Many Amazon sellers focusing exclusively on the U.S. marketplace have encountered an unexpected financial surprise: mysterious charges appearing from Canadian and Mexican marketplaces despite having no active operations in those countries. This puzzling phenomenon has left numerous sellers searching for solutions to optimize their marketplace expenses.
I. The Unexpected Charges Phenomenon
Numerous sellers report discovering monthly service fees from Amazon's Canadian and Mexican marketplaces when reviewing their account statements. Upon investigation, they find that product listings uploaded to the U.S. marketplace were automatically synchronized to these additional North American marketplaces. While these listings show no inventory or sales activity, the platform continues to charge associated fees.
Initially, many sellers mistakenly believed the $39.99 monthly professional selling fee covered all North American marketplaces collectively. However, detailed financial reports reveal each marketplace deducts separate fees, creating an unnecessary financial burden for sellers focused solely on the U.S. market.
II. Root Cause Analysis
The automatic listing synchronization feature in Amazon's North American marketplace integration lies at the heart of this issue. When sellers register with Amazon using the same credentials across multiple marketplaces, the system automatically distributes the monthly professional selling fee across all active marketplaces where listings exist.
Furthermore, Amazon's Remote Fulfillment program can generate additional charges. This service allows inventory from U.S. fulfillment centers to fulfill orders in Canada and Mexico, creating associated fees even without direct seller participation in these marketplaces.
III. Practical Solutions to Avoid Unnecessary Fees
Sellers can implement several strategies to eliminate these unintended charges:
1. Listing Review and Removal: Conduct a comprehensive audit of all synchronized listings across North American marketplaces. Remove or deactivate any listings in marketplaces where you don't intend to operate.
2. FBA vs. FBM Considerations: For sellers using Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM) with minimal sales in secondary marketplaces, simply deactivating those marketplace listings typically resolves the issue.
3. Managing Remote Fulfillment: Sellers enrolled in Amazon's Remote Fulfillment program require additional steps:
- Navigate to Inventory > Global Selling > Build International Listings in Seller Central
- Disable marketplace associations for Canada and Mexico
- Remove all synchronized listings from these marketplaces
IV. Expected Outcomes
After implementing these changes, sellers should see the elimination of Canadian and Mexican marketplace fees in subsequent billing cycles, restoring the single $39.99 monthly charge for the U.S. marketplace.
V. Preventive Strategies
Beyond reactive solutions, sellers should adopt proactive measures during account setup. Carefully consider marketplace selection during registration and regularly audit account settings to prevent unintended service activations. Maintaining this disciplined approach helps sellers optimize their Amazon operations while avoiding unnecessary expenses.
Successful Amazon selling requires attention to operational details. By understanding and managing these marketplace integration features, sellers can maintain financial efficiency while focusing on their core business objectives.