How to create an Amazon seller account: plan, documents and verification

Most guides to opening a seller account are written for someone listing a few things from home. This one is for a wholesale reseller: someone who will buy cases from distributors, ship to Amazon and, sooner or later, show Amazon those distributors' invoices. That last part changes how you fill in the forms, because the details you type at registration are the details every invoice has to match.

It's part of the setup stage on the wholesale roadmap. The step-by-step start guide puts the account in context with everything else, and our guide to opening a wholesale account covers the supplier side of the same paperwork.

Before you start: make your paperwork match

A seller account takes an afternoon to fill in. Fixing a mismatch between your seller account and your supplier paperwork can take far longer, so the work before you register matters more than the form.

Here's why it matters for wholesale in particular. Many products and categories are gated, and to sell them you apply to Amazon, usually with invoices from your suppliers.

So the name and address you register with are the ones your distributors need to invoice. If Seller Central has your business name with "LLC" on the end and a distributor's invoice leaves it off, the two no longer match exactly, and you've made your own approval harder. Our invoice requirements guide covers the rest of what Amazon checks.

Do things in this order. Stef lays out the order in The Checklist lesson in Apex University (0:36 to 1:42): form the business and get the EIN, open a business checking account, and only then set up the Amazon account. Here it is with the sales tax step added:

1. Decide the business structure. Amazon's registration guide says you don't need to be an LLC or a registered business to sell in the Amazon store. Distributors are stricter, which is why our wholesale account guide covers the LLC question in full.
2. Get your EIN in the business's exact legal name. The IRS issues it online at no charge.
3. Open a business bank account in the same name.
4. Register for sales tax so you can give suppliers a resale certificate.
5. Then register on Amazon, typing the name and address exactly as they appear on your state registration.

Your address. Amazon asks for the address on your business license, and your own residential address in a later step. Neither is where your inventory goes. Wholesale orders usually ship to a prep center, and that address belongs on the distributor's ship-to line and your shipments to Amazon, not in your registration.

Your email. Amazon's registration guide recommends an email address that's different from any Amazon customer account you have. Use the one on your own business domain, the same address you'll put on distributor applications.

Your store name is separate. Amazon says the store name customers see must be unique but doesn't need to match your business name. Distributors invoice your legal business name, not your store name, so pick a store name you like and keep the legal name identical everywhere else.

Individual or Professional

You pick one of Amazon's two selling plans when you sign up, and you can change it later.

Amazon's article on how to sell wholesale says you'll want the Professional plan, and three things point the same way for a reseller:

• Volume. Amazon's seller FAQ suggests Individual if you'll sell fewer than 40 items a month. Distributors sell by the case, so a single reorder can pass that.
• Tools. Amazon's pricing page lists bulk operations, Automate Pricing and selling with apps and APIs among the Professional plan's tools. That last one is Stef's reason in The Checklist lesson (at 2:04): he says the Individual plan won't let you connect the third-party software wholesale sellers rely on, like a repricer or inventory tools, which makes it hard to track what you sell.
• Categories. The same FAQ notes that some categories require a Professional plan.

What each plan costs, and the volume where Professional becomes the cheaper one, is in the fees guide.

If your first order is weeks away, you don't have to pay the subscription while you wait.

So one path is to register on Individual while you set up suppliers, then upgrade when your first order is close, or sooner if what you plan to sell is in a category that requires a Professional plan. Switching back has one catch: if you've enrolled in services that need a Professional plan, Amazon says you'll have to leave them before you can move to Individual.

What Amazon asks for

Registration starts from the Sign up button on sell.amazon.com. After you choose your email and password, Amazon's registration guide walks through five steps. Here's what each one asks, and what to watch as a reseller.

1. Business information

   The country where your business is registered, the type of business, its exact legal name, its company registration number, the registered address and a phone number with the country code. If you have no registered business, Amazon says to choose "None, I am an individual" as the business type.

