What changed in 2026
Amazon announced in 2025 that it would discontinue its FBA prep and item-labeling services in the US, effective January 1, 2026, for inventory sent to US fulfillment centers. Reports of the announcement note that inventory arriving without required prep may not be eligible for reimbursement if damaged or untraceable. Always confirm current rules in Seller Central.
Common prep requirements
- Labeling: each unit needs a scannable barcode — Amazon's FNSKU label, or an eligible manufacturer barcode. Other barcodes may need to be covered.
- Poly bags: must be transparent, sealed and of sufficient thickness; bags with large openings need a suffocation warning.
- Sets and bundles: must be packaged so they can't be separated and marked as a set.
- Fragile and liquid items: require protective packaging such as bubble wrap or sealing.
- Expiration-dated items: need expiration dates displayed in the required format.
- Cartons: must meet Amazon's weight and dimension limits and carry shipment and carton labels.
Requirements vary by product category; check Amazon's packaging and prep requirements pages for your items.
Doing prep yourself vs. a prep center
Self-prep works for small volumes if you have space and time. A prep center makes sense when volumes grow, when inventory comes straight from a factory, or when you're based outside the US. Prep centers can also store reserve inventory and send smaller replenishments to Amazon.
How Konsey Logistics handles prep
Our FBA prep service in New Jersey receives your goods, checks counts, applies FNSKU labels, bags and protects units, builds bundles, packs and labels cartons, and ships to your assigned fulfillment centers. We're an independent provider, not affiliated with Amazon.