Amazon has implemented a series of new regulations for FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) inventory management in 2026, mainly including the cancellation of the shared inventory policy, adjustment of product labeling rules, strengthening of inventory isolation and responsibility attribution, as well as optimization of inventory efficiency and compliance requirements. **The specific contents are as follows:

1. Cancellation of shared inventory policy

· Effective date: March 31, 2026.

· Specific content: Amazon will terminate the long-standing "shared inventory" mechanism. Previously, when different sellers sold the same UPC/EAN products and used manufacturer barcodes for warehousing, the products would enter a unified shared inventory pool, and Amazon would ship them according to logistics timeliness without distinguishing product ownership. After the new regulations are implemented, all sellers' FBA inventory will be physically isolated and independently managed.

· Impact:

· Brand sellers: Inventory is independently managed. After a buyer places an order, it is shipped only from the corresponding seller's inventory, and operations such as returns and removals are also only for the seller's own inventory, effectively solving the previous pain point of unclear inventory ownership.

· Non-brand sellers: Inventory is also independently managed, but they need to bear higher compliance costs and operational complexity.

2. Adjustment of product labeling rules

· Effective date: March 31, 2026.

· Specific content: Amazon implements differentiated product labeling requirements based on seller identity (brand owner or distributor).

· Brand sellers: They must meet the three conditions of "completing Amazon brand registration, having a brand representative role in the account, and the product having a valid GTIN (UPC/EAN, etc.)" to be exempted from affixing Amazon FNSKU labels and can directly use the original factory UPC/EAN for warehousing.

· Non-brand sellers: Including distributors, follow-up sellers, and mass merchants, whether their products have UPC/EAN or not, they must affix Amazon FNSKU labels to all products, otherwise new shipments will be rejected by the FBA warehouse and cannot be completed for warehousing and sales.

· Impact:

· Brand sellers: Save labor and material costs for labeling, simplify the preparation process before warehousing, and improve operational efficiency.

· Non-brand sellers: Increased labor and consumable costs for labeling, increased operational complexity, and compliance risks of warehouse rejection.

3. Strengthening inventory isolation and responsibility attribution

· Specific content: After the new regulations are implemented, all sellers' FBA inventory will be physically isolated and independently managed. After a buyer places an order, it is shipped only from the corresponding seller's inventory, and operations such as returns and removals are also only for the seller's own inventory.

· Impact:

· Clarify after-sales rights and responsibilities: Effectively solve the previous problem of unclear after-sales rights and responsibilities due to mixed inventory, and improve buyer experience.

· Improve inventory management requirements: Sellers need to plan inventory more accurately to avoid stockouts or backlogs, and higher requirements are placed on inventory management capabilities.

4. Optimization of inventory efficiency and compliance requirements

· Specific content:

· Cancel FBA labeling preprocessing service: Starting from January 1, 2026, Amazon will completely stop providing paid product labeling services, and sellers need to complete the labeling work by themselves or outsource it to third parties.

· Upgrade of over-aged inventory fee mechanism: Inventory stored for more than 181 days is considered over-aged, and the surcharge for 6-15 months of inventory age is significantly increased. The related costs for inventory over 15 months can be up to 13 times the regular warehousing fee.

· Update of air transport rules for lithium battery products: Sellers who sell on Amazon and whose products come with lithium-ion batteries must fully comply with the latest aviation transport regulations, otherwise they may face risks of refusal, delay or even removal from the shelves.

· Impact:

· Increase operational costs: Sellers need to bear higher labeling costs, over-aged inventory fees, etc., and operational costs rise.

· Strengthen compliance requirements: Sellers need to comply more strictly with Amazon's inventory management, logistics compliance and other requirements, otherwise they may face penalties or restrictions.