Amazon FBM Return Labels: The Prepaid Rule Starting December 18, 2026

What Changes on December 18, 2026

The email opens with one sentence that sums it up: "Starting December 18, 2026, all US returns for seller-fulfilled orders (excluding heavy and bulky items) will require a prepaid return shipping label."

Address-only labels are going away

Today, some return requests can be handled by giving the buyer your return address and letting them pay for shipping. After December 18, Amazon says, "Address-only labels that require customers to pay for return shipping will no longer meet the requirement, except temporarily for heavy and bulky items." Amazon's stated reason is a more consistent process for US and international returns and a better customer experience.

The seven-day rule

Within seven calendar days of a return request, you must do one of two things:

• Upload a prepaid return shipping label against the request in the Manage seller-fulfilled returns workflow, or
• Issue a full refund without asking the customer to send the item back.

If you do neither, Amazon says "a returnless refund may be automatically issued and the balance deducted from your selling account." The customer keeps the product, gets a refund, and you pay for it. As PPC Land pointed out in its review of the email, the clock starts at the return request, not when the item arrives back at your door.

What Amazon Clarified After the Email

Many sellers read the email as "you now have to make a label for every return." An Amazon moderator, KJ_Amazon, checked with the Returns team and posted two clarifications in the same thread.

Amazon-generated prepaid labels are not going away

"If Amazon currently provides prepaid return labels to buyers on your behalf, that will not change," the moderator wrote. All US sellers are automatically enrolled in the Amazon Prepaid Return Label (APRL) program for seller-fulfilled orders, so for most returns nothing new happens.

The change only removes the address-only option for returns that are not covered by Amazon's prepaid labels. For those requests, you will need to provide your own prepaid label, which Amazon calls a Merchant Prepaid Return Label (MPRL).

Return eligibility rules stay the same

The moderator also said the change "does not alter any existing return-eligibility policies." Categories such as Custom, Handmade, and Dangerous Goods keep their current return rules. Only the label requirement changes.

Which Sellers Will Feel This Most

If every return in your store already gets an Amazon prepaid label, you may barely notice the change. The sellers who need to act are the ones whose return requests still need manual authorization.

Requests that fall outside Amazon's automatic labels

Amazon's February 8, 2026 announcement removed the old high-value exemption from the APRL program but kept some category exemptions, "including Handmade, certified preowned watches, non-physical items, dangerous goods, and extra-large or heavy items." It also said items that are ineligible for prepaid return labels remain exempt. Amazon's seller guide to returns adds that some hazardous items, such as nail polish, do not qualify for prepaid labels and usually need manual authorization.

When a request is sent to you for review, Amazon asks you to respond within 24 hours. That 24-hour rule still applies. As Seller Essentials notes, the new seven-day window does not replace it.

Heavy and bulky items: a temporary exception

Heavy and bulky items are left out "temporarily." The email does not define heavy and bulky and does not give an end date. For context, Amazon's 2024 update for large and heavy returns described a large or heavy package as one that weighs more than 90 lb (up to 150 lb), exceeds 96 inches in length, or exceeds 130 inches in length plus girth. If you sell large items, treat the exception as temporary.

Does "Prepaid" Mean You Always Pay?

No. Who finally pays depends on the return reason the buyer picks. Amazon's help page on return shipping costs explains the basic rule.

Seller-fault returns

If you sent the wrong item or a damaged product, you pay the return shipping and must give a full refund, including the original shipping cost. In a Seller Forums post on who pays, Amazon moderator Indy_Amazon listed seller-fault reasons such as an item that arrived damaged or defective, the wrong item sent, an item that does not match the description, missing parts, a missed delivery date, and damage from poor packaging.

Buyer-fault returns

If the buyer ordered by accident, found a better price, or no longer needs the item, you can deduct the return shipping cost from the refund. For returns with Amazon prepaid labels, Amazon charges the label to the buyer or seller automatically based on the reason code. Another moderator post on return label costs explains that the label cost is first debited from your account and then withheld from the buyer's refund on buyer-fault returns.

When you pay no matter what

There are exceptions. If you offer free returns on a SKU, you are charged for return shipping regardless of the reason. Amazon requires free returns for some soft-line items, such as fashion. And if you use a non-US return address, Amazon's international return policy applies, and for international returns you pay return shipping even when the buyer is at fault.

