UK businesses and consumers could be left behind this year after Amazon confirmed that some items are no longer eligible for its fulfillment service. The online giant has warned third-party sellers in the UK who use its Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) service that it can no longer allow them to move goods to Europe once Brexit takes effect. The changes are expected to take effect in January if the UK leaves the European Union as part of the Brexit process, meaning Amazon's Christmas deals and January sales could be affected, which could result in higher prices. for customers.
Fulfilled by Amazon
The information was leaked by The Information, which found that Amazon quietly updated its "Brexit Guide" page for traders several days ago to claim that "FBA offers to use the EFN (European Fulfillment) Network) will not be gathered through the border between the UK and the EU." The board adds that UK sellers using the company's Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) service will be forced to ship their products to an EU-based fulfillment center, where they will then be distributed via EFN. EFN allows UK-based sellers to process orders from any European Amazon marketplace using a single fulfillment center, such as the UK. This means that UK sellers can create and publish listings on Amazon's European marketplaces, but fulfill those orders using UK inventory shipped directly from the UK seller's warehouse. Using the EFN carries high fees, but opens up EU sales to UK sellers, as well as avoiding the need for VAT numbers and avoiding a lot of red tape in European countries. Sellers who don't take action or choose not to ship inventory to an EU hub may find that Amazon will stop shipping their items to EU buyers in January. This shutdown could even come before Christmas if Amazon looks to move proactively to end a potential backlog of paperwork in 2021. After January 1, UK companies selling to customers across Europe will have to send all their stock to an EU warehouse on Amazon at your own cost. This means that many sellers will end up paying more for storage and transport, as well as VAT rates in the EU country where the warehouse is located. All this could lead sellers to raise prices to cope with this increase in costs. This move was forced by Brexit, which sees the UK leave the EU's single market and customs union. So far the UK government has not reached any agreement with the EU to address these issues, but says it is still in talks. Amazon will take care to prevent items from piling up at ports and fulfillment centers across the UK and the Continent, especially with Christmas sales expected to be higher than ever this year due to the ongoing global lockdown. Via: information