The two-euro levy on shipments with a value below €150 arriving from non-EU countries is producing effects that run counter to its stated objectives. This is the view of Confetra, which in a statement released on 20 January 2026 described the measure as “a boomerang from every point of view”. According to the transport confederation, the provision, introduced to protect Italian fashion from competition from Chinese fast fashion, has not reduced goods flows but has instead altered their routes, to the detriment of the national logistics system.
The issue was also discussed during a recent meeting with the Deputy Minister for Transport, Edoardo Rixi. Confetra’s director general, Andrea Cappa, explained that Chinese producers reacted swiftly by diverting shipments to airports in other European countries where the levy does not apply. The goods then still enter Italy by road, without paying the contribution, leading to an increase in road traffic, a greater environmental impact and a structural shift of flows towards foreign hubs that will be difficult to reverse in the medium term.
According to Confetra, the effects on Italy’s airport system are already evident. Since the beginning of January, Malpensa Airport has lost more than thirty flights, while the drop in traffic linked to this type of shipment is described as significant. At the same time, there has been an increase in transits through Alpine crossings, placing further pressure on infrastructure and the environment. For Confetra, measures that are not coordinated at European level therefore risk proving ineffective and favouring other continental logistics systems at the expense of the Italian one.
The levy applies to e-commerce shipments from non-European countries with a declared value of up to €150, a threshold below which goods benefit from simplified customs procedures. The aim of the measure is twofold: on the one hand, to offset the administrative and control costs associated with the high volume of small consignments; on the other, to rebalance competition with European fashion and retail companies. In the absence of uniform application across the European Union, however, the charge tends to shift points of entry for goods without affecting overall volumes.
For this reason, Confetra has proposed an amendment to the Milleproroghe decree to postpone the entry into force of the levy until July, allowing time to build European-level coordination. According to the association, only a unified approach at EU level can make such an intervention truly effective, avoiding competitive distortions, traffic displacement and negative repercussions for Italy’s logistics and production system.
