Amazon is changing how it enforces the On-Time Delivery Rate (OTDR) rule for seller-fulfilled listings starting February 28, 2026. This update changes what happens when your OTDR drops below 90%, and for most sellers, this is actually good news.
Before this update, if your OTDR went below 90%, Amazon would deactivate all your seller-fulfilled listings. It did not matter which listings caused the issue. Everything would go offline. That is changing.
What exactly is changing?
Under the old system, if OTDR dropped below 90%, all seller-fulfilled listings were deactivated. Under the new system, if OTDR drops below 90%, Amazon will only deactivate the listings that caused the late deliveries. Your other listings can continue selling.
However, this is not a free pass. If your OTDR drops far below 90% or keeps failing repeatedly, Amazon can still deactivate all seller-fulfilled listings. The enforcement is more targeted, not more relaxed.
What is OTDR protection?
Amazon is offering protection for sellers who follow specific shipping practices. For Standard Shipping, you must:
Enable Shipping Settings Automation
Enable Automated Handling Time
Buy shipping labels through Amazon Buy Shipping or Veeqo
For Seller Fulfilled Prime and Premium Shipping:
Ship orders on time consistently
Enable Shipping Settings Automation
Buy labels through Amazon Buy Shipping
If you do not use Amazon Buy Shipping or Veeqo, you do not get OTDR protection. Amazon clearly wants sellers to use its shipping tools.
What happens if a listing gets deactivated?
If one or more listings are deactivated due to OTDR:
Go to Account Health
Select Other Policy Violations
Under Product Policy Compliance, find listings marked “Order Performance, On time Delivery Rate
Click Submit Appeal
Submitting the appeal will reactivate the listings. But it is better to prevent deactivation in the first place.
How does this affect sellers?
For large catalogs: This is a big improvement. One poor-performing product will not shut down your entire seller-fulfilled business.
For small catalogs: If you only have a few listings, losing even one can hurt more. You have less of a buffer.
For sellers not using Buy Shipping or Veeqo: You have no protection. Any OTDR drop puts your listings at risk.
For Seller Fulfilled Prime sellers: You already operate under strict shipping rules. Just make sure you are buying protected labels to qualify for protection.
What should sellers do now?
Check your OTDR in Account Health immediately. If you are close to 90%, you are at risk.
Enable Shipping Settings Automation.
Switch to Amazon Buy Shipping or Veeqo for labels.
Turn on Automated Handling Time for Standard Shipping.
Identify listings with late delivery problems and fix them. You may need to adjust handling time, change carriers, or move those products to FBA. If certain products constantly cause shipping delays, consider moving them to FBA to remove them from OTDR risk.
This update makes OTDR enforcement smarter. Amazon is rewarding sellers who ship on time and use its systems. Sellers who improve their shipping process now will avoid problems later. If you need help reviewing your shipping performance or identifying risky listings, our Amazon consultants can help you fix issues before they affect your sales.
