Today's tip · Compliance
The insurance rule that ignores your sales starts Monday
For years, Amazon's liability insurance rule kicked in at $10,000 a month. On Nov 2, a second rule arrives, and it asks what you sell, not how much.
Here's the rule most sellers know. If your Amazon.com gross proceeds pass $10,000 in any month, you have 30 days to get commercial liability insurance with at least $1 million of coverage per occurrence and in aggregate. Plenty of small shops never hit that line and never thought about it again.
From November 2, 2026, that line stops protecting some of them. Sellers with products in categories with enhanced safety listing requirements must keep a $1 million policy that covers those products, regardless of whether they reach $10,000 in a month. Amazon lists children's products, cosmetic and ingestible products and lithium battery products among them, and says the full list lives on a Seller Central help page. It applies to new and existing listings.
So the question for this weekend isn't how big you are. It's what's in your catalog. A part-time seller with one kids' bath toy and a bestselling phone charger brand now share a requirement. Spend twenty minutes with your inventory and that category list before Monday, not after a listing notice shows up.
Simplified from Amazon's Seller Central announcement. Coverage in both cases: at least $1 million per occurrence and in aggregate.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
Data desk by XENA IntelligenceThe weekend plan
- 01Pull your category list
Export your active and inactive listings and note the product categories. New and existing listings both count.
- 02Match it to Amazon's list
Compare against Amazon's product categories with enhanced safety listing requirements, which include children's, cosmetic and ingestible, and lithium battery products.
- 03Check the policy limits
Your policy needs at least $1 million per occurrence and in aggregate, and it has to cover those specific products.
- 04Keep it on file in Seller Central
Upload or update your policy so Amazon has it before the Nov 2 effective date.
- 05Recheck before each launch
A single new listing in a covered category can bring the requirement with it, whatever your monthly sales.
Section 02
This week's checklist
6 jobs pulled from this issue, in the order the deadlines bite. Tick them off as you go. Your browser remembers the ticks, nobody else sees them, and a fresh list comes with each issue.
0 of 6 done
Section 03
The seller calendar
Every date Amazon has put in writing for the season, plus the two everyone knows. October is zoomed in on the chart because that's where the trouble is.
Peak fulfillment fees run Oct 15 to Jan 14. Plus $0.32 per unit on average, with the 3.5% surcharge on top.
| Date | What happens | Type | Countdown | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime Big Deal Days (Oct 6 to 7) | Shopping event | Done | About Amazon | |
| AWD arrival deadline for Black Friday Week | Inventory | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Holiday peak fulfillment fees begin | Fees | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Original Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal deadline (Amazon has since extended it to Nov 13) | Deals | Done | Seller Central News | |
| FBA arrival deadline, minimal shipment splits | Inventory | Done | Seller Central News | |
| FBA arrival deadline, Amazon-optimized splits (most sellers) | Inventory | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Business Hour Delivery Rate review: seller-fulfilled offers under 90% may be deactivated for Amazon Business customers | Offer | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Last day of off-peak storage for AWD with auto-replenishment | Inventory | Today | Seller Central News | |
| Confirm New Selection Program (2026) enrollment to keep launch fee credits | Fees | Today | Seller Central News | |
| Extended holiday returns begin: items bought Nov 1 to Dec 31 can come back until Jan 31 | Returns | Tomorrow | Seller Central News | |
| New commercial liability insurance requirements take effect: a $1 million policy for products in categories with enhanced safety listing requirements, with no sales threshold | Policy | In 2 days | Seller Central News | |
| Virtual multipacks from the latest pilot wave become available to customers | Offer | In 11 days | Seller Central Help | |
| Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal sourcing closes (extended from Oct 20) | Deals | In 13 days | Seller Central News | |
| Ask Amazon: Seller Assistant live Q&A with Amazon's product teams | Shopping event | In 18 days | Seller Central News | |
| Black Friday | Shopping event | In 27 days | Calendar | |
| Cyber Monday | Shopping event | In 30 days | Calendar | |
| Last day to sign up for the free 12-month Amazon Quick Plus subscription | Offer | In 61 days | About Amazon | |
| Last purchase date covered by the extended holiday return window | Returns | In 61 days | Seller Central News | |
| Holiday peak fulfillment fees end | Fees | In 75 days | Seller Central News | |
| Last day to return holiday purchases under the extended window | Returns | In 92 days | Seller Central News |
Add every date to your calendar (.ics)Works with Google Calendar, Outlook and Apple Calendar. Re-download after big announcements.
