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RTÉ says the new €2 parcel fee applies 'regardless of value'; TheJournal.ie sets it beside the €150 duty and does not say

From 1 November, Irish online shoppers pay a non-refundable €2 fee on each distinct report shipped from outside the EU, including from Great Britain. Two Irish outlets report the same Revenue guidance. Only one says parcels over €150 are caught.

A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable
A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable as published by TheJournal.ie · seen at TheJournal.ie
Anglosphere Ireland European Union

The fee. From 1 November a €2 "Union Handling Fee" applies to each distinct report in a parcel bought online from outside the EU, RTÉ News and TheJournal.ie both report, citing Revenue. It is not refundable. It comes on top of the €3 customs duty per report in force since 1 July.

Where the two reports differ.

RTÉ News TheJournal.ie
Parcels over €150 Fee applies "regardless of value"; prices a €250 order Does not say; gives €150 only for the €3 duty
Will shoppers pay it? Sellers are "likely" to pass it on, in its own voice Revenue "warned" the cost "may" be passed on
Why the fee exists Revenue: customs costs from e-commerce growth Not given

What they agree on. A €10 parcel holding a pen, a notebook and a key ring costs €15 extra before VAT. Two identical pens count as one report. Goods shipped from Great Britain pay. Goods held in Ireland, Northern Ireland or another EU state when ordered do not.

The reason, per RTÉ. Citing Revenue, RTÉ reports that low-value parcels into the EU rose from 660 million in 2022 to 5.7 billion last year.

What is not settled. Neither report quotes the EU rule itself. From its text alone, we cannot tell whether TheJournal.ie meant to limit the fee to cheap parcels or simply left the point out. Both reports rest on one Revenue briefing, and we hold no second source. Neither says what An Post or a courier will charge to collect the fee at the door.

What this is about. A new EU charge on parcels bought online from outside the Union, and what it will cost shoppers in Ireland.

How it got here. The EU is a customs union. Goods entering any member state from outside pay the same common customs duties, and each national customs service collects them. In Ireland that service is Revenue, the state's tax and customs authority. For years, cheap parcels under €150 were exempt from customs duty. Online shopping from sellers outside Europe grew fast. Citing Revenue, RTÉ reports that such parcels now make up 97% of physical consignments into the EU but only 2% of their value. In Ireland, it says, they are about 88% of consignments.

The EU moved to charge them. Since 1 July, both reports say, a flat €3 customs duty has applied to each distinct report in a parcel worth €150 or less. The €2 handling fee is the second step, from 1 November. According to RTÉ, Revenue says the fee is meant to cover the extra work customs authorities now do.

Why Britain is in it. Great Britain left the EU's single market and customs union at the end of 2020, after Brexit. Goods sent from there now count as non-EU goods. Northern Ireland is different. Under the arrangements the UK and the EU agreed for the island of Ireland, it still follows EU customs rules for goods. So a parcel from Belfast is not charged, and a parcel from Manchester is.

The actors. The EU sets the rules. Revenue applies them in Ireland and briefed the press. Online sellers are legally liable for the fee. Couriers and An Post collect it when the seller has not.

What is at stake. If the fee covers every non-EU order, and not only cheap ones, it adds to the bill for anyone buying clothes, electronics or furniture from Britain or further afield.

Where it stands. The fee starts on 1 November. Neither report carries the EU text itself.

