Latest Amazon FBA policies (after September 2025): 4 major changes that sellers must pay attention to!
Created on 10.10
In recent months, Amazon has "quietly" updated several FBA policies.
Many people may not have noticed, but for us sellers, the impact is significant: how to handle inventory, whether restocking is possible, who will cover the packaging... all of these are linked to these new regulations. Today, I will go through the key changes that will be implemented or are about to be implemented after September 2025, and also discuss some coping strategies.
1️⃣ Clearance & Donation: Automatically effective, and enforced.
📅Starting from September 30, 2025, in the United States and Canada, if you do not set a processing method in the backend, Amazon will automatically:
- Clear out unsold goods (Liquidations);
- For eligible goods, directly enforce donations (Donations).
👉Impact on Sellers:
In the past, I could choose for myself, but now I might wake up to find that the goods are either being sold off at a discount or given away for free.
2️⃣FBA will no longer help you with Prep & Label
📅Starting from January 1, 2026, U.S. warehouses will no longer provide pre-processing (prep) and labeling services.
👉Impact on Sellers:
- In the future, all bagging, film sticking, and labeling will have to be done by ourselves.
- The factory can handle what it can, and for what it cannot, it should find a third-party prep warehouse; otherwise, the goods may be returned as soon as they enter the warehouse.
3️⃣Restock restrictions are becoming increasingly strict.
🛑In the second half of the year, many sellers have found that restock limits are stricter, with even individual restrictions based on ASIN.
Sometimes the storage capacity is not full, but a certain hot-selling SKU just won't be replenished for you.
👉Impact on sellers:
Seeing that there are orders and traffic, but no goods to sell, it's more painful than unsold inventory.
4️⃣ The packaging responsibility is completely shifted to the seller.
After the Prep service was discontinued, Amazon's attitude was very clear:
- Packaging error, label error, return is on you;
- Due to damage/loss caused by packaging issues, compensation may not be provided.
👉Impact on Sellers:
In the future, it will really be "self-responsibility for profits and losses," and there can be no carelessness in the delivery process.
🔑What can the seller do now?
✅ Check backend settings: Confirm clearance/donation/return options, don't wait until the end of September to find out that all the goods are gone.
✅Clear slow-moving goods in advance: discount sales, bundle selling, and off-site promotions are all more cost-effective than waiting for Amazon to handle it.
✅Prepare the packaging plan: Don't wait until 2026 to rush, find a good factory or prep warehouse early.
✅Refined Stock Preparation: Diversify risks, do not hoard dead stock, and avoid over-relying on a single SKU.
✅Recalculate profit model: Include clearance recovery, donation with 0 income, and packaging costs.
In a nutshell: Amazon no longer wants to backstop sellers.
Clearance forced, Prep canceled, restocking tightened. In the future, if sellers want to avoid pitfalls, they need to maintain lighter inventory, faster turnover, and stricter control over packaging.
💬What do you think of this new regulation?
● Will actively clear slow-moving sales?
● Still feel that canceling the Prep service is the most troublesome?
Welcome to share your coping strategies in the comments section👇
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