Sources: Seller Central News, Holiday 2026, About Amazon, Seller Assistant, Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policy, Seller Central News, New AI tools for the holidays, Seller Central News, Black Friday Cyber Monday deals deadline extended, Seller Central News, Business hour delivery requirement for seller-fulfilled shipments, Seller Central Help, Virtual multipacks, Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
Fee watch
The changes that cost money this year, newest last. If Amazon hasn't announced it, it isn't here.
Since Jan 15, 2026
2026 US fee update
FBA fees rose by an average of $0.08 per unit. Amazon added no new fee types for 2026.
Amazon, 2026 US referral and FBA fee updateSince Apr 17, 2026
Fuel and logistics surcharge
3.5% on FBA fulfillment fees, about $0.17 per unit on average in the US. Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime followed on May 2.
Seller Central News, Fuel and logistics surchargeSince Sep 2026
MCF Preferred Pricing Program
Discounted Multi-Channel Fulfillment fees plus FBA credits per unit shipped. Amazon says sellers save 15% to 25% on fulfillment fees for the first six months, with no contract and one-click enrollment in Seller Central.
About Amazon, Prime delivery for MCF merchants' websitesOct 15, 2026 to Jan 14, 2027
Holiday peak fulfillment fees
About $0.32 more per unit on average, with the 3.5% surcharge calculated on top.
Seller Central News, Holiday 2026Holiday deal events
Deal fees
$100 upfront per promotion plus 1.5% of promotional sales, capped at $5,000, for Best Deals, Lightning Deals and Prime Exclusive Price Discounts.
Seller Central News, Holiday 2026Nov 1, 2026 to Jan 31, 2027
Extended holiday returns
Orders placed Nov 1 to Dec 31 can be returned until Jan 31, 2027, for FBA and seller-fulfilled orders alike. Budget for a slower, larger return wave.
Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policy2027
Next annual fee update
Not announced as of Oct 24, 2026. Amazon says it gives at least 90 days' notice, and the 2026 changes were announced in October 2025.
Amazon, 2026 US referral and FBA fee update
Section 04
By the numbers
Four figures worth knowing this week. Each one is Amazon's own, linked to where they said it.
date Amazon's new commercial liability insurance requirements take effect
Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirementsminimum coverage per occurrence and in aggregate
Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirementsmonthly Amazon.com gross proceeds that trigger insurance for everyone else
Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirementslast day to return items bought Nov 1 to Dec 31, 2026
Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policySection 05
The playbook
3 moves for this week, then a few quick ones for the train.
Compliance
Small shop, safety category: the $10,000 line no longer covers you
The new requirement turns on category, not volume. If any of your products sit in a category with enhanced safety listing requirements, you need a policy that covers them from November 2, even in a month where you sell almost nothing.
Amazon also warns that its category page isn't complete. The list changes as Amazon adds categories, and it says the list doesn't cover every product with these requirements. Treat it as a starting point, then ask your insurer the boring question in writing: does this policy name these products?
Do this: Write down every SKU that's a children's product, a cosmetic, something people eat or drink, or anything with a lithium battery, and confirm your policy covers each one.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
- Children's products
- Cosmetic products
- Ingestible products
- Lithium battery products
- Other categories on Amazon's enhanced safety listing requirements page
Amazon says these are included but not the whole list. Check the Seller Central help page for the current categories.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
Data desk by XENA IntelligenceReturns
Tomorrow's sales can come home in January
Amazon's extended holiday return window opens November 1. Anything bought from Nov 1 to Dec 31, 2026 can be returned until January 31, 2027. Apple brand products have a shorter runway, until January 15. It applies to everything sold on Amazon.com, FBA and seller-fulfilled alike, and you don't need to do anything to turn it on.
What it changes is your math. A sale on November 2 isn't settled in 30 days anymore. It's settled in about three months. If you plan cash, reorders or a January clearance around holiday revenue, count a slice of it as provisional until February.
Do this: Mark Jan 31, 2027 in your planning sheet as the date holiday revenue is final, and hold back a returns reserve until then.
- Day 0Nov 1: window opens
- Day 30Standard 30-day window would end
- Day 60Dec 31: last covered purchase date
- Day 75Jan 15: Apple products
- Day 91Jan 31: last return date
Day counts from Nov 1, 2026, based on the dates in Amazon's holiday return policy announcement.
