Amazon is holding my money: reserves and funds after deactivation

Why does Amazon hold payouts?

Section 2 of Amazon's Business Solutions Agreement (BSA), which covers payments, and the Selling on Amazon service terms give Amazon the right to hold payouts, set up reserves and offset amounts owed. Holds fall into two main groups:

• While the account is active: the delivery-based reserve, an account level reserve based on risk assessment, a bank account change, and holds for a specific risk.
• After deactivation: the entire balance held for a period, followed by a separate payout request and, in some cases, permanent withholding.

While the account is active: payout cycle and reserves

• Payout cycle: under the US service terms, the available balance is paid every 14 days (or more often); amounts held under the agreement are deducted from that payout.
• Account level reserve: Amazon may set up a reserve on the account based on its risk assessment and change the amount at its discretion. Amazon does not publish a table of reserve rates.
• Bank account: when a bank account is first added or changed, the payout calculation date can be delayed by up to 14 days.
• Individual plan: under the US terms, for Individual plan sellers who registered after October 30, 2011, sales from the last 14 days are not included in the payout.
• Holds for risk: if Amazon determines that a seller's activity may create risks such as refunds, chargebacks, claims, disputes, or policy or legal violations, it may hold payouts for as long as those risks persist.
• Security and limits: Amazon may ask for additional amounts to secure obligations and may set transaction or payout limits for security purposes.

What is DD+7?

DD+7 (Delivery Date Based Reserve) means an order's proceeds are held in reserve until 7 days after the delivery date. The aim is to see returns and claims before paying out. According to Amazon's notice on its EU seller forums, EU accounts were switched to this model automatically in August 2023; payout frequency and the total amount do not change, but cash flow drops in the first weeks after the switch. Notices shared by sellers indicate a similar switch in the US; we could not confirm its scope from an Amazon source. Check your own settings in the Payments section of Seller Central.

Funds frozen by a court order

In the US, some brand owners sue sellers in federal court and ask for a temporary restraining order freezing the sellers' marketplace funds. In that case the court process, not Amazon, decides how long the hold lasts, and appealing to Amazon usually does not change the outcome. If you receive such a notice, speak to a lawyer licensed in the US without delay.

After deactivation: the 90-day practice

There is no 90-day funds rule in the agreement. The period appears in deactivation notices and in statements by Amazon staff. According to Amazon's explanation on its seller forums, when an account is deactivated, a 90-day hold applies to all funds; once that period ends, the seller can request a payout. According to the same explanation, in closures related to intellectual property or authenticity, funds may not be eligible for payout even after 90 days.

• Start date: depending on the notice, the period runs from the date of the notice or from the delivery date of the last order. Rely on the wording of your own notice.
• Request channel: make the request to the address and in the way stated in your notice or on the Seller Central help page. Do not use addresses circulating online without checking that they are current.
• Separate process: the funds request is separate from the reactivation appeal and is reviewed by a different team. According to Amazon's explanation on its seller forums, these requests cannot be escalated through the forums.
• Offsets: refunds, claims and fees are still deducted from the balance of a deactivated account; the payments clause of the agreement survives termination.

When can funds be withheld permanently?

Under Section 2 of the US agreement, if Amazon determines that the account, or another account the seller operates, has been used for deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity (including counterfeit or stolen goods), or has harmed other sellers, customers or Amazon's legitimate interests, it may permanently withhold payments. The text gives as its reason the financial risk and non-monetary harm such activity causes Amazon.

Amazon commits to offering an appeal process described in its policies, and future payouts require a successful appeal. In the US, the ultimate legal route against permanent withholding is individual arbitration under the agreement. Our Section 3 guide covers this in more detail.

EU and UK: the money sits with Amazon Payments

In the EU and UK, sales proceeds are held by Amazon Payments Europe or Amazon Payments UK, and payouts are governed by those companies' user agreements. The EU/UK seller agreement does not contain the US permanent withholding paragraph; hold and blocking provisions are in the payment companies' agreements. Amazon's EU/UK mediation scheme also excludes disputes solely about the payment account.

A UK example: in Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) decision DRN-4295586, Amazon Services Europe suspended a seller account in October 2020 and asked for an identity verification call, and a balance of about EUR 136,700 was held by Amazon Payments UK for roughly three years. The ombudsman held that the account closure decision was outside its jurisdiction, because the company that made it was not financially regulated, but that the payment company holding the funds was within it. It found the hold reasonable at first but unfair for that long, and ordered the funds released with 8% simple interest from a set date.

This is a single case, not a precedent. Which businesses can complain to the FOS depends on size criteria; check those criteria, and whether companies established outside the UK can complain, on the FOS website. We found no comparable ombudsman route in the US.

FBA inventory is tied-up money too

Inventory in Amazon's warehouses is also an asset in a deactivated account. Under the FBA terms of the agreement, return or disposal instructions should be given within 30 days of termination; if the return address is invalid, units may be treated as abandoned. In some cases Amazon can dispose of units immediately or keep the sale proceeds. Record your inventory list and its cost alongside your funds request.

What should you prepare?

• A full copy of the notice and its dates: the deactivation date, the period for funds and the request method.
• A balance reconciliation: held amounts, open refunds and claims from your Seller Central payment reports.
• Identity and business documents with exactly the same name and address as the account.
• Proof that the bank account belongs to the business.
• Invoices and supplier correspondence showing where products came from, especially in authenticity or intellectual property closures.
• A dated record of all correspondence with Amazon, and your FBA inventory list.
• Do not open a new account while the review is ongoing; Section 2 also covers other accounts the seller operates.

Expectations: no guarantees

The outcome of a funds request depends on Amazon's decision, and its timing is not known in advance. Complete and consistent documents help your request be assessed correctly; they do not guarantee a payout. If a large balance, a permanent withholding decision, a court-ordered freeze or possible arbitration is involved, speak to a lawyer. This guide is not legal advice.