- Knowledge
100 Questions on Account Compliance for Amazon New Seller Operations (Part 1)
What should I do if my account is reviewed again?
(1) How to reduce the probability of encountering "account review"?
Remember! Post remediation is better than pre prevention and control! During the account registration process, special attention should be paid to the following 6 points:
Suggest using a stable dedicated network environment, do not use VPN/VPS/Super Browser
Ensure that the information submitted during registration and displayed in the seller's backend is consistent with the company information you truly possess.
Ensure that your business contact information is up-to-date (email address and phone number) so that Amazon can contact you if necessary
The credit/debit cards submitted by the backend for payment and settlement must be valid and able to be deducted normally. It is recommended to use the credit/debit card under the legal representative's name, and the bank account information should always be up-to-date
Please ensure that the company address or actual operating address filled in during registration can provide bills issued by any public utility unit of the water, electricity, coal network in the past 3 months
It is recommended to keep the purchase invoice well. If there is an audit or category application during subsequent business operations, you may be required to provide the corresponding purchase invoice
(2) How to deal with the second instance?
Appeal portal: If you receive a performance notification from the following email * on the seller platform, and the content is as shown in the screenshot, it means that you are likely to have encountered account suspension during registration.
* seller-performance@amazon.com Email address（ no-replies-appeals@amazon.com or noreplies-appeals@amazon.xx ， 'xx' is the abbreviation for Amazon sites, such as co.uk, co.jp, etc., but there may be differences between different sites (for example, notifications for North American sites may be sent through) alliance@amazon.com (Issued)
appeal materials
Amazon only accepts utility bills in the last 90 days, only for pipeline or natural gas, electricity, tap water, or Internet service bills
We only accept color photos or scanned copies of bills in PDF, PNG, and GIF formats, and do not accept screenshots
The document must not cover up any damage, must be genuine and unmodified, and must not be edited or altered (including any annotations or comments on the document)
For company sellers, the bill must display the complete legal name of your company or the complete name of the legal representative, which also needs to be displayed on your business license
If it is indeed impossible to provide bills for water, electricity, coal, etc. under the name of the legal representative or the company, we suggest that you provide the following materials as supporting evidence for relevant departments to review:
Color photo/scanned copy of household registration book: If the legal representative and the person referred to on the bill are under the same household registration
Marriage certificate: the situation where the legal representative and the bill header refer to the couple
Value added tax invoice for water, electricity, and coal: If it is indeed impossible to provide the invoice for the office address, it is recommended to submit the value-added tax invoice for water, electricity, and coal at the seller's platform's office address
If your relevant proof bill, value-added tax invoice, and header are the property management unit at your office address, please provide a color scanned copy of the lease agreement signed between you and the property management unit under the company name on your business license (* actual subject to accuracy)
What should I do if I encounter KYC verification on the European site?
(1) What are the situations triggered by KYC
Beneficial owner: The beneficiary must be the owner or manager of the company, generally a natural person or company that directly or indirectly owns 25% or more of the company's shares, or has decision-making power over business development, or exercises management power over the company in other forms.
(2) KYC Notification and Audit Entrance
Email notification that you need to confirm information or provide materials:
Under the simplified KYC review process, you may be required to confirm your identity information by replying to an email, adding or confirming information in the background, or providing very simple information. Please check your email carefully and promptly enter the "Identity Information" interface of the seller platform to submit materials and verify them.
European site backend prompts/performance notifications submit more information
If Amazon requires you to submit more information to complete the review, you may receive a similar prompt after logging into the seller platform, informing you that you need to supplement or submit relevant materials as soon as possible.
(3) KYC audit material requirements
3. What should I do if I encounter consumer bill verification on the US website?
(1) What is Consumer Law Verification?
According to the Consumer Notification Act, a federal law in the United States, third-party sellers who sell on Amazon US and meet the corresponding requirements of the law are required to provide relevant corporate information, and Amazon has an obligation to collect, verify, and disclose relevant information.
(2) Suitable for sellers
This bill applies to third-party sellers who sell products on the Amazon marketplace and meet the following conditions: in the past 24 months, the total sales of new products (or unused products) have been 200 units for 12 consecutive months, and the total transaction amount exceeds $5000. Sellers need to ensure that they provide relevant information to Amazon and maintain the timeliness and accuracy of this information, otherwise Amazon may suspend your sales privileges and withhold payment until you provide the necessary information and successfully complete verification.
(3) Verification form
[Initial Verification]:Amazon will notify you by email of the required verification operations and notify you in the form of a banner on your seller account information page to complete one or more of the above verification operations.
Annual Verification:Amazon will notify you by email of the required verification operations and notify you in the form of a banner on your seller account information page to complete one or more of the above verification operations.
(4) Verify the content and required materials
Amazon will collect, verify, and disclose enterprise information of all eligible third-party sellers to consumers. including:
What should I do if my Canadian station encounters qualification review?
(1) Background
To meet the requirements of local Canadian laws and regulations for merchant identity verification, safeguard the rights of both buyers and sellers, and create a safer and more trustworthy e-commerce environment, all sellers who want or have already sold on the Canadian site are required to provide specific information and documents to Amazon for identity verification.
(2) Suitable for sellers
All sellers who need or have already sold on Amazon.ca are required to complete the Canadian site qualification review. Failure to pass the review will prevent them from selling on the Canadian site.
(3) Audit entrance
If you do not see this information in the seller's backend, you can also click on "Settings>Account Information" in the seller's platform account to view and click on the information highlighted in red for each section.
Attention: Due to the possibility of different sellers triggering audits at different times, if you have not seen any audit related information on the seller platform at this stage, please wait for the audit to be triggered before proceeding with the process.