What is being argued about

  • Whether the €2 fee covers parcels worth more than €150
  • Whether sellers will pass the fee on to shoppers
  • Why goods from Great Britain are charged and goods from Northern Ireland are not
  • How counting 'distinct reports' changes the bill
Same Revenue briefing, two readings of the scopeSide by side
OutletParcels over €150Passing the cost onReason for the fee
RTÉ News"regardless of value"; €4 fee shown on a €250 order"likely", in the report's own voiceRevenue: customs costs from e-commerce growth
TheJournal.ieNot stated; €150 given only for the €3 dutyRevenue "warned" it "may" beNot given
Both reports cite the same Revenue guidance.
Sources R RTÉ News
Centre estimate · not a score
RTÉ News 🇮🇪IE · digital · PUBLIC New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at RTÉ News → What we have measured Abstraction as the actor the dispute acts and no one in it is named ×1Account taken as default the police description of the crowd as 'hostile' is carried with no other account ×1Accuracy the Slovenia entry in the country list repeats Austria's name ×1Active voice offender Donaldson is named as the one who did the abuse, in the active voice. ×1 from 2361 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → T TheJournal.ie
Centre estimate · not a score
TheJournal.ie 🇮🇪IE · digital · A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at TheJournal.ie → What we have measured Accuracy of attribution The report calls the Tánaiste the Taoiseach partway through. That puts his words under another office. ×1Accusation carried without a reply a charge against a named party, no answer from it in the text held ×1Actor labelling calls the accusers 'opposition parties' when the named accuser is the deputy First Minister ×1Actor mislabelled The first line calls the accusers 'opposition parties', but the accuser quoted is the DUP deputy First Minister, who sits in the same executive ×1 from 2218 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times →
Extra charges on three example parcels, before VATChart
Worked examples attributed to Revenue. Only RTÉ News gives the €250 parcel.
Sources R RTÉ News
Centre estimate · not a score
RTÉ News 🇮🇪IE · digital · PUBLIC New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at RTÉ News → What we have measured Abstraction as the actor the dispute acts and no one in it is named ×1Account taken as default the police description of the crowd as 'hostile' is carried with no other account ×1Accuracy the Slovenia entry in the country list repeats Austria's name ×1Active voice offender Donaldson is named as the one who did the abuse, in the active voice. ×1 from 2361 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → T TheJournal.ie
Centre estimate · not a score
TheJournal.ie 🇮🇪IE · digital · A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at TheJournal.ie → What we have measured Accuracy of attribution The report calls the Tánaiste the Taoiseach partway through. That puts his words under another office. ×1Accusation carried without a reply a charge against a named party, no answer from it in the text held ×1Actor labelling calls the accusers 'opposition parties' when the named accuser is the deputy First Minister ×1Actor mislabelled The first line calls the accusers 'opposition parties', but the accuser quoted is the DUP deputy First Minister, who sits in the same executive ×1 from 2218 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times →
The bias in this coverageBias

All purchases or only cheap ones

One report says the fee applies regardless of value and shows it on a €250 order. The other puts the fee next to the €150 threshold for the older duty and never says whether that threshold applies to the fee. A reader of the second report could conclude that only cheap parcels are affected.

1 reports stating no value limit 1 reports leaving the value limit unstated
Scored without the mastheads. Where the two passes differ, both are kept.
Sources T TheJournal.ie
Centre estimate · not a score
TheJournal.ie 🇮🇪IE · digital · A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at TheJournal.ie → What we have measured Accuracy of attribution The report calls the Tánaiste the Taoiseach partway through. That puts his words under another office. ×1Accusation carried without a reply a charge against a named party, no answer from it in the text held ×1Actor labelling calls the accusers 'opposition parties' when the named accuser is the deputy First Minister ×1Actor mislabelled The first line calls the accusers 'opposition parties', but the accuser quoted is the DUP deputy First Minister, who sits in the same executive ×1 from 2218 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → R RTÉ News
Centre estimate · not a score
RTÉ News 🇮🇪IE · digital · PUBLIC New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at RTÉ News → What we have measured Abstraction as the actor the dispute acts and no one in it is named ×1Account taken as default the police description of the crowd as 'hostile' is carried with no other account ×1Accuracy the Slovenia entry in the country list repeats Austria's name ×1Active voice offender Donaldson is named as the one who did the abuse, in the active voice. ×1 from 2361 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times →

