EU customs reform puts distance-sale sellers in the importer’s seat from 2028

The EU has adopted the operating model that will replace consumer-led customs clearance for cross-border e-commerce. Regulation (EU) 2026/2108 was published on 19 September and entered into force on 20 September 2026. Most of the new code applies from 21 September 2027, while its central distance-sale and e-commerce Data Hub provisions apply from 1 July 2028. For Brazilian brands, this is therefore a preparation deadline, not a claim that today’s parcels already follow the new model.

The decisive concept is the ‘importer for distance sales’. The regulation defines it as either the person supplying the goods or the person facilitating the sale; which party takes the role depends on the commercial arrangement. The EU consumer is no longer meant to carry it. A non-EU seller may operate with an indirect customs representative holding authorised economic operator status, but representation does not make the underlying allocation irrelevant: the law can make the representative and the party represented jointly liable for customs debt.

The role reaches beyond paying duty. The importer must provide the required customs information and comply with customs legislation and other rules that customs authorities enforce when products enter the EU. For sales using IOSS, distance-sale data must be provided or made available no later than the day after payment is accepted and before the goods are presented for release. Product classification, origin, value, seller and buyer details, and any EU responsible-economic-operator information therefore need to agree across the order, product and logistics records.

The EU Customs Data Hub becomes the mandatory channel for e-commerce on 1 July 2028. It is intended to replace fragmented national interfaces and let customs and market-surveillance authorities assess a sale before the parcel reaches the border. The regulation fixes the model and timing, but implementing acts and technical specifications will still define parts of the data and connection detail. Sellers should design a clean product master and event trail now, without pretending that a final API schema is already available.

Start with one real EU sales flow. Identify whether the seller or marketplace will be the importer for distance sales, document any indirect-representation arrangement, map who pays duties and fees, and test whether the order system can produce consistent customs and product-compliance data immediately after payment. Revisit marketplace terms, fulfilment contracts and landed-cost pricing before 2028. If those roles remain blurred, an Opportunity Scan can map the accountable parties and the evidence gaps for a Brazil-to-EU route.