Our guide to calculating your true per-unit cost shows how to build costs like these into your pricing.

How to Provide a Prepaid Label the Right Way

Use the Manage Returns workflow

According to Amazon's seller returns guide, the steps look like this:

1. In Seller Central, go to Orders, then Manage Returns.
2. Open the Pending Actions tab and choose the request.
3. Select Authorize Request and use the Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) number Amazon creates, or enter your own.
4. Upload your prepaid return label. When you upload a custom label, you must also provide tracking.

The same guide still mentions an "Amazon-generated unpaid return label" as an option. From December 18, that kind of address-only label will no longer meet the requirement for most US returns, so update any team instructions that rely on it.

Do not send labels through Buyer-Seller Messaging

Emailing a label to the customer will not count. Amazon's notice says, "Labels shared through Buyer Seller Messaging or other channels outside the Manage Returns workflow don't meet the requirements." If the label is not attached to the return request, the seven-day clock keeps running.

Returnless Refunds: When Letting the Customer Keep It Makes Sense

The second option is a full refund without a return, often smarter for cheap or awkward-to-ship items.

Set returnless refund rules on purpose

Amazon's refund policy page says Amazon issues returnless refunds when you have a returnless refund rule turned on in your return settings. Amazon's guide calls these rules "ideal for low-cost items where return shipping might exceed the item's value." You can also offer partial refunds or replacements to solve small problems without a full return.

Do the math before December

Compare the cost of a return label with what you can actually recover from the returned item. One handmade jewelry seller on the forums shared the problem clearly: a $12.00 item with an $8.40 outbound label and an $8.40 return label means $16.80 in shipping before any fees or materials. In cases like that, a returnless refund rule may cost less than paying to get the item back.

Choosing a returnless refund is a business decision. Having Amazon issue one because nobody acted in time is a missed deadline.

Keep Return Costs Under Control and Dispute Unfair Refunds

Fix your product dimensions and weights

In its post on return label costs, Amazon says that if you don't use Buy Shipping for outbound labels, it may use incorrect information to price return labels. You can review and update dimensions and weights in the SKU attributes tab of your return settings.

Check your return address and carrier surcharges

The same post explains that UPS adds area surcharges for some ZIP codes, so a return label can cost more than the outbound one. If you keep seeing $25–$30 adjustments on returns, Amazon suggests checking whether UPS considers your return address incorrect and is charging an address correction fee.

Use SAFE-T claims when the reason code is wrong

If buyers pick incorrect reason codes, or Amazon refunds a return that came back damaged or materially different, Amazon's moderators point to the SAFE-T claim process. Indy_Amazon's post says you have 4 calendar days from the return delivery scan to inspect the item and must file within 30 days of the refund. Note that a refund you issue yourself cannot be disputed later, according to Amazon's refund policy. Our guide to protecting your Account Health rating covers the metrics to watch, and our post on Voice of the Customer shows how to spot listing problems behind repeat returns.

Your Checklist Before December 18

December 18 lands in the middle of holiday shipping, so set this up now.

1. Review your open requests. Look at which returns still reach your Pending Actions queue. These are the returns the rule affects.
2. Own the seven-day clock. Have one person check requests daily.
3. Choose your label method. Decide how you will buy prepaid labels and make sure they include tracking.
4. Write down the upload steps. Labels go through Manage Returns, never messaging.
5. Set returnless refund rules. Pick a price level below which returning the item is not worth it.
6. Update dimensions and weights. Fix the SKU attributes in your return settings so label prices are right.
7. Check your return address. Make sure UPS sees it as valid; a non-US address triggers international rules.
8. Track SAFE-T deadlines. Inspect returns within 4 days and file claims within 30 days of the refund.

If you would rather hand returns to Amazon, FBA handles customer returns for you; see our guides to FBA returns and the returns processing fee and Q4 2026 peak fees.

A note on sources: Amazon's notice reached sellers by email. We quote it from the copy sellers posted on the Seller Forums and the moderator replies in that thread. Check your own Seller Central notifications for the exact wording that applies to your account.

Your next step: Open Manage Returns today, look at your last month of return requests, and count how many would have needed your own prepaid label.