   Type the name the way your state filing shows it, including "LLC" or "Inc." Amazon's guide notes that the company registration number is the one issued when you registered the business, and that it isn't the same as your EIN.

2. Seller information

   Your own details, as they appear on a government-issued ID such as a passport: full legal name including any middle name, country of citizenship, country and date of birth, residential address and phone number.

   Amazon also asks whether you're a beneficial owner, a legal representative or both. Its guide defines a beneficial owner as someone who owns more than 25% of the business, directly or indirectly, or owns it by other means, and a legal representative as someone authorized to act for the business. If you aren't a legal representative, Amazon may ask for a letter that authorizes you.

3. Billing information

   A bank account for your payouts and a credit card for charges. The rules are further down.

4. Store and product information

   Your store name, then questions about your products: their product codes, any business certifications, and whether you're the manufacturer or brand owner. If you resell other companies' brands, the products already carry the brand's UPCs, and you aren't the brand owner.

   Amazon's guide also mentions Brand Registry, which is for owners of a brand with a pending or registered trademark. As a reseller you'll sell on listings that already exist, so you can skip it unless you own a brand.

5. Identity verification

   Upload your ID and proof of address, then take a photo or join a video call. The section below has the details.

Amazon says registration can often be finished in a few hours. Verification comes after, and its prepare-to-sell page says it typically takes about three business days when your documents meet its requirements, and longer when Amazon needs clarification. It keeps you updated by email while you wait.

One account covers more than the US. Amazon's registration guide says an account opened through sell.amazon.com covers the stores in the US, Canada, Mexico and Brazil, while Europe and other regions need their own registration.

Bank and payment details

Get this step right at the start, because a payout problem only shows up later, when there's money waiting.

The bank account. Amazon's registration guide asks for a bank account and routing number, and says the account must be in your name or your business's name. Its seller FAQ adds the rules that matter once you're selling:

• You must give a valid bank account as your deposit method.
• Amazon pays by ACH, and a payment can take up to five business days to reach your bank.
• Amazon can't send payments to a credit card or an online payment system.

If you bank outside the US, Amazon's guide says the Amazon Currency Converter can pay your sales proceeds into an account there, in its currency.

Use a business account, even though Amazon doesn't insist. A personal account in your own name meets Amazon's rule. For wholesale, a business account in the business's name is the better choice, and Stef's lesson puts it right after the LLC and EIN:

"After you have obtained your LLC and EIN, your next step is to open up a business checking account. This is going to help you separate your own personal money with your business money."

From Stef's lesson (The Checklist, at 1:21)

His setup, later in the same lesson (2:47), is to send Amazon's payouts into that account and pay suppliers from it too. One account in one name keeps your payouts, supplier payments and invoices telling the same story, which helps when Amazon asks about your supply chain and when you do your bookkeeping.

The credit card. Amazon asks for a card that can be charged internationally. Its registration guide lists American Express, Diners Club, Discover, JCB, Mastercard and Visa, and says the card doesn't have to be in your name or the business's name. Amazon uses your banking and card details to process payments and expenses. Its payments article warns that mismatched card details or an expiring card can delay payments, so put a card on file that won't lapse.

When the money arrives. Amazon's payments article says it generally settles seller accounts every two weeks, holds part of your balance in reserve, and won't start a payment while your bank details are missing or invalid. Money from each order is also held until after delivery under its DD+7 policy. Our payouts guide traces one order from sale to bank, which is worth reading before you plan your first restock around a payout date.

Your tax information. Registration also asks for your tax details. In a staff post on its Seller Forums, Amazon says every selling partner has to complete its Tax Information Interview, whatever their sales, to verify their taxpayer identity. That means your legal name, address and taxpayer ID. If the business has an EIN, use it with the legal name that goes with it, because that's what your year-end tax form will carry. Our seller taxes guide covers the 1099-K and the rest.

