According to foreign media, the UK Department of Transport has issued a position statement on “last mile logistics”.

One of its recommendations is to impose a 20% shipping fee on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon.

The decision will have a huge impact on e-commerce sellers in the UK.

The impact of the epidemic has increased people’s reliance on online shopping platforms.

Even now that the epidemic is under control in the UK and people have become accustomed to shopping online,

business in offline stores is still sluggish.

Like charging for plastic bags to discourage their use, the ministry said the mandatory transportation fees are aimed at encouraging buyers to switch from shopping online to shopping in physical stores.

At this stage, the UK government has not said who is responsible for the tax, but if the proposal goes ahead, it is the seller who is most likely to bear the cost, as amazon has shown in similar cases.

Under British policy, e-commerce firms are already charged a 20% VAT, so if an extra 20% shipping charge meant a 40% direct tax on every product sold online, the cost to sellers would skyrocket.

However, this policy is only a proposal at present, and the specific plan needs to be implemented after the British government comprehensively examines the online and offline sales situation and the consumption trend of British citizens.But amazon UK sellers should also be prepared for policy changes.