Amazon FBA hazmat rules
Governed by Amazon Dangerous Goods Identification Guide and FBA dangerous goods programme. Services: FBA inbound and fulfilment and FBA air-eligible fulfilment.
- A dangerous goods ASIN cannot be sent to a fulfilment centre until Amazon has completed its own dangerous goods review of the safety data sheet or exemption sheet. Approval is per ASIN, not per seller.
- An unreviewed dangerous goods ASIN will be blocked at inbound, and stock already in the network may be disposed of at the seller's cost.
- Amazon's determination is its own; an item classified as not regulated for transport can still be treated as a dangerous good by the FBA programme.
By hazard class
| Class | Ground | Air | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class 1 — Explosives | prohibited | prohibited | Explosives of any division are not accepted into FBA. |
| Division 2.1 — Flammable gas | review required | restricted | Flammable aerosols are accepted only after dangerous goods review, and only within the limited quantity thresholds. Many aerosol ASINs are approved for ground fulfilment only. |
| Division 2.2 — Non-flammable, non-toxic gas | review required | restricted | Non-flammable gases accepted after dangerous goods review. |
| Division 2.3 — Toxic gas | prohibited | prohibited | Toxic gases are not accepted. |
| Class 3 — Flammable liquids | review required | restricted | Flammable liquids accepted after dangerous goods review. Packing group I is generally refused; packing groups II and III are the normal FBA cases. |
| Division 4.1 — Flammable solids | review required | restricted | Flammable solids accepted after dangerous goods review. |
| Division 4.2 — Spontaneously combustible | prohibited | prohibited | Spontaneously combustible material is not accepted. |
| Division 4.3 — Dangerous when wet | prohibited | prohibited | Dangerous-when-wet material is not accepted. |
| Division 5.1 — Oxidizers | review required | restricted | Oxidizers accepted after dangerous goods review. |
| Division 5.2 — Organic peroxides | prohibited | prohibited | Organic peroxides are not accepted. |
| Division 6.1 — Toxic substances | review required | restricted | Toxic substances accepted after review; packing group I is not accepted. |
| Division 6.2 — Infectious substances | prohibited | prohibited | Infectious substances are not accepted into FBA. |
| Class 7 — Radioactive material | prohibited | prohibited | Radioactive material is not accepted. |
| Class 8 — Corrosives | review required | restricted | Corrosives in packing groups II and III accepted after review; packing group I is not accepted. |
| Class 9 — Miscellaneous | review required | restricted | Miscellaneous dangerous goods accepted after dangerous goods review. |
The three cases that catch people out
All three are Class 9, and Amazon FBA treats them differently.
| Carrier | Ground | Air | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon FBA | review required | restricted | Standalone lithium batteries require dangerous goods approval and are subject to Amazon's own watt-hour and packaging conditions. Expect the review to ask for the UN 38.3 test summary. |
| Amazon FBA | review required | restricted | Batteries in or with equipment still require a dangerous goods review even though transport treats most of them as Section II. |
| Amazon FBA | prohibited | prohibited | Products requiring dry ice are not accepted into FBA — the network has no dry ice replenishment. |
Carrier positions encode each carrier's published default as of the ruleset date. Tariffs change more often than regulations, and a contracted shipper may hold different terms — confirm against the carrier's current guide before the first shipment of a new item.
- Row 1: standalone lithium batteries (UN3480 and UN3090).
- Row 2: batteries in or with equipment (UN3481 and UN3091).
- Row 3: dry ice (UN1845).
Questions
- Does Amazon FBA ship hazmat?
- A dangerous goods ASIN cannot be sent to a fulfilment centre until Amazon has completed its own dangerous goods review of the safety data sheet or exemption sheet. Approval is per ASIN, not per seller. An unreviewed dangerous goods ASIN will be blocked at inbound, and stock already in the network may be disposed of at the seller's cost. Amazon's determination is its own; an item classified as not regulated for transport can still be treated as a dangerous good by the FBA programme. Carrier positions encode each carrier's published default as of the ruleset date. Tariffs change more often than regulations, and a contracted shipper may hold different terms — confirm against the carrier's current guide before the first shipment of a new item.
- Can I ship lithium batteries with Amazon FBA?
- Standalone lithium batteries (UN3480 / UN3090): ground review required, air restricted. Standalone lithium batteries require dangerous goods approval and are subject to Amazon's own watt-hour and packaging conditions. Expect the review to ask for the UN 38.3 test summary. Batteries contained in or packed with equipment (UN3481 / UN3091): ground review required, air restricted. Batteries in or with equipment still require a dangerous goods review even though transport treats most of them as Section II.
- Can I ship dry ice with Amazon FBA?
- Ground prohibited, air prohibited. Products requiring dry ice are not accepted into FBA — the network has no dry ice replenishment.
Check a specific SKU against Amazon FBA
The class table above is the default. Send the product itself to the API and the response carries the UN-specific rule where one exists — which is the difference between a power bank and the same cell inside a laptop.
Classify a product