovation Network, and Alliance for American Manufacturing.
“By terminating the abuse of de minimis by overseas manufacturers – particularly those from China – Senator Whitehouse’s bill will help ensure that Rhode Island’s textile manufacturers of finished products – and manufacturers of end products in other industries – are protected from predatory competition. As chair of the Rhode Island Textile Innovation Network and on behalf of our textile companies, I applaud Senator Whitehouse’s national leadership on this issue,” said Michael Woody, Chair of the Rhode Island Textile Innovation Network.
“We commend Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Lindsey Graham for their leadership and support of this important bipartisan legislation that would codify and permanently end de minimis treatment for China immediately, while phasing out de minimis for all other countries after a four-month transition period,” said National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) President and CEO Kim Glas. “This bill, a companion to legislation in the House, is the strongest and most comprehensive legislative solution to closing the destructive de minimis loophole once and for all. De minimis has become a gateway facilitating four million packages a day valued at $800 or less, often containing illegal, unsafe and unethical products made with forced labor to the U.S. market, duty free and virtually unchecked. The legislation will help level the playing field for the domestic textile industry, which has lost 28 textile plants over the past 22 months. We strongly support this legislation and look forward to working with Senators Whitehouse and Graham to advance it.”
“Trade cheaters too often skirt U.S. trade law, bringing in unfairly traded, low-priced goods through the de minimis loophole. We commend Sens. Whitehouse and Graham for their efforts to cut off this back-door access to our markets and protect U.S. workers and industries,” said United Steelworkers President Dave McCall.
“Law enforcement is battling the trafficking of illegal narcotics on multiple fronts, including the international mail system. The de minimis loophole is severely exacerbating the opioid crisis by allowing fentanyl and other deadly opioids to enter our country largely uninspected. The closure of this trade loophole is vital to removing significant fentanyl trafficking routes into this country and is essential to any national strategy to end the fentanyl crisis,” said Bill Johnson, executive director of the National Association of Police Organizations. “NAPO supports the Closing the De Minimis Loophole Act and the efforts of Senators Whitehouse and Graham to ensure the de minimis trade exemption will no longer be a gateway for illicit drugs and goods to cross our borders.”
“Facing Fentanyl applauds Senators Whitehouse and Graham for their bipartisan leadership in introducing the Closing the De Minimis Loophole Act in the Senate,” said Andrea Thomas, founder of Facing Fentanyl. “This critical bill targets a major weakness in our trade enforcement system that has allowed deadly fentanyl precursors—many shipped from China—to pour into the United States unchecked.”
The U.S. textiles industry employs nearly 471,000 workers and produces almost $64 billion in output annually. Last August, Whitehouse and Graham introduced the Protecting American Industry and Labor from International Trade Crimes Act, legislation to strengthen the Department of Justice’s ability to investigate and prosecute trade-related crimes.
Whitehouse and Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) previously introduced the bipartisan Customs Modernization Act of 2023, legislation to increase U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s visibility into international supply chains to resolve data collection constraints, expand the legal use of trade data, increase supply chain accountability, improve enforcement effectiveness, and bolster information sharing among government agencies.
The full bill text is available here.
Posted: May 22, 2025
Source: Office of U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse
