Amazon to waive referral fees on these products, cuts shipping rates

Amazon will remove referral fees on over 12 million products priced below ₹300 starting April 7, reports Economic Times. The waiver, the report says, will cover over 135 product categories, including apparel, shoes, jewelry, groceries, home décor, beauty, toys, and kitchen items. The move is aimed to support small businesses selling on the platform. Currently, these sellers pay referral fees ranging from 2% to 16% in these categories.
Further, Amazon India is reducing national shipping rates for sellers using external fulfillment channels like Easy Ship and Seller Flex, lowering the cost from ₹77 to ₹65. Weight handling fees for items under 1 kg will also be cut by up to ₹17.
Sellers shipping multiple units in a single order could see up to 90% savings on the second unit’s selling fees, Amazon said.
Amit Nanda, director of selling partner services at Amazon India, stated that these changes aim to help sellers expand their product offerings and offer more competitive prices, particularly on low-cost everyday items. He noted that referral and shipping fees make up about 90-95% of the total fees sellers pay on the platform.
“As part of the continuing action to help sellers reduce their cost of doing business, we are now making a really large change in terms of the drop in selling fees on Amazon,” Nanda told the publication. “In the past also, we have made fee drops to help sellers. But they were more focused, and not as wide.”
In another news, Amazon has introduced a Rs 49 processing fee for customers who use Instant Bank Discounts (IBD) of Rs 500 or more, effectively reducing the savings consumers receive through banking partnerships. The fee, which took effect yesterday, applies to all customers including Prime members and is non-refundable even if orders are canceled or returned. According to Amazon, the fee helps cover costs associated with "aggregating, managing and processing bank discount offers" on their platform.