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Postal service to launch budget express service amid shipment halt to U.S.

Published: 22 Aug. 2025, 13:46

Workers sort parcels at the East Seoul Postal Logistics Center in Gwangjin District, eastern Seoul, on Jan. 21. [YONHAP]

The national postal service said Friday it plans to launch an affordable express mail service (EMS) soon to help people continue sending parcels to the United States under a new tariff policy.

The previous day, Korea Post said it would stop accepting non-document packages bound for the United States on Monday in line with Washington's suspension of a duty-free policy for international shipments.

The U.S. is set to end the de minimis exemption, under which low-cost parcels from overseas valued at $800 or less can be shipped to the country without tariffs. All international shipments will begin facing a 15 percent tariff next Friday.

Because customers will still be able to send packages to the United States via UPS, which imposes tariffs on the recipient, the state postal service said it will provide a similar program at a more affordable price within two months.

“In order to ease customers' burden, we are preparing to launch a premium EMS at a lower price compared to the existing one in cooperation with UPS,” the agency said.

“We will continue to monitor details of the new instructions by the U.S., along with trends in the global postal network.”

Yonhap