Claims and verdicts

unverified The new €2 EU handling fee applies to non-EU goods of any value, not only to low-value parcels.
RTÉ News says the fee applies 'regardless of value' and its worked example puts the fee on a €250 package. TheJournal.ie does not limit the fee to low-value goods, but both reports rest on the same Revenue briefing.
Checked against 2 sources:
R RTÉ News
Centre estimate · not a score
RTÉ News 🇮🇪IE · digital · PUBLIC New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at RTÉ News → What we have measured Abstraction as the actor the dispute acts and no one in it is named ×1Account taken as default the police description of the crowd as 'hostile' is carried with no other account ×1Accuracy the Slovenia entry in the country list repeats Austria's name ×1Active voice offender Donaldson is named as the one who did the abuse, in the active voice. ×1 from 2361 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → T TheJournal.ie
Centre estimate · not a score
TheJournal.ie 🇮🇪IE · digital · A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at TheJournal.ie → What we have measured Accuracy of attribution The report calls the Tánaiste the Taoiseach partway through. That puts his words under another office. ×1Accusation carried without a reply a charge against a named party, no answer from it in the text held ×1Actor labelling calls the accusers 'opposition parties' when the named accuser is the deputy First Minister ×1Actor mislabelled The first line calls the accusers 'opposition parties', but the accuser quoted is the DUP deputy First Minister, who sits in the same executive ×1 from 2218 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times →
unverified Goods shipped from Great Britain will pay the fee, but goods held in Northern Ireland will not.
TheJournal.ie states both halves of this. RTÉ News carries the Northern Ireland exemption, and both report the same Revenue guidance.
Checked against 2 sources:
T TheJournal.ie
Centre estimate · not a score
TheJournal.ie 🇮🇪IE · digital · A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at TheJournal.ie → What we have measured Accuracy of attribution The report calls the Tánaiste the Taoiseach partway through. That puts his words under another office. ×1Accusation carried without a reply a charge against a named party, no answer from it in the text held ×1Actor labelling calls the accusers 'opposition parties' when the named accuser is the deputy First Minister ×1Actor mislabelled The first line calls the accusers 'opposition parties', but the accuser quoted is the DUP deputy First Minister, who sits in the same executive ×1 from 2218 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → R RTÉ News
Centre estimate · not a score
RTÉ News 🇮🇪IE · digital · PUBLIC New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at RTÉ News → What we have measured Abstraction as the actor the dispute acts and no one in it is named ×1Account taken as default the police description of the crowd as 'hostile' is carried with no other account ×1Accuracy the Slovenia entry in the country list repeats Austria's name ×1Active voice offender Donaldson is named as the one who did the abuse, in the active voice. ×1 from 2361 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times →
unverified Low-value consignments into the EU rose from 660 million in 2022 to 5.7 billion last year.
Only RTÉ News carries these figures, and it attributes them to Revenue. No other report we hold gives them.
Checked against 1 source:
R RTÉ News
Centre estimate · not a score
RTÉ News 🇮🇪IE · digital · PUBLIC New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at RTÉ News → What we have measured Abstraction as the actor the dispute acts and no one in it is named ×1Account taken as default the police description of the crowd as 'hostile' is carried with no other account ×1Accuracy the Slovenia entry in the country list repeats Austria's name ×1Active voice offender Donaldson is named as the one who did the abuse, in the active voice. ×1 from 2361 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times →

Who wrote it

A Andrew Walsh TheJournal.ie
What the bias passes found in their reporting
Actor named and framed The model is named as OpenAI's and called 'rogue'. The breach is placed 'during training', a detail that suggests an accident, and the reach is again a single website.×1
Characterisation calls the Israeli FA's criticism a 'personal attack' in its own voice×1
Characterised in the outlet's own voice calls the FA's statement a 'personal attack' without attributing the phrase×1
Hedge Hedged: the cost 'may' reach shoppers.×1
Claims we checked that rest on their reporting
7 unverified4 true
From 161 reports we hold under this byline, at TheJournal.ie. Two independent readings, each made without the masthead, a quote attached to every tag. A record, never a rating. Their full record →
A Aengus Cox RTÉ News
What the bias passes found in their reporting
Hedge Firmer: retailers are 'likely' to pass it on at checkout.×1
Passing on stated without a source The prediction that sellers will pass the fee to shoppers is written in the report's own voice.×1
Rationale carried The only report that gives the authority's reason for the fee, with figures.×1
Scope stated States flat that the fee applies whatever the value of the goods.×1
Claims we checked that rest on their reporting
3 unverified
From 46 reports we hold under this byline, at RTÉ News. Two independent readings, each made without the masthead, a quote attached to every tag. A record, never a rating. Their full record →
The bylines on the reports this story is built from. Hover one for what our passes have measured on their reporting.

