Cross-border e-commerce is entering a new phase in 2026. For online retailers selling internationally, cross-border parcel delivery is no longer just a question of finding a courier and offering delivery to another country. Packaging compliance, customs, consumer protection, product safety and marketplace requirements are becoming an increasingly important part of international e-commerce.

One of the biggest changes has arrived on 12 August 2026, when the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) became applicable.

But PPWR is far from the only change affecting European e-commerce this year.

From new packaging obligations to changes in low-value imports and online returns, 2026 is reshaping how businesses approach cross-border shipping, international parcel delivery and e-commerce logistics.

For smaller webshops in particular, the question is becoming increasingly important:

"Is every European market still worth entering when you factor in the full cost of compliance, shipping and operations?"

What is PPWR and why does it matter for e-commerce?

The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) is the EU's new framework for packaging and packaging waste. The regulation entered into force in February 2025 and became generally applicable across the European Union on 12 August 2026.

Its objectives include reducing packaging waste, improving recyclability and reuse, and creating more harmonised packaging requirements across the EU. For e-commerce businesses, however, PPWR is not simply a sustainability regulation.

It can directly affect cross-border e-commerce and international parcel delivery, because businesses selling packaged products to consumers in other EU countries may have packaging-related obligations in those markets.

This is particularly relevant for webshops expanding internationally. A business selling in one country may already be familiar with its domestic packaging EPR obligations. Once it starts selling directly to consumers in other countries, however, additional national requirements can come into play.

And that can make cross-border shipping and international market expansion more complex than simply adding a new delivery destination to the webshop checkout.

PPWR and cross-border e-commerce: where does the complexity come from?

One of the biggest challenges is that packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) systems are still largely organised at national level. This means that a webshop selling packaged products across several European markets may need to understand and comply with different national systems.

For a large e-commerce business shipping thousands of parcels per month, these costs and administrative tasks can be absorbed into a larger operation. For a small webshop testing a new market, the situation can be very different.

Imagine a handmade brand that wants to test three new European markets. The business might only expect 50 or 100 orders per year from each country. Commercially, this is a low-risk market test. From a compliance perspective, however, fixed registration, reporting and representation costs can make the market much less attractive.

This is one of the key challenges facing small businesses expanding through cross-border e-commerce: shipping volume is variable, but many compliance costs are not.

Online marketplaces are becoming compliance gatekeepers

The impact of PPWR also extends to online marketplaces. Under the new framework, online platforms have obligations to collect relevant information from sellers regarding packaging producer status and registration. This means marketplaces are increasingly becoming part of the compliance process.

For sellers, this can change the way international expansion works. Previously, a small webshop might have approached a new market like this:

Launch → test demand → scale → deal with local compliance.

The direction is increasingly becoming:

Compliance → marketplace access → launch → test demand → scale.

For large e-commerce businesses, this may simply mean another administrative step. For smaller sellers, it can make cross-border market testing more expensive and more complicated. This is particularly relevant for handmade businesses, niche brands and small direct-to-consumer webshops that depend on international marketplaces to reach new customers.

Cross-border parcel delivery is becoming a strategic decision

This is where cross-border parcel delivery becomes more than an operational question.

When expanding into a new market, shipping is already one of the most important cost factors.

But international parcel delivery also affects:

• delivery speed
• customer experience
• returns
• cash on delivery
• checkout conversion
• final product price
• profitability per order

Adding compliance and packaging costs to the equation makes the economics of international delivery even more important. A market may look attractive based on sales potential alone. Once you add cross-border shipping costs, packaging EPR, returns and other market-entry costs, the calculation can look very different.

This is why choosing the right international parcel delivery solution should be part of the market expansion strategy from the beginning.

The €150 customs threshold is gone

PPWR is not the only major change affecting international e-commerce in 2026.

From 1 July 2026, the EU introduced a temporary €3 customs duty on low-value imports from outside the EU. The change applies to e-commerce shipments with a value of €150 or less entering the European Union from third countries.

The reform is part of the EU's broader effort to address the enormous volume of low-value parcels entering the European market and to create a more level playing field for European businesses competing with sellers shipping directly from outside the EU.

For e-commerce businesses, the change has several implications.

First, it affects the landed cost of international orders. Products shipped directly from outside the EU may become more expensive once customs charges are taken into account.

Second, it makes international parcel delivery and cost transparency even more important. Customers increasingly expect to know the total cost of an order before completing their purchase. Unexpected customs or handling charges can create friction at checkout and negatively affect the customer experience.

For EU-based webshops, the change may also alter the competitive landscape. Sellers operating from within the EU can potentially benefit from the additional costs faced by low-value imports from third countries, particularly in product categories where price competition from international marketplaces has been strong.

The €3 duty is currently a temporary measure, with the EU planning a broader customs reform in the coming years.

For e-commerce businesses expanding internationally, the message is clear: the cost of cross-border shipping is no longer just about the delivery fee. Customs, duties, handling and the total landed cost all need to be considered when deciding whether a market is commercially attractive.

New online return requirements are changing the customer experience

Customs and packaging are not the only changes affecting e-commerce in 2026. New EU requirements concerning online withdrawal are also changing the way e-commerce businesses handle returns.

