Quick answer. Amazon funds withheld for fraud are frozen the day the account is deactivated for deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity, and Amazon keeps them permanently only when its review confirms that finding. Section 2 of the Business Solutions Agreement allows Amazon to permanently withhold payments if it determines the account, or any other account you have operated, was used for that kind of activity, and Amazon states it will offer an avenue to appeal that decision. Amazon’s funds disbursement eligibility policy describes the route. You can separately appeal for withheld funds at any point after 60 days from deactivation, whether or not your reinstatement appeal succeeds, and Amazon releases remaining funds less offsets after evaluating the account for deceptive, fraudulent or other illegal activity and confirming your identity. The funds come back when the record shows the activity was legitimate and your identity is confirmed. They stay withheld when the finding stands.
What Amazon Can Withhold for Fraud
Two documents control the money in a fraud deactivation. The first is the Amazon Services Business Solutions Agreement, and the second is the funds disbursement eligibility policy. Read together, they set out three levels of withholding, and each level asks for a different answer from the seller.
Level 1. Withholding while risks persist
Section 2 of the US agreement allows Amazon to withhold payments for as long as it determines that related risks to Amazon or third parties persist. It applies where Amazon determines your actions or performance may result in returns, chargebacks, claims, disputes, violations of its terms or policies, violations of law or other risks. This is the general hold that applies to many deactivations.
Level 2. Withholding after a Section 3 deactivation
The funds disbursement eligibility policy states that if Amazon deactivates your account under Section 3 and determines that your actions may result in risks to Amazon or third parties, it may withhold any funds in your account. Those funds may be used to cover liability from your conduct and offset amounts you owe, including product returns or refunds, A-to-z claims, inventory removal costs, outstanding fees, and monetary and non-monetary damages inflicted on Amazon.
Level 3. Permanent withholding
Section 2 states that to be eligible for disbursement you must refrain from deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity. Amazon may permanently withhold any payments to you if it determines that your account, or any other account you have operated, has been used to engage in that activity, including the sale of counterfeit or stolen goods. The same applies if your use of the services has harmed or might harm other sellers, customers or Amazon. The agreement explains Amazon’s reason, saying these activities expose it to financial risk and cause monetary damages and non-monetary harms. It also states that Amazon will offer an avenue to appeal the fund withholding decision, and that successfully completing the appeal is required to be eligible for further disbursements.
The funds policy restates the permanent withholding power and widens it. Amazon may permanently withhold payments if it finds that you engaged in deceptive, fraudulent, harmful or illegal activity, abused its systems, or repeatedly violated its policies, or if it cannot confirm your identity. It gives three examples of deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity, which are falsifying or misrepresenting your identity or activity, attempting to circumvent or manipulate its systems, and violating the anti-counterfeiting policy.
How offsets work in a fraud case
Even where funds are released, they are not released in full. The funds policy states that Amazon releases remaining funds less any amounts used to offset what you owe, and Section 2 allows Amazon to offset amounts payable by you against payments it would otherwise make. In a fraud case, the list of offsets can be longer than in an ordinary deactivation. It can include refunds to customers who received misleading listings, A-to-z claims, the cost of removing or disposing of inventory, outstanding fees, and damages Amazon attributes to the conduct.
We build our own reconciliation before the funds request goes in. The figure on the deactivation screen is a starting point. A request that shows the expected offsets line by line tells the reviewer you understand the liabilities and leaves less room for an unexplained reduction.
For background on the deactivation itself, start with our core guide on the Amazon deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity deactivation.
Suspected Versus Confirmed Fraud
Read the wording of the agreement closely and you will see two standards. Section 3 lets Amazon end the agreement for convenience with 30 days of advance notice, but it can act immediately on the grounds listed in that section. Section 3(b) allows deactivation where an account has been used, or where Amazon’s controls identify that it may be used, for deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity. Permanent withholding under Section 2 and the funds policy turns on what Amazon determines or finds the account was used for. A deactivation can rest on a risk signal. Permanent withholding follows a finding.
That gap is where a funds case lives. The deactivation notice tells you the controls saw a risk. The funds appeal is your opportunity to show, with records Amazon can verify, that the activity behind the signal was legitimate. If the evaluation confirms that, the policy states remaining funds are released less offsets. If it confirms deceptive activity, the funds can be permanently withheld.
How long funds are held during review
Funds are held while the account is deactivated. They are released on your normal disbursement schedule if the account is reinstated through the appeal. If the account is not reinstated, the separate funds appeal becomes available at any point after 60 days from the date of deactivation. Amazon does not publish a fixed date by which it will decide a funds appeal.