Source: Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policy
Data desk by XENA IntelligenceDeadlines
Two things turn into pumpkins at midnight
It's Halloween, and two Amazon deadlines run out today. AWD storage with auto-replenishment is at off-peak rates through October 31. If you've been meaning to move upstream stock into AWD before peak pricing, today is the day you were meaning.
Today is also the confirmation date for the New Selection Program (2026). If you're enrolled and want to keep the launch fee credits for new ASINs, confirm in Seller Central before the day ends. Neither of these will send you a dramatic reminder tomorrow. They'll just quietly be over.
Do this: Open Seller Central today and check two screens: your AWD inventory plan and your New Selection Program enrollment.
Sources: Seller Central News, Holiday 2026, Seller Central News, New Selection Program (2026)
Quick hits
04Compliance
Already insured? Find the expiry date.
For sellers based in Mainland China, Amazon will reject newly submitted policies that don't come through the Amazon Insurance Accelerator starting November 2. A valid third-party policy submitted before Nov 2 keeps working until it expires, and the renewal then has to go through AIA. Everyone else should still look up their renewal date today, because a lapsed policy and a new category rule make an annoying pair in December.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
05Deals
Thirteen days to Nov 13. Price your deals with January in mind.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal sourcing closes on November 13, after Amazon extended it from October 20. Every unit those deals sell falls inside the holiday return window, so a buyer can send it back as late as January 31. Leave room in the discount for the returns your category usually sees, and decide the floor price before you open the deal form.
Sources: Seller Central News, Black Friday Cyber Monday deals deadline extended, Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policy
Section 06
The wire
What changed lately, straight from Amazon. We read the announcement so you can read the summary.
- Policy
New insurance requirements start Nov 2
Sellers in categories with enhanced safety listing requirements need a $1 million liability policy for those products, regardless of monthly sales.
via Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements - Returns
Holiday return window opens Nov 1
Items bought on Amazon.com from Nov 1 to Dec 31 can be returned until Jan 31, 2027. Apple products until Jan 15.
via Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policy
Follow for more
Tomorrow's tip, in your inbox before your coffee cools
One short email when a new issue lands. Amazon's news without the press-release voice, and one move worth making that week. No upsells, no "ultimate guides."
Section 07
Straight answers
The questions sellers are typing into search bars and chatbots this week, answered in under a minute each. Every answer is grounded in Amazon's own announcement, linked below it.
What are Amazon's new insurance requirements for November 2026?
Starting November 2, 2026, sellers with products in categories with enhanced safety listing requirements must keep commercial liability insurance covering those products, with at least $1 million per occurrence and in aggregate. This applies regardless of whether they reach $10,000 in monthly Amazon.com gross proceeds, and it covers both new and existing listings.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
Which product categories need insurance on Amazon regardless of sales?
Amazon says the categories with enhanced safety listing requirements include children's products, cosmetic and ingestible products, and lithium battery products. The full list is on a Seller Central help page. Amazon notes that the list changes as it adds categories, so check it before launching anything new in a related category.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
When do Amazon sellers need commercial liability insurance?
Under Amazon's existing policy, any seller whose Amazon.com gross proceeds exceed $10,000 in a month must get commercial liability insurance within 30 days, with at least $1 million of coverage per occurrence and in aggregate. From November 2, 2026, sellers in enhanced safety categories need that coverage even below the threshold.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
Do sellers in China have to use Amazon Insurance Accelerator?
Yes. Starting November 2, 2026, Amazon will reject newly submitted insurance policies from sellers based in Mainland China that aren't obtained through the Amazon Insurance Accelerator. A valid third-party policy submitted before November 2 can be used until it expires. After that, the seller must get insurance through AIA.
Source: Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements
What is Amazon's holiday return policy for 2026?
Items bought on Amazon.com between November 1 and December 31, 2026 can be returned until January 31, 2027. Apple brand products can be returned until January 15, 2027. The window applies to FBA and seller-fulfilled orders alike, needs no action from sellers, and leaves other return and refund conditions unchanged.
When is the deadline for Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals on Amazon?
Amazon extended Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal sourcing to November 13, 2026, from the original October 20 deadline. Units sold through those deals fall inside the extended holiday return window, so set deal prices with possible returns through January 31, 2027 in mind.
Source: Seller Central News, Black Friday Cyber Monday deals deadline extended