“I rely heavily on Temu’s business to rely on Temu’s business, and I’m afraid I won’t find any of the supplies I usually do,” one Reddit user wrote on R/Temuthings Subreddit. Another user shared their claimed screenshots were conducted with Temu’s in-app customer service chat feature, where the agent said the platform “cannot display projects outside the United States at the moment” and could not provide a timeframe for how long it lasts.
The change also confuses Chinese Temu sellers, apparently without prior notification Americans would soon be unable to browse their products. Temu allegedly withdraws a large number of Chinese sellers from its platform last week just to quickly reverse the measure, leading some sellers to initially believe the same issue has occurred again, the fact that Temu allegedly withdraws a large number of sellers from its platform.
Sellers of furniture and home decoration confirmed to Wired that all products he shipped from China had been removed, and they believe the decision was in response to the end of the “De Minimis” exception, which allows Americans to import parcels from anywhere not more than $800 without paying for import liability.
Temu, Shein and other companies that send customer orders directly from China have benefited from trade provision for years, but critics say it gives foreign online shopping platforms an unfair advantage. Trump issued an executive order earlier this year that announced that De Minimis will no longer apply to Chinese shipments starting on May 2.
“The platform may need some regulatory adjustments during this difficult time,” said Temu furniture seller.
Finally, Trump’s trade war could fundamentally change how Temu operates in the United States and its strategy to retain American customers. The company has become popular in the United States, both of which are due to its huge advertising spending and the fact that it can offer lower prices for similar items available on other e-commerce platforms. With the end of high tariffs on Chinese imports and the De Minimis exemption, the cost of Temu products could increase significantly, and it may take longer for people to receive packages that are now subject to a stricter customs clearance process.
Even before Trump announced the tariffs, Temu had made changes to its business model, including storing more inventory in warehouses in the U.S. and trying to experiment with a more traditional Amazon-style logistics structure. According to a newsletter focusing on cross-border e-commerce, the platform is also exploring another transportation plan called “Y2”, with Temu starting boarding Chinese sellers on April 27.
As the publication explains, Y2 is a more flexible change to Temu’s existing U.S. warehousing model, where sellers ship individual orders instead of large stocks. However, the seller is responsible for handling the new tariff and customs declaration process, as well as any problems that may arise, rather than taking the burden on Temu. In many ways, it is similar to the existing FBM option called “Commerchant’s Fulfillment” or FBM.
These platform-wide changes highlight the speed at which Temu has been adapting to the current volatile policy environment, but the company also risked losing its once-central part of its identity and comparative advantage. “This makes me a huge step forward for Temu. What really helps Temu is different from Wish and Aliexpress is that it controls the supply chain, so it guarantees delivery speed and quality assurance levels that deliver a consistent experience.”
Furniture Temu sellers told Wired that they were away from taking the Y2 van. “We are a large organization, so we can’t change overnight. We’re still watching to see if the policy will change.”
Temu is also trying to increase its sales in other markets such as Europe, where tariffs on Chinese imports are still far lower than those on the United States. A Chinese Temu seller told Wired that although their U.S. listing has been removed, their overall sales have increased due to growth in other regions.