Identity verification

Verification is the last step of registration, and the one where a mismatched detail can cost you days. Here's the short version of what Amazon's registration guide describes.

What you upload. A government-issued ID and a proof of address dated within the last 180 days, such as a bank or credit card statement.

How Amazon checks it. You then either take a photo of your face and your ID, or join or schedule a video call with an Amazon associate. For a call, have the same ID and proof of address in front of you.

What the documents must look like. Amazon asks for high-quality color scans or photos showing all four corners, with every word legible. It doesn't accept screenshots or blurry images, and relevant documents must be signed.

How long it takes. Amazon says verification usually takes three business days or less.

Amazon also has a help page on seller identity verification, but it's inside Seller Central and needs a sign-in, so we couldn't check its current wording. If your registration flow asks for something different from the above, the flow wins. Either way, the names on your documents should be the names you typed.

Once you're in

Set up two-step verification with an app. Amazon announced on its US Seller Forums that signing in to Seller Central requires a second step, a code from a mobile number or an authenticator app. Register an authenticator app under Login Settings so you aren't waiting for a text every time. Stef's advice in The Checklist (2:45) is to treat the account like a bank account.

Add users instead of sharing your login. Amazon's registration guide says you can add other users to help with specific tasks, so a virtual assistant or a partner gets their own sign-in.

Don't buy inventory until you're verified. Use the wait to learn the fees and research suppliers, as the start guide suggests.

Insurance requirements

You don't need insurance to register. You may need it soon after you start selling, and wholesale sellers in some categories need it sooner than they expect.

In a staff post on its US Seller Forums, Amazon announced its commercial liability insurance rules:

• The existing rule. Once your gross proceeds from Amazon.com sales go over $10,000 in a month, you have 30 days to get commercial liability insurance, with at least $1 million of coverage per occurrence and in aggregate. Gross proceeds means sales, not profit.
• The change from November 2, 2026. If you sell products in categories with enhanced safety listing requirements, you must carry a policy covering those products, with the same $1 million minimum, whether or not you've reached the $10,000 line. It applies to new and existing listings.
• Which categories. Amazon names children's products, cosmetic and ingestible products and lithium battery products as examples, and says the list isn't complete.

For a reseller, that last point is the one to plan around. Amazon's examples overlap with categories many wholesale sellers buy in, like toys, beauty and supplements. Check where your products fall before you buy into one. Our rule changes log tracks this change alongside the others that touch resellers.

Amazon's post links its Commercial Liability Insurance requirements page and a Business Insurance page in Seller Central. Both need a sign-in, so we couldn't check their current wording. Read them before you buy a policy, because the policy has to meet Amazon's criteria, not just any business insurance.

If that last point is right, it's the same rule as everywhere else in this guide: one legal name, used identically on every document.

Mistakes that delay approval

Most of these come down to details that don't match. Check each one before you submit.

1. A business name that's close but not exact. Amazon asks for the exact name you registered with your state. A missing "LLC" or an abbreviation is a mismatch.
2. Your EIN in the registration number box. Amazon's guide says the company registration number isn't your EIN. It's the number your state gave the business.
3. A proof of address that's too old or doesn't match. It has to be dated within the last 180 days and show the address you entered.
4. Screenshots, cropped photos or blurry scans. Amazon wants color images with all four corners visible and every word legible, and it doesn't accept screenshots.
5. A name typed differently from your ID. Enter your full legal name as printed, middle name included.
6. A bank account in someone else's name. Amazon's guide says it has to be in your name or the business's name.
7. A second account. In a staff post on its Seller Forums, Amazon says its standard policy is one Seller Central account per seller, with exceptions for a legitimate business need. If a registration stalls, don't start another one. Our Section 3 guide explains why related accounts are a risk.

Once your account is open, the next stage is learning what a sale costs you. Start with the fees guide, then check which products need approval in the ungating guide before you place a first order. The Checklist lesson in Apex University covers this setup too, with the rest of the course behind it.