Product Launch

Unfolding Amazon Product Compliance: A Guide for Sellers

By admin

Aug 30, 2023

AMZDudes top Amazon marketing agency

To ensure consumer purchases are safe and compliant with local laws, Amazon occasionally contacts sellers to obtain copies of test reports, labels, and certificates. A listing for a new product, customer complaints, or Amazon’s internal compliance review team are all potential triggers for such an investigation.

All consumer goods are subject to Amazon’s product compliance policy, which varies widely between countries and regions. This guide will explain Amazon’s rationale for requiring merchants to submit compliance documents for their products and other typical documentation requirements providing additional product details.

Why is Amazon Product Policy Compliance Important?

The Amazon Product Policy ensures that the products offered in the marketplace apply to laws and regulations and are safe for Amazon’s customers, employees, and business partners; Amazon product compliance is essential. When shopping or selling on Amazon, shoppers and sellers alike need to know that the things they purchase and sell are held to the same high standards as Amazon.

Consumers’ health is in danger if products aren’t up to code regarding safety and regulation. Account Health could be impacted if listings are withdrawn due to insufficient compliance documents. If you’re shipping something internationally, customs may refuse delivery if it doesn’t conform to Amazon’s Product Policy. Furthermore, non-compliant merchandise stored in Amazon’s fulfillment centers may be destroyed.

What is meant by Amazon’s Compliance Documents?

The Amazon product policy requires vendors to provide documentation demonstrating their products’ safety to remain compliant.

When first listing a product, most vendors will include compliance documents. In any case, Amazon reserves the right to inquire about further paperwork at any moment. This typically occurs in response to an internal audit, a change in Amazon’s product policy, or a complaint from a customer.

The following are examples of acceptable compliance documents for Amazon: 

  1. Validation of Safety
  2. Lab results
  3. Photos and descriptions
  4. Manuals or product guide
  5. Keeping tabs on tags
  6. Third-party inspections
  7. Regulatory symbols

Take note that specialized paperwork is often needed in particular fields. For instance, if you’re selling things aimed at kids, you’ll need a Children’s Product Certificate (CPC).

Amazon reserves the right to delete your business listing and block your store if you violate these policies.

A List Of Amazon Restricted Products For Children & Adults

To sell on Amazon, sellers must confirm compliance with products prohibited by Amazon. Here is a list of Amazon-restricted products that require submitting compliance documents to allow trading on Amazon.

  1. Supplements
  2. Certain food items
  3. Products made for children and animals
  4. Alcohol
  5. Fine art
  6. Disinfectants
  7. Cosmetics and skincare/haircare
  8. Weapons
  9. Burial artifacts
  10. Lasers
  11. Precious gems
  12. Theft devices
  13. Lighting
  14. Medical devices
  15. Seeds and plants
  16. Postage stamps
  17. Surveillance equipment
  18. Tobacco
  19. Upholstery

Children’s Product Certificate (CPC)

To sell children’s products (chewy toys or automatic cars with lithium batteries), sellers must submit the ensuing documents that align with Amazon Product Policy about the child’s and parent’s safety while using the product.

  1. Product specification
  2. Safety instructions for the item’s use
  3. Location and timing of consumer safety testing (as specified in the CPC).
  4. Name, street address, and telephone number of the testing facility
  5. Information about the owner of the test records
  6. Month, year, country, and manufacturing region
  7. Contact information for the importer or manufacturer

General Certificate of Conformity (GCC)

Apart from children’s products, if your product falls within Amazon’s restricted products list, then you are required to submit the following documents before selling: 

  1. Product specification
  2. Relevant safety regulations for the item
  3. Location and date of testing for the GCC’s consumer safety regulations
  4. Name, street address, and telephone number of the testing facility
  5. Contact information for the holder of the GCC’s test records
  6. Month, year, country, and region of production
  7. Contact information for the importer or manufacturer

How To Submit Compliance Documents To Amazon?

Using Seller Central’s tools to make your products compliant with Amazon’s product policy couldn’t be easier. Let us navigate you through finding compliance documents, submitting them, and getting your products approved by Amazon.

Compliance Reference

Before you list your product on Amazon, you can review its documentation and testing requirements through Compliance Reference. These requirements are by the region’s product policy in which you intend to sell your products. 

The Compliance Reference can assist you in the early phases of product conception or sourcing and in making your existing products Amazon Product Policy compliant. It facilitates product procurement and development decisions by providing access to all relevant product requirements. This enables you to make well-informed judgments about which products to sell in which market while saving you time and money.

  1. Go to your ‘Add a product’ dashboard from your Seller Central.
  2. Navigate to the ‘Compliance Reference’ in the lower left corner of the ‘Add a Product’ dashboard.
  3. Select your Import/Export country or Sales Arc, then search for your product type.
  4. You will automatically be able to view all the relevant requirements based on the Sales Arc and product type you selected earlier on the Compliance Reference homepage.

Looking at the requirements, you can deduce whether you need a service provider to assist you in fulfilling the requirements or do it yourself.

If you need assistance, you can select a qualified service provider from within Compliance Reference to meet the compliance requirements.

Manage Your Compliance (MYC) Dashboard

This dashboard lets you control and access all compliance-related activities in one interface. This is a simplified solution for sellers on Amazon to fulfill their product compliance requirements on time. 

On this dashboard, you can view the overall compliance status of your Amazon product selection. You can filter and sort the columns for a clearer view of the progress of your compliance document submissions and requirements. 

All policy specifications are listed on MYC organized geographically. You can sort cases in order of urgency so that urgent compliance tasks get handled first. Also, you may submit up to 5,000 ASINs in a single bulk upload and manage appeals. 

To upload the documents:

  1. Download the list of all open issues.
  2. Attach all the relevant documents. 
  3. Finally, add the file name to the Excel file you downloaded in the first step and re-upload the document.

The status ‘Submitted for review’ will be visible within minutes after uploading. If you wish to upload your documents, you can simply drag and drop the function and a separate view for each open requirement.

Sellers can follow the simplified appeal process through MYC if the requirements Amazon asks do not apply to their products.

Lab Central

Another component of Manage Your Compliance is the ‘Lab Central,’ which connects the sellers to third-party, certified labs to perform compliance services on the seller’s behalf, automatically submit it to Amazon for approval, and promptly initiate the document review process for your product.

Your Products Should Guarantee Consumer Safety

Amazon keeps its buyers’ safety the top priority and expects the sellers to sell products that pose no potential harm to the consumers. This is why Amazon is constantly updating its product compliance policies to ensure all the new products entering the market are safe to use, especially the ones that fall under Amazon’s restricted products list. 

Besides international and federal laws, Amazon implements its Amazon Product Compliance policy and regulations to ensure safety measures. Sellers can use Amazon’s product audit tools (Manage Your Compliance, Compliance Reference) mentioned above to check the required compliance documents for their products. 

Call Us

Amazon anticipates that all sellers will provide safe products and maintain a record of documents required as defined in the Amazon Product Policy. 

Proper documentation of compliance will only enhance your credibility. In addition, you will gain the customer’s trust and maintain a strong presence on Amazon.

Need help selling restricted Amazon products? Or align your products with Amazon’s Product Policy? Contact AMZ Dudes, a team of seasoned Amazon experts, to submit your compliance documents and get your products approved by Amazon.

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