Products considered “over-size” are particularly affected by this increase, and prices are raised disproportionately. However, Germany is slightly impacted, as the average increase is 2%, and many size ranges are excluded from this increase. However, other countries, such as France (3.2%), will be more affected by the rise, where increases are well above 5%.
“Small and Light” is also possible in future for products up to 11 EUR
In France, Italy, and Spain, the threshold is raised from €11 to €12; in Germany, from €10 to €11; and in the United Kingdom, from £9 to £10. The threshold in the Netherlands is €12, 140 SKR in Sweden and 55 zł in Poland.
This change aims to make the particularly favourable shipping programme accessible to more sellers, while at the same time responding to the increase in selling prices. At the same time, however, the shipping fees for the Small and Light program will also be adjusted.
7.9% increase for Small and Light shipments
In Germany, these costs increase by an average of 1.5%, but in the UK, by 15%. On average, sellers using the programme for exceptionally light and low-cost items face increases of 7.9%.
Monthly storage fees for FBA increased by 10%
Starting March 1, 2023, Amazon will adjust the monthly storage fees for all standard-size products, except hazardous goods. This concerns standard-size items (excluding footwear, clothing and bags), and the prices will be increased from €27.82 to €30.60 (+10%) in January-September and from €38.52 to €42.37 (+10%). This change will not take effect until April 2023. However, charges for dangerous goods and oversized products remain unchanged.
Continuation of the discount campaign for clothing and accessories
Originally scheduled to end the discount campaign on 31 March 2023, Amazon has decided to continue the program for items sold via Amazon and Prime shipping. Products sold in the clothing and accessories categories will receive a 7% discount (previously 15%) on the sales fee for the portion of the total selling price exceeding € 45. However, in shoes and handbags, the promotion will end on 31 March 2023.
Reclassification of sales categories
In a list, Amazon has set out which products will be divided into which categories in the future. This may result in the product being charged in a different category and thus with an additional sales commission.
For example, from May 15, 2023, the same percentage sales fee will be charged for products in the category of electronic accessories for cars and motorcycles as for electronic accessories in general. This means that the percentage sales fee is increased from a flat fee of 12% to 15% for part of the total selling price up to €100 and 8% for part of the total selling price above €100.
Bicycle accessories will then be subject to the same sales charge as sports and leisure products, resulting in a change in the percentage sales charge from 10% to 15%.
New size and weight classes are introduced
In future, large and extra-large envelopes may be significantly heavier, up to 960 g. A new weight class for standard envelopes will also be introduced, which will be 460 g.
In addition, shipping tariffs for particular oversizes are introduced. An ASIN is considered a special oversize if it weighs more than 31.5 kg, if the longest side exceeds 175 cm or if the circumference exceeds 360 cm.
The minimum sales fee for items classified as heavy and unsortable will be €25.
Shipment weight to determine the shipping costs
In the future, Amazon will use the higher unit or volume weight value to determine the shipping weight for all package size categories. A table shows which weight counts for which products.
The volumetric weight is calculated in kilograms by combining length, width, and height in cm³ and dividing by 5,000.
Long-term storage fee adjusted
Amazon brings new customization for items stored between 271 and 330 and 331 and 365 days. The current long-term storage fee is divided into two different age ranges. From 15 May 2023, the long-term storage fee will be levied across all product categories for goods stored between 331 and 365 days in logistics centres. A new level is now introduced for goods stored between 271 and 330 days. This change excludes Clothing, Shoes, Suitcases, Backpacks & Bags, Watches, and Jewellery. Sellers should check their old inventories before 15 May 2023, as the changes will apply for the first time during the inventory check on 15 May 2023. The long-term storage fee from 365 days onwards remains unchanged at €320 per cubic meter and month.
Storage surcharge
Amazon has announced that from 15 May 2023, it will introduce a surcharge for storing items by sellers with a very high inventory in Amazon logistics centres relative to their sales. This markup is based on warehouse capacity and is calculated by dividing the average daily inventory volume by the average daily shipping volume in cubic metres over the past 13 weeks. The surcharge shall be calculated on the last day of the month and applied to the monthly storage charges for the following month. This surcharge applies only to stocks stored in Germany, France, Spain, and Italy. It does not apply to clothing, footwear or bags, only when supplies are used for more than 26 weeks.
Significant increase in charges for waste disposal and take-back
From 1 July 2023, the fee for returning an item, also known as the referral fee, will be increased by approximately 20%. Similarly, the disposal fees for destroying things in the warehouse will be increased by about 25%. These changes will take effect for the first time in August 2023.
Discounts for UK and new FBA items
Amazon will offer a discount on shipping charges from the EU (Germany, France, Italy, and Spain) to the UK and vice versa for one year. This discount applies to all ASINs (Amazon Standard Identification Number) that are newly added and averages 10% (compared to the previous 5%).
The VAT Calculation Service changed
Starting June 30, 2023, Amazon will change how percentage sales fees are calculated for the VAT calculation service. Until now, sales fees have been calculated based on the gross price, but in future, only the sales price paid will be used as the basis for the sales fee. However, this change does not apply to promotions such as flash deals, vouchers, coupons, free and discounted products, Amazon-funded discounts and exclusive Prime discounts. Sales fees will continue to be calculated as a percentage of the total selling price for these promotions.
