Amazon FBA Halts Most Shipments from Third-Party Sellers

Due to customer demand for household staples and medical supplies, Amazon will no longer accept inbound shipments to its fulfillment centers for products other than those high-demand goods. 

The temporary pause applies both to third-party sellers and to retail vendors.

As the reality of the COVID-19 outbreak sets in, people are hunkering down and stocking up on staples to get them through a stressful period. Some people panic-buying items like hand-sanitizer and toilet paper, and they're turning to online shopping.

Amazon said it is out-of-stock of some of these goods and said the new policy would allow it to more quickly receive, restock, and deliver such products to customers.

The new policy takes effect today, March 17, through April 5, 2020. Shipments created before today will be received at fulfillment centers, and Amazon said it would inform sellers once it resumes regular operations.

"We understand this is a change to your business, and we did not take this decision lightly," Amazon said in its announcement, and said it was working around the clock to increase capacity.

"We appreciate your understanding as we prioritize the above products for our customers. Thank you for your patience, and for participating in FBA."

It's important to note this impacts FBA shipments only - it does not appear sellers who ship goods from their own locations are impacted. You can find the full announcement on Seller Central on Amazon.com.

Yesterday, Amazon said a significant increase in demand had led to labor needs that it called unprecedented for this time of year, and announced it was ramping up hiring:

"We are opening 100,000 new full and part-time positions across the U.S. in our fulfillment centers and delivery network to meet the surge in demand from people relying on Amazon's service during this stressful time, particularly those most vulnerable to being out in public."

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