Payout timeline reference table
| Stage | What applies | What we prepare |
|---|---|---|
| Deactivation notice | Funds held under Section 2 and the funds policy | Save the notice, export reports, start the chronology |
| Reinstatement appeal | Funds stay held while the appeal is reviewed | Appeal that explains the signal with verifiable records |
| Reinstated | Funds released on your disbursement schedule | Confirm balance and payout date |
| Day 60 after deactivation and later | Separate funds appeal available, appeal outcome not required | Funds request with identity, financial and supply chain records |
| Evaluation | Amazon may request documents and validate them with third parties or government agencies | Prompt, complete, unedited responses |
| Decision | Remaining funds released less offsets, or permanently withheld | Check the offsets against your own reconciliation |
First finding compared with repeat findings
There is no warning tier for a deceptive activity finding, so a first finding can already freeze the full balance. The funds policy lists repeated policy violations as a separate basis for permanent withholding. A seller with a clean history and a single, explainable signal is in a different position from a seller with a record of violations or a previous deactivation. If your history includes earlier findings, or the finding came from a linked account, the funds request has to address that history directly. Our guide on permanent fraud deactivations covers the repeat and final scenarios.
The business patterns we see behind these holds
- Sellers buying traffic or orders to boost rank. Self-purchases and fake orders read as fraud. To operate compliantly, stop any order, rank or review scheme, end the contracts, and keep proof of the date it ended.
- Accounts sharing infrastructure with other sellers. A link to a bad actor carries over, and Section 2 reaches activity on any other account you have operated. To operate compliantly, remove shared logins, devices, cards and addresses with unrelated sellers. Our guide on funds held on related accounts covers this pattern.
- Sellers with misleading listings or bait pricing. Deceptive presentation to buyers. To operate compliantly, audit listings for claims or prices that could mislead, and check every listing before it goes live.
If the signal traces to a linked account or to an old rank scheme, ask our Amazon suspension team to map the trigger before the first reply goes to Amazon.
Evidence That Answers Fraud Signals
The funds policy states that during the evaluation Amazon may request additional information or documentation about your identity, your financial instruments or your supply chain, and that it may validate what you provide with third-party services or government agencies. Those three categories are the backbone of the evidence we prepare.
Identity
Amazon may permanently withhold if it cannot confirm your identity, so identity evidence comes first. Provide current, unedited government-issued identification for the account holder and, where requested, for beneficial owners. Business registration documents should match the legal name and address on the account. Any mismatch, such as an old address or a renamed company, should be explained in a sentence and supported with the document that shows the change.
Financial instruments
Bank account statements and credit card statements that match the payment methods on the account, in the name of the business or the account holder. If payment methods changed in the months before the deactivation, explain why and when. A recent change to a bank account in a different name is one of the signals the controls look at.
Supply chain
Supplier invoices for the products sold, showing supplier details and quantities that match your sales. Where products were sourced from manufacturers or distributors, include their contact information. Where the finding touches authenticity, the funds policy names a breach of the Amazon anti-counterfeiting policy as one of its examples of deceptive activity. That policy also states that a seller of inauthentic products can have related accounts suspended and payments withheld, so authenticity records carry the same weight as identity records. Our guide on forged or edited documents explains why any alteration, even a correction, creates a new problem.
The activity behind the signal
Identity, payments and supply chain answer the question “who are you and where did your goods come from.” The remaining question is “what caused the signal.” Our method answers it the same way as the reinstatement appeal.
- Position. The account was operated lawfully and in good faith, and the concern rests on a specific, correctable cause.
- Root cause. The exact listing, order, document or account event, with dates and IDs, without attributing it to buyers, competitors or Amazon.
- Corrective actions. The specific issue corrected, related exposure audited, and the account secured.
- Preventive measures. A written procedure, account-security controls and a monthly audit with a named owner.
- Evidence. The notice, the corrective audit log, identity and business documents, and a dated chronology. We never admit intent.
Matching evidence to the signal
| Signal | Evidence that answers it |
|---|---|
| Fake or self-placed orders | Order IDs explained, proof the service or person responsible was removed, access records |
| Chargeback or claim pattern | Carrier and delivery records, refund history, processor correspondence |
| Link to another seller | Ownership documents, removed shared access, separate payment and device records |
| Misleading listings | Corrected listings, catalog audit, pre-listing checkpoint |
| Identity mismatch | Current identity and business documents, explanation of any change |
Mistakes that undermine a fraud funds request
- Arguing the conclusion. “We are not fraudsters” is a conclusion. The reviewer needs facts that explain the signal.
- Sending documents in a different name. A bank statement for a personal account when the business account is on file, or an invoice addressed to a sister company, creates a new question instead of answering one.
- Sending partial records. Three months of statements when the account has two years of history, or invoices that cover only part of the units sold, read as something being held back.