Coverage, outlet by outlet

T TheJournal.ie
Centre estimate · not a score
TheJournal.ie 🇮🇪IE · digital · A new EU ‘handling fee’ will apply to each item in a parcel separately, and it won't be refundable Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at TheJournal.ie → What we have measured Accuracy of attribution The report calls the Tánaiste the Taoiseach partway through. That puts his words under another office. ×1Accusation carried without a reply a charge against a named party, no answer from it in the text held ×1Actor labelling calls the accusers 'opposition parties' when the named accuser is the deputy First Minister ×1Actor mislabelled The first line calls the accusers 'opposition parties', but the accuser quoted is the DUP deputy First Minister, who sits in the same executive ×1 from 2218 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → —
Attributes the risk of the cost being passed on to Revenue, hedged with 'may'. Quotes Revenue's Ray Ryan urging shoppers to check the total cost before buying.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more. The €2 Union Handling Fee will come into effect from 1 November and will apply to e-commerce goods shipped to consumers in Ireland from outside the EU, including Great Britain. The charge will be imposed on top of the €3 customs duty per distinct item which has applied to goods valued at €150 or less since 1 July. This means a package containing three different items could attract €15 in combined customs and handling charges, before any applicable VAT. For example, Revenue said a €10 package containing a pen, notebook and
Scope stated: Names Great Britain as covered but leaves the value threshold unstated. It mentions €150 only for the older €3 duty. — “will apply to e-commerce goods shipped to consumers in Ireland from outside the EU, including Great Britain”
Hedge: Hedged: the cost 'may' reach shoppers. — “Revenue warned that the cost may ultimately be passed on to consumers”
Scope left vague: This report does not say whether goods over €150 pay the fee. It sets the fee beside the €3 duty on low-value goods only. — “will apply to e-commerce goods shipped to consumers in Ireland from outside the EU, including Great Britain.”
Passing on attributed: The same prediction, attributed to Revenue and hedged with 'may'. — “Revenue warned that the cost may ultimately be passed on to consumers”
Read it at TheJournal.ie → https://www.thejournal.ie/eu-handling-fee-2-euro-separate-items-refund-…
R RTÉ News
Centre estimate · not a score
RTÉ News 🇮🇪IE · digital · PUBLIC New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Open this report in The AI Times → Read it at RTÉ News → What we have measured Abstraction as the actor the dispute acts and no one in it is named ×1Account taken as default the police description of the crowd as 'hostile' is carried with no other account ×1Accuracy the Slovenia entry in the country list repeats Austria's name ×1Active voice offender Donaldson is named as the one who did the abuse, in the active voice. ×1 from 2361 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → — PUBLIC
The only report to say the fee applies 'regardless of value', with a worked €250 example. It is also the only one to give Revenue's reason and the parcel figures.
New handling fee for online shoppers on non-EU goods Updated / Tuesday, 29 Sep 2026 16:22 Getty The EU-wide fee is separate from, and in addition to, the €3 customs duty per item that has applied since 1 July Aengus Cox By Aengus Cox Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Correspondent Revenue has confirmed that from 1 November any goods bought from outside the EU will be subject to a new "union handling fee" of €2 per distinct item. It will apply to any goods - regardless of value - bought online from non-EU countries and shipped to consumers in Ireland and other EU member states. The EU-wide fee is
Scope stated: States flat that the fee applies whatever the value of the goods. — “It will apply to any goods - regardless of value - bought online from non-EU countries”
Worked example: The only report with an example over €150. It shows the fee on top of ordinary duty. — “in addition to the €4 Union Handling Fee”
Hedge: Firmer: retailers are 'likely' to pass it on at checkout. — “however, they are likely to pass this charge on to the consumer during the online checkout”
Rationale carried: The only report that gives the authority's reason for the fee, with figures. — “from 660 million in 2022 to 5.7 billion last year”
Scope stated flat: This report says the fee applies to goods of any value and gives a worked example for a parcel over €150. — “It will apply to any goods - regardless of value - bought online from non-EU countries”
Why the fee exists: This is the only report to give Revenue's reason for the fee. — “Revenue said the new charge, which will not be refundable, is intended to cover increased costs incurred by customs authorities”
