The success of the controversial Asian shopping portals Temu and Shein has brought the finance ministers of the federal and state governments to the fore. The issue will be on the agenda of the finance ministers’ conference next week, said NRW Finance Minister Marcus Optendrenk (CDU) to the dpa in Düsseldorf and sharply criticized the trading companies. “These platforms bring counterfeits and substances that are hazardous to health into the EU – and deliberately distort the value of goods in order to evade taxes and customs duties.”

Consumers can shop cheaply on Temu and Shein; the trading platforms are very popular in Germany. However, the portals are controversial. Sales representatives, politicians and consumer advocates criticize product quality, a lack of controls, manipulative purchasing incentives and unfair competitive conditions, among other things.

Duty-free limit benefits suppliers

There are also complaints that the providers benefit from legal loopholes such as the 150 euro customs exemption limit. The Asian online platforms mainly use air freight. For orders from non-EU countries, no import fees have to be paid for packages with a value of less than 150 euros. They are accused of many shipments being incorrectly declared in order to comply with the 150 euro limit.

The companies deny such accusations. They emphasize that they adhere to the applicable rules. According to them, they require the companies whose goods are sold through the portal to comply with strict safety standards. Child labor will not be tolerated.

Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) wants to pay more attention to Asian shopping portals. Representatives of the German retail sector are also deeply concerned. For example, the head of the retail company KiK, Patrick Zahn, complains that politicians are taking too lax a stance against Shein and Temu. The participation of these companies in the market in this country is “a blatant injustice”.

Minister: Customs controls to be tightened

Now NRW Finance Minister Optendrenk is also warning of a “massive distortion of competition”. The pressure to control must be “significantly increased – in the short term and sustainably,” said the Christian Democrat. “While European companies properly observe taxes, customs duties and supply chain law, Temu and Shein systematically avoid doing so – we cannot accept that.”

A two-pronged approach is needed. “On the one hand, customs law needs to be adapted as quickly as possible, and on the other hand, existing rules need to be effectively enforced now,” said Optendrenk. Customs controls should be strengthened. “If all packages from the Far East are consistently opened and checked for content and value for a certain period of time, we will first have a good overview of the extent of the problem – and we will have sent a clear signal to China.”