Nothing’s worse than running into issues during your Seller Central account verification.
One of the most common culprits is that dreaded post-application email asking for more information, most often a utility bill.
The majority of sellers won’t get the email, however, around 35% of new accounts do.
Either way, providing the correct information is vital, and failure to do so could result in an unverified account or even a permanent ban from Amazon.
It’s a headache, to say the least.
Here’s a list of frequently asked questions and solutions about utility bill verification.
Why Does Amazon Need A Utility Bill for Account Verification?
It’s all in the name of stopping fraud.
Amazon requires additional documents to verify sellers’ identities and to weed out potential scammers and fraud.
Yes, it’s a pain. But it creates a safer community for serious sellers and helps protect investments against bad actors.
What Types of Utility Bills Does Amazon Accept?
Amazon typically accepts the following bills, given they’re dated within the last 90 days.
- Gas
- Water/sewer
- Electricity
- Waste
- TV
- Internet
- Landline phone
Note, the list does not include mobile phones. And since you can easily register a phone number to any area code, this makes a fair amount of sense.
What Type of Format Should I Submit?
In addition to sending in the proper documentation with the correct name and address, Amazon requires specific formats.
Formats Amazon DOES NOT Accept:
- Screenshots
- Word documents
- Zip Files
- Excel Files
- Photoshopped or doctored documents
- Poorly scanned documents
Acceptable Formats
- Colored scans of IDS
- Entire documents with no clipped edges (PDFs & PNGs are preferred)
- Documents in their accepted languages.
What if my LLC and Business Are Different From My Physical Address?
Many sellers (including myself) opt to start an LLC in a different location than where they’re physically located.
For example, you live in South Carolina but your Amazon business is registered in the state of Wyoming.
Or you live overseas, have an LLC registered in the U.S., and are selling the U.S. Market.
So how do you provide bills for an LLC?
This is the hack that’s worked for me at least a dozen times; that being said do use caution.
- First, understand that we don’t have to supply the utility bill unless Amazon asks.
- So input your business address and information normally as prompted during Seller Central account registration.
- This means that if your business address and physical location are separate, don’t put any information pertaining to your physical address during this step.
- If you’re asked to supply utility bills, then go into your Seller Central account’s back-end information, and then change your business’s address, before submitting your utility bills.
In summary:
Utility bills should match your back-end information at the time of submittal.
Therefore, It’s OK to modify your business’s address to match your utility bills if Amazon requests.
I’ve personally used this method countless times and have never hit any hurdles.
And although it might sound counterintuitive, it doesn’t appear to raise any red flags.
Check out this YouTube video to learn more on the topic.
I Don’t Have Bills in My Name, What Now?
Some sellers don’t have acceptable utility bills in their names.
This might be the case if you live with your parents, in a shared house, a digital nomad, etc.
The best way to address this is to simply add your name to a utility bill. If you’re living with relatives, parents, or housemates, one solution is to request for your name to be added to the bill, as it It’s not uncommon to have more than one household member on a utility statement.
The biggest headache here is the waiting cycle before receiving the amended bills.
How to Get Account Verified For Non-U.S. Residents
If you do not live in the state or country and are selling the U.S., it’s still possible to get a working utility bill if you don’t have an LLC set up yet.
I recommend using Delaware Business Incorporators, Inc. The company can assist you with both an LLC and obtaining a Delaware utility bill for Amazon seller verification.
It’s simple to file and provides options for additional services such as a virtual office package. You can also opt for mail forwarding and a Delaware phone number.
This service isn’t cheap, however, it is a legitimate way to get a utility bill verified.
The service will match your utility bill and LLC address, which Amazon prefers. Having this information be consistent will help reduce future headaches with reduce time spent with customer support.
If you’ve already submitted your account registration and supplied your business address, it’s not too late to change that information.
If you haven’t submitted a utility bill but decided on a Delaware registration, just swap out your registry information to match the Delaware address.
You may have to re-submit several documents to correspond to the new Delaware location. If you experience issues, you can contact Amazon Seller Support and explain your situation. Here is an example message you can send:
“Our business has multiple locations, and our utility bills may show a different address than what is listed in our registration. Should we change the address on our account to match the utility bill that we will send in to verify our account?”
Be patient. Seller Support reps can take several days to get back to you, and you may have to open several cases before you get any traction.
Remember with Delaware Business Incorporators, you have a legitimate business presence and a utility bill, so you can relax knowing that you are going through the process the correct way.
Getting a utility bill for your Amazon Seller Central account is not always easy but following these steps will reduce headaches.
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