Six out of ten customs seizures of fake goods are found in small parcels

63 % of all seizures of counterfeit and pirated goods by customs authorities are of small parcel shipments.

 Fake consumer goods like shoes, sunglasses and jewellery are most likely to be sent in small parcels.

Over half of all global seizures of counterfeits sent by post contained just one item.

A new report out today reveals that more than 6 out of 10 customs seizures of counterfeit or pirated goods are of small parcels sent through postal or courier services.

The research, carried out by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), shows that, although large container shipments account for most counterfeit traffic in terms of volume and value, customs authorities are increasingly seizing small parcel shipments of counterfeit and pirated goods.

The report shows that these small shipments tend to be in packages of 10 or fewer items and that virtually all industry sectors use small shipments, albeit to different degrees.

The full report in English, the 23 language versions of the executive summary and the 5 language versions of the press release are available here on the Observatory webpage dedicated to this joint study.