Belgian retailers call Asian webshops “a threat to society”

“Asian webshops are a threat to our society”, trade federation Comeos says in an open letter that seventy retailers – including some major names – have signed.

More clothes from China than from Belgium

Belgians already buy almost twice as many clothes in China (20 %) than from Belgian retailers (11 %), the trade federation says. Comeos, and the retail chains it represents, call Asian webshops a danger for our economy and for public health and safety. The outcry has signatories from both the national (from A.S.Adventure to ZEB) and international level (such as Amazon, Nespresso and Pearle). This poses dangers, as “One in three products on such platforms do not comply with the European CE norms”, the letter claims.

The retailers demand concrete measures from the new Belgian government. While each day 2.5 million parcels arrive in Belgium from outside Europe, only 0.005 % of them are checked – partly because many parcels from China are exempt from import taxes. Comeos demands that customs checks are improved and simplified: “more checks will not only lead to higher VAT revenues, but also to maintaining jobs in the local retail sector.” ​

The retailers also want to cancel the exemption for parcels worth under 150 euro from import taxes. To make the extra volume in checks manageable for the customs services, Comeos says they should focus on repeat offenders. “Those who were proven correct in a previous check, can be left alone for a while”, the trade federation states. For this model to work, cooperation and data exchange between member states is paramount, just like uniform European rules such as the Digital Product Passport, the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act.