NZ’s new $2.21 Temu tax: Government's low-value import levy comes into effect
Tuesday, 7 April 2026
It now costs more to import low-value goods, and one retail expert says that will likely slow down the flow of cheap goods flooding the market from the likes of Temu and Shein.
All imported and exported low-value goods worth less than $1000 coming into the country as commercial freight have been charged the low-value levy or tax of $2.21 per package from April 1.
The cost recovery exercise aims to claw back revenue from resource used to process the millions of packages coming into the country each year.
The Government says it costs $70 million to manage all of the low-value consignments that are coming through the delivery network each year.
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Temu and AliExpress have become engrained as significant retail channels for often novelty and disposable discretionary goods, taking a significant bite out of business for the likes of Kmart and New Zealand-based retailers.
Stats NZ data shows the growth in “low-value imports” coming into the country indicated the increasing dominance of platforms such as Temu.
Between 2003 and 2006, the proportion of total household spending on this type of import lifted from 0.1% to 0.9%. It then dipped, and in 2011 grew from 0.5% to 2% by 2022.
Since 2023, it has lifted from 1.8% to 2.8% today.
NZ Post has been contacted for comment.
First Retail Group managing director Chris Wilkinson expected the new levy would cause consumers to think twice before placing an order.
“It's certainly going to start hitting people when they find that buying that small item now has got another $2 added on it,” Wilkinson told The Post.
The Wellington-based retail commentator said managing the scale of low-value packages coming into the country had to “put significant stress” on Customs and Border Control as sales at the likes of Temu, Shein and Alibaba had spiked significantly in recent years.
“This will definitely have downstream benefits in terms of reducing that spending attrition that's leaving New Zealand, and it'll probably have some benefit in reducing the amount of disposable goods that are being brought into the country.”
Wilkinson said the levy would no doubt curb the spending trend towards shopping with Temu and Shein as a first point of call. “Because things are so cheap, people are ordering lots with the view that if it doesn't work, or if it doesn't fit, it doesn't matter, that they can just throw it away; and that’s completely alien to where we where we need to be.”
Wilkinson said the levy was a shift to a “user pays model” as opposed to the taxpayer footing the bill.
“The likes of Temu have been winning because of the loophole. One would argue, how can you get this product into the country so cheaply?
“This levy will cause people to stop and pause, because it'll be something that they probably hadn't anticipated. It's highly likely the price advantage will always be there, being able to buy direct and of course, the broader range and choice that people have; it's something that's still going to be difficult to be able to respond to locally.
“But hopefully it will make people think, firstly, do I need this, and then maybe consider other aspects, like sustainability, like the opportunities of buying something local, and considering more durability or reuse.”
Wilkinson said it is unlikely to move the dial materially towards these offshore purchases being made at local New Zealand-based retailers.
Last month, Freightways called the new levy “unfair”, saying the new regime would make it cheaper to send goods through the mail than by courier.
Chief executive Mark Troughear said there needed to be a level playing field. He said it could raise the spectre of freight companies losing business as customers choose to receive items by mail rather than courier.