Posted in: Antarctic Press, Comics | Tagged: Class Comics, Korero Comics, tariffs, trump, usa

Antarctic Press, Korero Press & Class Comics, Hit By New U.S. Tariffs

Antarctic Press, Korero Press and Class Comics amongst those comic book publishers who have been hit by new U.S. taxes and tariffs.

Last week, the US announced the implementation of new tariffs, taxes, and fees for imported goods, and the removal of the "de minimis" exemptions that enabled smaller individually imported items into the country, under $800, without taxing the person receiving the goods. And even though the taxes aren't meant to be on printed goods, such as comic books, the bureaucracy, whether state or private, doesn't always seem to either know or accommodate that. The impact has been felt, first as postal services around the world remove their US posting services, due to a lack of confidence or clarity over what or who will get charged what. Ben Dunn, founder of San Antonio-based publisher Antarctic Press, posted to Facebook,

"Well, I hope everyone had a safe and good Labor Day. I spent mine, well, laboring. These comics don't draw themselves you know. However, something did come up that may cause some trepidation. AP has been able to keep costs and items affordable for a long time because we do a lot of stuff overseas. That has now changed. We are being hit with huge tariffs and custom charges with items we manufacture overseas and it has become nearly unsustainable. I don't understand this. I get it for large corporations who can take a hit, but it is devastating to small businesses like ours. There are a lot of things we do that either cannot be made here domestically or are too costly. We may have to make some difficult decisions and all are not really good. But if we are to remain in business we may have to make them. The main thing is to respect our customer base and to keep them our main focus. Comics is our primary mission and I will keep them going in one way or another. If the current administration really wants to help, it should exempt any business making 1 million or less from tariffs or at least reduced tariffs. Just saying."

Meanwhile, Korero Press of the UK has stated that it is suspending all shipping to the USA.

"We're writing to you today with an update that, frankly, is as frustrating for us to write as it will be for you to read. We have been holding off on contacting you until we had clear information about the recent changes to US customs duties and taxes. The truth is, clarity is in short supply. What we do know is that as of August 29th, the Trump administration has entirely removed the long-standing 'de minimis' rule that allowed for duty-free imports on packages under $800. This has created a chaotic situation for everyone involved in international shipping. Crucially, there is no reliable table of charges available. The fees are unpredictable, seem to vary based on what the product is and even which state it's going to, and have thrown the entire shipping industry into disarray. We primarily use Royal Mail for its affordability. They have suspended all service to the USA until they can build a new system to handle these charges. They have not yet resumed service. When Royal Mail returns, they will only offer a service where we (the sender) are billed the unknown duties and taxes by the US government 30 days after delivery. We would then have to pass this surprise cost on to you, which is a terrible experience for everyone involved. Other couriers (like DHL/FedEx) are shipping, but they require the customer to pay the unpredictable fees directly before the package is delivered. This means you could be hit with an unknown bill after placing your order."

Canadian comic book publisher Class Comics has stated;

"Unfortunately, we have to temporarily suspend shipping physical comics to the United States. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. This is due to recent changes in U.S. customs regulations regarding international shipments. These changes have created uncertainty around potential import fees and tariffs on packages coming from Canada, even for products that should be duty-free under the USMCA guidelines. At this time, we cannot guarantee that your order will not be subject to significant and unexpected fees upon delivery. We would never want you to face a large charge for a small comic book order. We will resume shipping to the U.S. as soon as we receive clear guidance on these new rules and are certain that your purchases will arrive without extra charges. Fortunately you can enjoy our Digital Editions without having to pay a $200 fee!"

And Australian store Ozzie Collectibles stated that;

As some of you no doubt have already heard, Australia Post have temporarily suspended shipments to the United States of America due to the ongoing and evolving situation surrounding tariffs. As our largest shipping carrier, this unfortunately limits our ability to process orders for our American customers. Unfortunately, as a result, we regret to inform you that we have temporarily suspended all orders for customers with a US address. We want to reassure our customers that we are deeply saddened to have to take this action, but that it is regrettably outside of our control.. We understand that this news may be disappointing and frustrating for many of our customers. Rest assured we share your feelings and apologise sincerely for this inconvenience. We expect to see the situation evolving soon and hope to resume shipping to the US as soon as possible. We will keep everyone updated. For any US customers currently waiting on an order with us, please be advised we will hold your items in storage until shipping resumes unless you opt for a full refund. For those waiting on pre-orders, your order will tentatively proceed as normal."

British online comic store Cutaway Comics reports on its website;

"Cutawaycomics.co.uk, in light of recent USA tariff announcements, has decided to suspend shipment to American customers. As widely reported, new US Tariffs, which are 10% for UK, have to be paid by US customers on all imports. However, only now has it been made clear that the US wants this collected at the point of sale. Any orders, regardless of value sent without having the Tariff pre-paid will be subject to a flat fee in the US to the buyer of a staggering $80 – $200 to receive their parcel. The new tariff system starts on 29th August 2025 and it seems any order arriving follwoing that date will be subject to the new import fee. Cutaway comics understand the disappointment our, hopefully temporary, decision will cause for our American customers. Presently, the Royal Mail and other shipping providers do not have a system in place to manage the colelction of this new import tax. When such a service is offered we hope to be able to resume USA shipments."

Mind you, it's not just the USA. There are also issues with the Republic of Ireland.

"It seems there is a small war going on between the ROI postal service and the Uk's Royal Mail. Over the last few months many of our shipments have been returned undelivered because of incomplete documentation. This appears to be another fall out of Brexit. Presently we have no idea when this will be resolved and therefore have decided not to continue shipping to the ROI. Northern Ireland is not affected. Hopefully, this will be resolved soon…"

Either way, the impact on both American and non-US publishers and stores is just starting to roll out. And as ever, it's not so much the tariffs that will get you, but the fees they implement to see if you even have to pay the tariffs…

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