Amazon US FBM Returns Must Include Prepaid Labels
Amazon requires US FBM sellers to upload a prepaid return label within 7 calendar days after a buyer initiates a return, or provide a full refund without requiring the item to be returned.
What are the key facts?
- 1US FBM returns require a prepaid label or a no-return full refund
- 2Policy effective December 18, 2026
- 3Heavy or bulky products are temporarily subject to special rules
- 4Buyer-paid return addresses no longer meet the requirement
- 5Failure to process on time may trigger an Amazon refund and account deduction
What happened?
According to a seller notice published in Amazon Seller Central, starting December 18, 2026, sellers handling orders through their own fulfillment in the United States must process a return within 7 calendar days after the buyer initiates it. Except for heavy or bulky products that are temporarily subject to special rules, sellers must upload a prepaid return label through the Manage Seller-Fulfilled Returns workflow, or provide the buyer with a full refund without requiring the item to be returned. Providing only a return address with shipping paid by the buyer will no longer meet Amazon’s requirements. Labels provided through Buyer-Seller Messaging or other off-site channels will likewise not be considered compliant. If a seller fails to upload a prepaid label or complete a no-return refund within the required period, Amazon may issue a return refund directly to the buyer and deduct the corresponding amount from the seller’s account. The rule primarily affects US FBM sellers, cross-border sellers shipping from their own warehouses or third-party warehouses, and categories with high return rates and low average order values. Sellers also need to confirm their return addresses, carrier accounts, label-generation procedures, and refund authorization permissions in advance.
What does this mean for cross-border sellers?
Starting December 18, 2026, US FBM sellers must upload a prepaid return label or complete a no-return full refund within 7 calendar days after a buyer initiates a return. Providing only a buyer-paid return address or sending labels through off-site channels will no longer be compliant; delays may lead Amazon to issue an automatic refund and charge the seller’s account.
What should sellers do now?
- 1This week, create a return-ticket list for US FBM stores, set reminders based on the buyer initiation time and the 7-calendar-day deadline, and sample recent tickets to ensure each has either a prepaid label or a no-return full-refund record.AI Customer Service
- 2Check the return addresses, carrier accounts, and Manage Seller-Fulfilled Returns permissions for each US FBM store, and complete a label-generation drill; acceptance requires being able to generate and upload a prepaid label in Seller Central.
- 3For US FBM categories with low average order values and high return rates, calculate the prepaid-return and no-return-full-refund options for each listing, create a profit comparison table, and mark the preferred option for each category.Profit calculator
- 4Classify US FBM products as heavy or bulky versus standard, verify the applicable return rules and procedures, and produce a checklist covering the product, classification, return method, and items requiring confirmation.Dimensional weight