Cheap clothing and products from Shein, Temu and other Chinese online retailers could soon get more expensive.

The White House is ending an exemption that prevented tariffs on small-dollar shipments from China. The move will have a huge impact on Chinese online retailers like Shein and Temu, which are now expected to face steep duties for the first time, in a major blow to their businesses.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday ending the "de minimis" loophole on shipments from China, an exemption that allowed shipments under $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free. Foreign online retailers like Shein and Temu have historically taken advantage of that loophole, allowing them to sell super cheap products to American consumers.

The exemption is set to end May 2.

Trump had previously extended the de minimis loophole back in February after outcry over an earlier decision to end it. On Feb. 1, the president had suspended the exemption, causing widespread confusion and prompting the U.S. Postal Service to halt the delivery of packages from China and Hong Kong temporarily. Trump walked back that decision and reinstated the exemption days later.

Wednesday's move comes as imports from China are set to be hit with a combined total of a 54% tariff rate, which could increase American households' budgets to up to $2,100, according to The Budget Lab at Yale, a policy research center.

The use of the de minimis provision loophole has skyrocketed in recent years: In 2024, more than 1.36 billion shipments entered the U.S. using the exemption, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Trump's order on Wednesday states that the Department of Commerce now has systems in place to process and collect revenue for those imports, and that duties will be charged for packages that are sent starting at 12:01 a.m. on May 2.

Trump originally said he imposed tariffs on China due to what he claims is its role in what he says is a national emergency on fentanyl entering the U.S. This week's order states that shippers of illicit drugs and their inputs "often avoid detection" by using the de minimis rule.

The Chinese government previously pushed back on Trump's fentanyl claims, releasing a report in March that outlined the ways in which it said it was working to tamp down the illegal fentanyl trade.

"In the spirit of humanity, China assisted the U.S. in various ways. The U.S. should not meet good with evil or even impose arbitrary tariffs. No responsible major country should do that," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in March 7 press conference, according to The Associated Press.

"No country should fantasize that it can suppress China and maintain a good relationship with China at the same time," he added.

A Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said in a statement Thursday, following the White House's announcement of additional 34% tariffs on top of the 20% tariffs Trump previously announced, that the tariffs would "endanger global economic development and the stability of the supply chain," urging the U.S. to "immediately cancel its unilateral tariff measures and properly resolve differences with its trading partners through equal dialogue."

Critics of the de minimis exemption say it has harmed American businesses, like fast-fashion company Forever 21, which recently filed for bankruptcy and said in its filing that it was unable to compete with the lower prices of its foreign competitors.

ABC News has reached out to Shein and Temu for comment.