- Editing anything. Redacting pricing on supplier invoices is the only change Amazon’s anti-counterfeiting policy describes as acceptable. Any other change to a document is a risk you do not need.
- Changing the account during review. New bank details, new users or new devices during the evaluation add signals at the worst possible time.
- Writing too often. Repeated messages before day 60, or the same request sent many times, slow the case down.
Disputing Withheld Funds
We run the funds case on its own track, separate from the reinstatement appeal. A reinstatement appeal argues the account should operate again. A funds request argues that the activity was legitimate and that the balance, after offsets, should be paid. Combining them in one submission blurs both arguments.
Step 1. Keep the reinstatement appeal clean
If the notice offers an appeal option, file it through the channel shown, usually the violation on the Account Health dashboard. Amazon’s funds policy states that if the account is reinstated, funds will be released on your disbursement schedule. A successful reinstatement is the fastest route to the money.
Step 2. Prepare the funds request before day 60
Use the first 60 days to assemble identity, financial and supply chain records, reconcile the balance, and close out open claims and refunds. Amazon’s funds disbursement eligibility policy states you can appeal for withheld funds by contacting disbursement-appeals@amazon.com at any point after 60 days from the date your account was deactivated, even if your appeal was not decided in your favor or you chose not to appeal.
Step 3. Submit one complete request
Identify the account and deactivation date, and state your position in one sentence. Explain the signal and attach the evidence and the reconciliation. Make one request, release of the remaining balance less verified offsets, with a written accounting of any amount retained. Respond promptly and completely to any follow-up request for documents.
Worked example of a day 60 funds request
The electronics case that follows blends patterns from several fraud holds and carries no real client detail. An electronics accessories seller is deactivated for deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity, with the full balance held. The reinstatement appeal is denied. The owner believes the money is gone.
Our review of the account shows that, four weeks before the notice, the business changed its deposit account to a new bank after a merger with a related company, and a staff member from the related company began logging in from that company’s office. To Amazon’s controls, the account now shared a network and a payment trail with another seller that had its own history. Nothing about the products or orders was in question.
The funds request at day 60 explains exactly that. It attaches the merger documents, the registration of the surviving company, the new bank account statement in that company’s name, identity documents for both owners, and a record showing the staff member’s access was moved to a separate user with separate devices. It includes a reconciliation of the balance and asks for release less verified offsets. The request answers each of the three categories the funds policy names, which are identity, financial instruments and supply chain. We cannot predict any individual decision. This is the kind of record that gives the evaluation something concrete to confirm.
Step 4. Consider regional and legal routes
| Region | Law or term | Relevance to withheld funds |
|---|---|---|
| United States (sellercentral.amazon.com) | The Business Solutions Agreement as a contract, read with general principles of good faith and conversion | Where funds are withheld without a supported finding, sellers sometimes frame a claim in contract, good faith or conversion with counsel. Disputes go to binding arbitration under Section 20, with a small claims option. |
| European Union (sellercentral-europe.amazon.com) | Digital Services Act, Regulation (EU) 2022/2065, Articles 17, 20 and 21, in force for all online platforms from 17 February 2024, and the Platform-to-Business Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 | Article 17 requires a statement of reasons for any suspension, termination or other restriction of monetary payments. Article 20 gives at least six months to file an internal complaint, and Article 21 opens certified out-of-court dispute settlement. |
| United Kingdom | Retained Platform-to-Business Regulation 2019/1150, Article 4 (UK version) | A statement of reasons at the time of a restriction or suspension, and at least 30 days of notice before a full termination unless Amazon can show repeated breaches of its terms. The EU Digital Services Act protects recipients in the EU, so a seller on the UK store relies on this retained regulation. |
EU and UK sellers contract under the Amazon Services Europe Business Solutions Agreement, which is governed by the laws of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Payments on those stores run through Amazon Payments Europe s.c.a. or Amazon Payments UK Limited under their own user agreements, so read the payment terms attached to your account. Under the EU rules the statement of reasons must name the specific facts and the ground in the terms that led to the decision, which is often more detail than a US notice carries. Nothing here replaces advice from a lawyer who has read your agreement and your notice. Where the balance is large, or where the finding could carry legal exposure beyond the account, take advice from qualified counsel before you send anything.
Funds release document checklist for Amazon fraud funds
- The deactivation notice and all later messages, in date order
- The deactivation date and the date 60 days after it
- Government-issued identity documents for the account holder and beneficial owners, current and unedited
- Business registration and proof of registered address
- Bank and credit card statements for every payment method on the account
- Supplier invoices and supplier contact details for the products sold
- Payments and settlement reports exported from Seller Central
- Reconciliation of the held balance with refunds, open claims, removal costs and fees
- Access records covering users, devices, locations and changes in the 90 days before the notice
- Proof that any service, contractor or link connected to the signal was ended
- The corrective audit log, the written procedure and a dated chronology
Read the related guides Amazon Funds Withheld After Altered Documents Finding and Amazon Section 3 Termination and Withheld Payments.
