'There's Panic and Confusion': One of the World's Biggest Shipping Companies Is Suspending Service on Select Packages to U.S. Consumers

New tariffs have changed customs processing, causing significant delays for DHL Express. The company just announced that it is suspending shipments to the U.S. for select packages starting Monday, April 21.

According to a notice on the company's website, business-to-consumer (B2C) shipments to private individuals in the U.S. with a declared customs value of more than $800 have been temporarily suspended "until further notice."

The statement says that the April 5 change for "all shipments to the U.S. with a declared value over USD 800" to "require formal entry processing" has caused a bottleneck at customs, leading the company to experience "multi-day transit delays" when trying to deliver packages to the U.S.

The previous threshold was $2,500.

USA Today notes that though the post announcing the new measures wasn't dated, metadata shows it was written April 19.

Related: Here's How Tariffs Will Affect Costco's Prices, According to the Company's CEO

DHL is a global logistics and shipping company and Germany's biggest package delivery and express mail provider.

Louis Kurlander, director of a U.K.-based courier firm, told The Times that clients who ship to the U.S. were left in disarray over the holiday weekend.

"There's panic and confusion because obviously this was dropped on bank holiday weekend," Kurlander said. "A lot of businesses are not working."

Kurlander added that the luxury fashion sector could be hit hardest by the ban.

What Is DHL Still Shipping?

DHL notes that business-to-business (B2B) shipments to U.S. companies with a declarable value above $800 are not affected by the suspension, Still, delays are possible.

The service disruption does not include B2B and B2C shipments with a declarable customs value of less than $800.