Overview

Amazon Australia has removed the option for sellers to deliver small‑parcel FBA inventory to fulfillment centres on their own. Effective immediately, every shipment must travel through an Amazon‑approved third‑party carrier, the Amazon SEND service, or the Partnered Carrier program. Sellers who previously saved on freight by dropping boxes off themselves must now adjust logistics and cost models to stay competitive.

Key Points

• Self‑delivery prohibited — Direct drop‑offs at Australian fulfillment sites are no longer accepted.
• Three approved routes — Shipments must use a listed third‑party carrier, Amazon SEND, or the Partnered Carrier program.
• Enforcement underway – Non‑compliant pallets are being turned away at the dock as soon as they arrive.
• State‑specific carrier lists – Amazon publishes approved carriers for each Australian state, with the widest selections in NSW, QLD, and VIC.
• Economic impact – Small sellers lose the cost advantage of self‑delivery; larger volume shippers may benefit from carrier volume discounts.

What's Changing

1. Elimination of self‑delivery — Sellers can no longer drive inventory to a fulfillment centre in Sydney, Melbourne, or Brisbane and hand it to Amazon staff. For example, a Melbourne‑based seller who previously loaded 20 cartons onto a personal van must now arrange a pickup with an approved carrier.
2. Mandatory use of approved carriers — Amazon provides a curated list of third‑party logistics firms per state. A seller in Queensland might choose DHL Express for time‑critical shipments or a regional operator like Toll Group for standard parcels.
3. Introduction of Amazon SEND — SEND acts as a logistics coordinator that plans routes, books freight, and tracks deliveries on the seller’s behalf. A seller with a mixed SKU portfolio can let SEND consolidate orders from multiple warehouses into a single truckload to the Perth fulfillment centre.
4. Partnered Carrier program integration — This program embeds pre‑negotiated rates directly into Seller Central’s shipping workflow. When a seller creates a shipment plan, the system automatically suggests the Partnered Carrier, calculates the fee, and generates a shipping label.