Mailing something to the mainland used to be fairly easy. Virgin Islanders bought the postage and handed their parcel over to a postal worker. Not so in 2025. New federal rules require — in most cases — the use of a cumbersome mobile phone app to estimate the newly enforced tax burden of items transiting the U.S. Customs Zone. Congressional Delegate Stacey Plaskett asked Wednesday if the Virgin Islands should reconsider its outside-the-Customs-Zone status.

After the White House ended a tax exemption for overseas packages valued at less than $800, and the U.S. Postal Service partnered with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to launch the Zonos Prepay app. Plaskett said the territory should weigh the benefits and detriments of existing outside the U.S. Customs Zone.

“I have said, for more than 10 years, that the Virgin Islands should determine if being outside of the Customs Zone has the same benefit that it did over 100 years ago to our territory and residents. If not, the governor of the Virgin Islands as the individual with authority to enter into arrangements of this nature with the Federal Government should request such change which would then require the executive branch authorization,” Plaskett said in a written statement.

President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14324 on Feb. 1 suspended duty-free “de minimis” treatment of packages under an $800 threshold. Those rules were briefly altered and withdrawn before being reinstated Aug. 29 with Executive Order 14324.

Of the U.S. territories, only Puerto Rico, which is within the Customs Zone, has been spared by the rule change that disproportionately weighs on the islands where so much is shipped in and out, Plaskett said.

“This change creates an additional unfair burden for territorial residents,” she said. “I am committed to finding solutions.

The free Zonos Prepay app allows package shippers to calculate and pay many duties before visiting the post office. And it’s mandatory for anyone shipping to the U.S. Customs Zone, Plaskett said.

Without a Declaration ID from this system, USPS cannot accept packages for delivery to the U.S. or Puerto Rico. The prepaid duty requirement does not apply in certain cases, including documents, goods without monetary value, gifts valued at $100 or less, items valued over $800, or returns, she said.

Government House did not immediately reply to messages asking if Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. planned to seek an exemption for the Virgin Islands.