(4) Required materials
(5) Frequently Asked Questions
What if I don't provide the required information? Will it affect sales on the US platform?
If you do not provide information related to Canadian qualification review, you will ultimately be unable to open or use the "I Want to Open a Store" account and will not be able to sell on Amazon.ca.
Whether your Canadian site qualification review has been completed will only affect whether you can sell in Canadian stores. Please note that even if you have not completed the Canadian site qualification review, this status will not affect your sales permissions in Amazon US stores or other stores.
How long does it take to verify my information?
Amazon will begin verifying your account after receiving all necessary information. Verification may take up to 10 working days; However, if the situation of the relevant accounts is complex, sometimes it may take longer.
Can I sell during the information verification process?
If you are not currently selling on Amazon Canada and the information you provided during registration is being verified, you will not be able to open a store for sale on Amazon. You can only start selling on Amazon after the information you provide has been verified and your account has been successfully verified.
If you are currently selling on the Canadian site and have been triggered for Canadian site qualification review. Amazon allows you to complete revalidation within 60 natural days. This does not include the time required for Amazon to complete the audit. If revalidation is not completed within 60 natural days, your sales and withdrawal permissions may be restricted.
What is the policy for commercial liability insurance in the United States/Canada/Europe? Do I need to purchase insurance?
(1) Background
In most countries or regions around the world, the principle of strict liability applies to product liability. As long as the product has defects and causes losses to the user, the producer and seller must bear compensation liability. So, once a product liability accident occurs and causes personal injury or property damage to consumers, sellers may face huge economic claims.
Starting from September 1, 2021, Amazon requires sellers with monthly sales revenue exceeding $10000 on its US site to purchase commercial liability insurance within 30 days and designate Amazon as an additional insured. In 2024, this regulation will be extended to Amazon Europe 9 countries and Canada.
(2) Do I need to purchase insurance? What are the consequences if I don't purchase insurance?
If your monthly sales on Amazon related sites have reached the threshold for purchasing commercial comprehensive liability insurance, but Amazon finds that you have not purchased this insurance during the applicable claim period or have not submitted qualified insurance proof in a timely manner, Amazon may take measures such as restricting your sales of specific categories of goods, or even suspending your account until you provide proof of insurance.
Different countries and regions meet the monthly sales threshold for insurance:
(3) Where can I purchase insurance?
Sellers can consult insurance providers for insurance solutions that meet Amazon's insurance requirements. You can also choose to apply for insurance on Amazon Insurance Accelerator. Starting from 0:00 on June 15, 2024, if a seller applies for insurance on the Amazon Insurance Accelerator program, based on the seller's truthful declaration of their products and corresponding sales on all Amazon related sites, the coverage can cover all Amazon sites.
Purchase path:
Log in to the Amazon seller platform, select 【 Settings 】>【 Account Information 】>【 Business Information Bar 】>【 Commercial Insurance 】>【 Get Insurance 】.
Select 'China' as the registered location of the enterprise, and click on 'Purchase Insurance' at the insurance provider.
(4) Policy requirements
Your commercial liability insurance policy must meet all of the following criteria:
The insurance policy limit for each accident and cumulative compensation must be at least $1 million to cover all liabilities arising from or related to your business operations (including product liability, product/completion liability, and personal injury).
The type of insurance policy can be commercial comprehensive liability insurance, umbrella liability insurance, or excess liability insurance, and must specify that it is a standard accident insurance.
Your insurance provider must have global claims processing capabilities and a financial rating of S&PA and/or AM Best A or higher (if S&P or AM Best is invalid or not used in the country/region where you need to insure, local equivalent ratings are allowed to be used).
Your insurance provider must provide Amazon with a cancellation, modification, or non renewal notice at least 30 days in advance.
Your insurance provider must issue an "insurance certificate" on ACORD and provide a traceable code or verification method.
The insurance policy must specify 'Amazon.com Services LLC. and its affiliates and agents' as additional insured persons. The deductible amount for a single accident under any insurance policy shall not exceed $10000, and any deductible amount must be listed on the insurance certificate.
The insurance policy must cover the sale of all products you publish on the Amazon website.
The insured's name must be consistent with the "legal entity" name provided to Amazon (to view your legal entity name, please refer to your account information page).
The insurance policy must be filled out completely and signed.
The insurance policy must be valid for at least 60 days from the date of submission.
What is the JCT tax in Japan? Do I need to register?
(1) Introduction to JCT Tax Background
The full name of Japanese Consumption Tax (JCT) is a tax paid by consumers when purchasing goods. The consumption tax system in Japan has been implemented since 1989, and the tax rate was officially announced as 10% in 2019. Consumption tax is a type of circulation tax, but ultimately it is borne by the buyer. All transactions within Japan are subject to the scope of Japan's consumption tax.
(2) What is a compliant invoice retention system?
Starting from October 1, 2023, a new JCT system - the Compliant Invoice Retention System (インボイス System) will officially come into effect, which means that sellers need to complete JCT registration, obtain a JCT registration number, and include their JCT registration number on the invoices provided for Japanese consumers with tax deduction needs to apply for consumption tax deduction.
The compliance invoice retention system applies to all companies and e-commerce websites produced in Japan. Therefore, after the new policy takes effect, consumers with procurement needs from companies who apply for JCT input deduction will require sellers to issue compliance invoices with JCT registration numbers. Sellers must submit a JCT registration application and start JCT tax declaration to become a "qualified issuer" in order to issue compliant invoices.
(3) Can I still sell products on Amazon without a JCT registration number?
Sellers who have not uploaded their JCT registration number will be able to continue selling on Amazon. But please understand that if you decide not to submit your JCT registration number to Amazon, buyers who need to issue compliant invoices may not purchase your goods as they will not be able to apply for tax deductions.