As we covered in our article, online businesses need to provide consumers with an electronic way to exercise their right of withdrawal. For shoppers, this is designed to make returns simpler. For webshops, it creates another technical and compliance requirement.

Returns are particularly important for cross-border e-commerce, where returning a parcel internationally can be significantly more expensive and complicated than returning a domestic shipment. This makes local return solutions, efficient reverse logistics and clear return processes increasingly valuable for international sellers.

Product safety and marketplace compliance

Another important part of the changing European e-commerce environment is product safety. The General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) has applied since December 2024, so it is not a new 2026 regulation. Its impact, however, continues to be felt by e-commerce businesses and marketplaces.

Product traceability, safety information and the identification of responsible economic operators are particularly important for businesses selling products sourced from outside the EU. For marketplaces, this means increasingly strict requirements around seller and product information. For e-commerce businesses, it means that international expansion requires more than a translated webshop and international parcel delivery.

Businesses need to understand the regulatory requirements of the markets they enter.

What does this mean for small e-commerce businesses?

The biggest impact of these changes may not be felt by the largest e-commerce companies. Large businesses already have legal teams, compliance specialists, logistics departments and established processes. The challenge can be much greater for smaller webshops.

Consider a business that wants to test a new European market with only a few dozen orders. The business needs to consider:

• packaging EPR requirements
• product compliance
• marketplace requirements
• taxation
• returns
• international parcel delivery
• local customer expectations
• delivery times
• payment methods
• the total cost of serving the market

Suddenly, “Let's start selling in Germany” is no longer simply a marketing decision. It becomes a business case.

International expansion needs a different approach in 2026

We recently explored this topic in more detail here, and the conclusion is simple: successful international expansion requires a system.

Before entering a new market, e-commerce businesses should understand:

1. Market potential
Is there genuine demand for your product?

2. Competition
Can you compete with local webshops on price, product and delivery?

3. Compliance
What packaging, product safety, tax and consumer protection requirements apply?

4. Logistics
What will cross-border parcel delivery actually cost?

5. Delivery experience
Can you offer delivery times comparable to local competitors?

6. Returns
Can customers return products easily and affordably?

7. Scalability
Will your logistics setup still work when order volumes increase?

This is why logistics should not be treated as the final step of international expansion. Your cross-border parcel delivery strategy should be part of the expansion plan from day one.

The role of international parcel delivery

For e-commerce businesses, international shipping can quickly become one of the biggest barriers to profitable expansion.

Traditional international parcel delivery often means sending each parcel individually through an international courier network.

For higher-volume e-commerce businesses, a consolidated cross-border parcel delivery model can offer a different approach.

At Pactic, international orders are collected at our logistics hub and transported in consolidated shipments to the destination country. From there, local parcel delivery partners handle the final-mile delivery as domestic shipments.

This allows e-commerce businesses to combine:

• competitive international parcel delivery rates
• local delivery partners
• shorter delivery times
• easier returns
• cash on delivery in selected markets
• multiple courier services
• centralised shipment management

Our Pactic Cross-border service helps e-commerce businesses simplify international parcel delivery across Europe. It provides access to local parcel delivery partners in multiple European markets, while the entire international shipping process can be managed through a single logistics platform.

Pactic currently supports cross-border parcel delivery across multiple European destinations, including Germany, Poland, Romania, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Greece and Italy, with additional markets available.

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One integration. Multiple courier services. International delivery.

As the regulatory environment becomes more complex, simplifying the operational side of international e-commerce becomes increasingly valuable.

Pactic's logistics platform allows webshops to manage shipments from multiple couriers through a single interface, generate shipping labels, track parcels and manage COD shipments. It can also integrate multiple webshop platforms and marketplaces.

For growing e-commerce businesses, this means that cross-border parcel delivery does not have to mean managing a separate logistics process for every country. Instead, international shipments can be managed through one logistics platform and one operational setup.

2026 is changing the economics of cross-border e-commerce

PPWR is an important milestone, but it is only one part of a much larger shift.

In 2026, e-commerce businesses are dealing with:

• new packaging and EPR requirements
• changes to low-value import customs
• evolving consumer protection requirements
• stronger marketplace compliance
• ongoing product safety obligations
• increasing expectations around returns and delivery

None of these changes makes international e-commerce impossible. But they do make profitable international expansion more dependent on planning and operational efficiency.

For smaller businesses, the question is no longer simply:

“Where can we sell?”

It is:

“Where can we sell profitably, compliantly and with a competitive delivery experience?”

That distinction matters. The right market, combined with the right cross-border parcel delivery solution, can turn international expansion into a scalable growth strategy. The wrong combination of compliance costs, international shipping costs and poor delivery experience can make an otherwise attractive market unprofitable.

Cross-border e-commerce is still a major growth opportunity

European e-commerce is not becoming less international. It is becoming more sophisticated. The businesses that succeed will be those that treat international expansion as a complete system — from market selection and compliance to international parcel delivery, returns and customer experience.

For webshops looking to expand across Europe, getting the logistics right is one of the most important pieces of that system. Because when customers are in another country, your delivery experience becomes part of your brand.

And in 2026, successful cross-border e-commerce means making sure that experience is not only fast and reliable, but also commercially sustainable.

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