Is the the end of CDJapan and other overseas vendors being viable for USA customers?

[l p]

i know you people buy alot of stuff from europe.

 

https://apnews.com/article/us-tariffs-goods-services-suspension-85c7b36b9e92c0e640dfe2ac418cd907

...

On Saturday, postal services around Europe announced that they are suspending the shipment of many packages to the United States amid confusion over new import duties.

Postal services in Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Italy said they will stop shipping most merchandise to the U.S. effective immediately. France and Austria will follow on Monday.

The U.K.'s Royal Mail said it would halt shipments to the U.S. on Tuesday to allow time for those packages to arrive before duties kick in.

...

[Rooster_Ties]

Anyone know how this would affect an order from Amazon France?

(I’m eyeing a new release David Bowie box that ships in about a month, which seems to be dramatically cheaper from Amazon France specifically for some odd reason.)

[Niko]

what the tariff on imports from France will be in about a month, I wouldn't dare to predict... but I would expect that amazon finds ways of delivering stuff even if the local postal services don't do it... for instance, as far as I know, UPS is still available... but, yes, of course, it could happen that they cancel a preorder if the delivery option you chose ceases to exist... 

[felser]

Does the end of the de minimus tariff exemption mean that CDJapan and other foreign outlet shipping costs, with the extra duty imposed, will now make it unfeasible for USA customers to order from them?  I'm no tariff lawyer, but what I'm reading doesn't sound good.

[clifford_thornton]

yes. My undies are in a bunch trying to figure out how to get LPs shipped here without it being a complete mess.

The only real option I see is having stuff sent to Canada and then here, but there'll still be a duty and double shipping costs (potentially) so probably not worth it in the end.

[colinmce]

It's all very confusing but from what I'm seeing it sounds like DHL is still an option.

I prefer not to order from overseas myself, but the vast majority of new CDs I buy are from European labels, so I wonder how this will affect their ability to send stock to US retailers.

[clifford_thornton]

yeah, DHL, FedEx, UPS will continue to deliver, but at a significant upcharge. Paying $30 to ship a $15 CD becomes completely unworkable after a few instances (I've definitely been there).

[medjuck]

But even if you find a shipper, isn't there still a tariff?  And how do you pay it? When the package is delivered?  Will you have to go to a customs house to get it and pay the tariff? 

[Niko]

56 minutes ago, medjuck said:

But even if you find a shipper, isn't there still a tariff?  And how do you pay it? When the package is delivered?  Will you have to go to a customs house to get it and pay the tariff? 

the way I understand it is that the practical side of things is still very much in the air - which is exactly the reason why the European postal services stopped shipping now, they just don't know how it works.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

42 minutes ago, Niko said:

the way I understand it is that the practical side of things is still very much in the air - which is exactly the reason why the European postal services stopped shipping now, they just don't know how it works.

That's OK. Neither do we & we live here.

[T.D.]

I've assumed this is going to KO cdjapan as a personal buying option. Probably why they've been offering a lot of coupons the past couple of months. If collection issues ever get solved, there'll be a price increase of more or less the tariff rate. That could be manageable, but I don't think the collection thing will get worked out any time soon.

 

Merchants like Dusty Groove could also get hammered. It's conceivable that they've been importing in de minimis (< $800) increments, which would put them in the same boat...

So I fear the import CD/LP market is going to dry up for a while.

[medjuck]

It could also affect Discogs where many of he discs come from out of the country.

[felser]

33 minutes ago, T.D. said:

So I fear the import CD/LP market is going to dry up for a while.

And that's where most of the good reissues come from these days.  

[T.D.]

41 minutes ago, felser said:

And that's where most of the good reissues come from these days.  

I completely agree.

[mikeweil]

48 minutes ago, medjuck said:

It could also affect Discogs where many of he discs come from out of the country.

Many US sellers on discogs no longer ship to Europe because of the high costs and paperwork. So that's the reverse process. We know what happened to trade between the US and GB after Brexit.

[T.D.]

As expected (try opening in incognito window to avoid paywall):

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-26/japan-suspends-some-parcel-deliveries-to-us-due-to-trump-tariffs

 

Takeaways by Bloomberg AI

• Japan Post Co. will suspend shipping of some small packages to the United States due to fresh tariffs imposed by the US government.
• The mail service will stop accepting parcels that include consumer goods for sale or gifts worth over $100 from Wednesday, after the US revoked its tariff exemption on lower-value packages.
• Japan Post's decision falls in line with other national postal services that have temporarily suspended their shipping services to the US, including Britain and Australia.

[clifford_thornton]

What an absolute mess. I mean, there are a lot of things in this world to be angry or depressed about (rightly), but this is just like... we can't even import cheap goods to make ourselves feel momentarily better. Isn't that what capitalism is all about? Really a-level bullshit.

[gvopedz]

A summary:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/26/postal-services-suspend-us-usa-deliveries-how-will-it-affect-you

 

[mjazzg]

13 hours ago, mikeweil said:

 We know what happened to trade between the US and GB after Brexit.

We most certainly do. The Boris Tax has certainly affected my purchases from Europe, oddly often making US purchases better value.

I feel your US based pain folks

[colinmce]

Another thing I am thinking of is that even most US-based labels and artists who press CDs have them manufactured in Europe. Will people even be able to get new catalog items made now, even domestically? 

[medjuck]

Just got this from Bandcamp and Cadillac Records:   

This one is for our American friends. Because of the imposition of duty and the advance in the date of the minimum cost that duty is paid just bought in by the US goverment there may be some delay in sending orders. We have this advice from the Post Office here:
From 29th August 2025 US customs requirements are changing.
We’re temporarily withdrawing existing services to the USA on Tuesday 26 August 2025.
We're planning for our USA postal delivery duties paid (PDDP) services, which meet new customs requirements, to be available to customers online and in Post Offices from Thursday 28 August 2025.
So all things being well, there will only be a few days disruption. 
We are also being advised that "informational recordings" (including music) are exempt from tarrifs - we'll be trying to follow the protocols so that US customs don't add duty to our packages.

[felser]

9 minutes ago, medjuck said:

We are also being advised that "informational recordings" (including music) are exempt from tarrifs - we'll be trying to follow the protocols so that US customs don't add duty to our packages.

That would be very welcome news!

[Stompin at the Savoy]

Arg!  Grum.

[T.D.]

When US tariffs were first announced (months ago), cdjapan sent out informational email to customers stating that tariffs were not a factor (which they were not at the time due to continuation of de minimis). I expect cdjapan to send out the updated status as soon as they get sufficient clarity from authorities (not holding my breath).

[cliffpeterson]

Cd Japan on Japan Post: https://www.cdjapan.co.jp/info/20200401