Passing on stated without a source: The prediction that sellers will pass the fee to shoppers is written in the report's own voice. — “they are likely to pass this charge on to the consumer during the online checkout”
Read it at RTÉ News → https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2026/0929/1593393-new-handling-fee-for…
Checked, didn’t cover
T The Irish Times
Centre estimate · not a score
The Irish Times 🇮🇪IE · digital · No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Actor framing The release is framed as a joint agreement, with no pressure mentioned ×1Actor named Names the residents as the ones who blocked the road ×1Actor named killers named as 'loyalist gunmen'; verb 'shot dead' ×1With no actor named construction no actor named for the theft or the driving in the standfirst ×1 from 1358 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → R RNZ
Centre estimate · not a score
RNZ 🇳🇿NZ · digital · PUBLIC No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Headline against body headline claims a 20-year decline reversed; the first line of the body reports a new low in reading ×1Headline against body headline claims a turnaround; the text carries a record low and puts it on boys ×1 from 2328 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → ABC News (Australia)
Centre estimate · not a score
ABC News (Australia) 🇦🇺AU · public broadcaster · public-service No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Actor label and hedge The same man is called 'far-right' and named by his legal name. The act is hedged with 'allegedly', where the longer report states it flat. ×1A different count, stated flat one dead and 140 missing, unattributed, earliest of the four ×1Affected counted The only report to count the local people affected ×1Are the dead named one of the dead named, through a relative at the hospital ×1 from 4667 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → The Guardian
Centre-left estimate · not a score
The Guardian 🇬🇧UK · newspaper · independent No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Actor named Denial in the passive voice, with no one named as the person who dismissed it ×1Actor named names Israel as acting and states the death toll flat, with no source ×1Actor named Ireland named as the side that ended the conference ×1Allegation omitted the police statement is cut with an ellipsis where the other two reports carry the controlling or coercive behaviour allegation ×1 from 10552 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → C CBC News
Centre-left estimate · not a score
CBC News 🇨🇦CA · public broadcaster · public-service No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Asserted vs attributed the measure is attributed to the three governments; the territory is called occupied in the outlet's own voice ×1Attribution kept in the headline the sourcing travels with the claim into the headline ×1Figure rounded in the headline more than 600 in the headline; the body sources it to a flight-tracking site ×1How the sourcing is hedged the claim is hedged to an unnamed newspaper in both headline and body; the reporting is not held by this report ×1 from 2730 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times →
Silence is recorded, not inferred — each of these was read when we built this story and carried nothing on this event.
We could not read these
BBC News
Centre estimate · not a score
BBC News 🇬🇧UK · public broadcaster · public-service No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Dating and attribution 'It was not until Tuesday' is a judgement about delay, not a date. No other report we hold comments on how long the German finding took. ×1How hard the claim is stated Headline says the UN voted to adopt and replace; the last sentence of the report says the vote is non-binding ×1How hard the claim is stated The qualification arrives in the last sentence and is immediately overridden by an effect the report gives no source for. ×1Which figure is used States the replacement as done — the Assembly voted to replace the map — where the resolution urges states to use a different projection. ×1 from 473 articles we hold · quote attached Outlet profile in The AI Times → The Daily Telegraph
Right estimate · not a score
The Daily Telegraph 🇬🇧UK · newspaper · independent No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Nothing scored yet. We do not carry a rating for any outlet — only what we have measured from published text. Outlet profile in The AI Times → The Times
Centre-right estimate · not a score
The Times 🇬🇧UK · newspaper · independent No report held from this outlet on this story. What we have measured Nothing scored yet. We do not carry a rating for any outlet — only what we have measured from published text. Outlet profile in The AI Times →
These are must-cite outlets for this desk that we did not manage to read when we built this story. That is a gap in our reach, not a silence on their part, and it is not evidence of anything about this story.

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