On March 17, 2020, Amazon released information regarding new guidelines for sellers to follow until April 5, 2020.
3/26/20 Update
UPS – UPS Service Guarantee, also known as UPS Money Back Guarantee, is suspended until further notice, effective immediately.
3/25/20 Update
Coupons: Amazon will not accept new coupons through April 5, 2020. However, coupons in the running or submitted phases still work for existing inventory.
Vine: Until further notice, Vine shipments and enrollment are temporarily paused.
3/24/20 Update
FBA – Amazon will focus on high-priority products such as household staples and medical supplies as removal operations are temporarily stopped in the present COVID-19 pandemic.
Fee Waiver: The long-term storage fee for inventory stored in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Poland, and the Czech Republic is waived by Amazon.
During the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the US, there has been an increase in product orders, specifically for face masks and toilet paper. In response to this increase, Amazon has temporarily paused the shipment of all nonessential products to its warehouses. Amazon’s strained supply chain has resulted in inevitable technical glitches, labor shortages, and shipment delays. To ensure smooth functioning in its warehouse and delivery network, Amazon hired one million employees.
Amazon tells its sellers that it prioritizes shipments in these six categories:
- Baby Products
- Health & Household (including personal care appliances)
- Scientific & Industrial
- Groceries
- Beauty & Personal Care
- Pet Supplies
Restrictions for Sellers
The program Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is not able to ship nonessential products to Amazon. Sellers are restricted from using this storage and delivery network until further notice. Amazon will not hesitate to suspend the accounts of sellers that violate these restrictions and sell items that do not fall in the above list.
Restrictions for Vendors
Amazon prioritizes its purchases and the reduction of purchase orders. Vendors who wholesale their products to Amazon must also comply with these same restrictions, as purchase orders are temporarily paused for products that fall in the nonessential product category.
FBM
This is good news for small businesses to keep going. Fulfillment by Merchant FBM is used by Seller Central/FBA Seller to sell on Amazon. Just create temporary FBM listings and
These restrictions do not affect last-mile shipments of products to customers, although there may be delays. Responding to customer queries is crucial at this point in time. It’s a global pandemic, so sellers must be extra cautious when dealing with customers.