Records to Preserve
The prevention lesson in a fraud funds case is to keep order, sourcing and payment records that show legitimate activity, every month, before any notice arrives. The sellers who recover funds fastest are the ones whose records were already organized.
Records to keep on file at all times
- Order records. Settlement reports, order reports and refund records, exported monthly and stored outside Seller Central.
- Sourcing records. Supplier invoices, supplier contact details and receiving records that tie units to listings.
- Payment records. Bank and card statements for the payment methods on the account, and documentation of any change.
- Identity and ownership records. Current identity documents, business registration and a record of beneficial owners.
- Access records. Who has access, with what permissions, and when access was granted or removed.
- Vendor records. Contracts with every agency, contractor or software provider that touches the account, with a description of the service.
A monthly records routine
Records only help if they are complete and current. We set up a routine for sellers. On the first business day of each month, one named person exports the previous month’s settlement and order reports, saves new supplier invoices to a folder by supplier, downloads bank and card statements, and updates the access list. The task takes under an hour for most businesses. When a notice arrives, the evidence for the last year already exists in one place, and the first week can be spent on analysis instead of searching.
What to do in the first week after the notice
- Export every report you can still reach, including payments, orders, inventory and Account Health.
- Save the notice and every message as PDF.
- Freeze access changes. Do not add users, devices or payment methods during the review.
- Start the chronology, a dated list of account events for the 90 days before the notice.
- Do not open a new account. The Amazon seller code of conduct bars operating more than one selling account without a legitimate business need, and a new account opened during a review adds a second problem.
Sellers whose case also involves a performance problem should review our guide to an unhealthy Account Health Rating. Sellers whose fulfillment runs through third parties should read our guide on the drop shipping policy. For the full Section 3 framework, see our guide on the Amazon Section 3 termination, and for review-related holds, our guide on funds withheld for review manipulation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Amazon keep my money for fraud?
Yes, Amazon may permanently withhold funds where it determines the account was used for deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity, under Section 2 of the Business Solutions Agreement and its funds disbursement eligibility policy. Amazon states it offers an avenue to appeal that decision.
What if the fraud finding is wrong?
Submit evidence that answers each signal behind the notice, along with identity, financial and supply chain records Amazon can verify. If the reinstatement appeal fails, the separate funds appeal is available at any point after 60 days from deactivation.
What signals lead to a fraud finding?
The common signals are listings that mislead buyers, fake or self-placed orders, chargeback or claim patterns, and links to accounts Amazon considers bad actors. Amazon’s funds policy also names falsified identity, attempts to manipulate its systems and anti-counterfeiting violations.
How long are funds held during review?
Funds are held while the account is deactivated, and released on your normal schedule if the account is reinstated. Otherwise the separate funds appeal opens 60 days after deactivation, and Amazon does not publish a fixed decision date.
Can EU sellers challenge a fraud funds hold outside the appeal?
Yes, EU sellers have extra routes under the Digital Services Act, which has applied to all online platforms since 17 February 2024. Amazon must give a statement of reasons for a restriction of monetary payments, the seller has at least six months to use the internal complaint system, and the seller can also take the decision to a certified out-of-court dispute settlement body.
Should I get legal advice?
Yes, where the funds are large or where the finding could carry legal exposure beyond the account. On the US agreement, disputes go to binding arbitration with a small claims option, and the terms and costs depend on your agreement and location.
Get Help With Amazon Funds Withheld for Fraud
With permanent fund withholding on the table and little detail in the notice, reconstructing the trigger and building the record is the point where expert help is usually needed. We separate the funds case from the reinstatement appeal, prepare the identity, financial and supply chain evidence, and reconcile the balance before day 60. We do not promise outcomes. We make sure the evaluation has a complete record to check.
See how we work on our Amazon suspension service page, submit your case, or book a consultation to review your held balance with us.
Fraud holds on Walmart, eBay and other stores sit under our marketplace suspension services hub.
Sources
- Amazon Services Business Solutions Agreement (US), Sections 2, 3 and 20
- Amazon funds disbursement eligibility policy
- Amazon selling policies and seller code of conduct
- Amazon anti-counterfeiting policy
- Amazon Services Europe Business Solutions Agreement
- Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 (Digital Services Act), EUR-Lex
- Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 (Platform-to-Business Regulation), EUR-Lex
- Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 Article 4, UK retained version, legislation.gov.uk
