Overview

When creating FBA shipments through Seller Central, sellers occasionally encounter error messages during the initial steps of the workflow — specifically Step 1 (choosing inventory to send) and Step 1b (packing individual units). These errors can halt your shipment process and delay inventory replenishment. Understanding what each error means and how to resolve it can save significant time and prevent disruption to your fulfillment operations.

Key Points / What Sellers Need to Know

• SKU conflicts are the most common Step 1 issue — They occur when an existing FBA offer or FNSKU mapping already uses the same SKU for a different product or condition, blocking your listing conversion.
• Stickerless/commingled errors require a new listing — When a listing becomes corrupted or outdated, the fix involves removing the item from the shipment plan and creating a fresh listing for the same ASIN.
• Destination store catalog errors block cross-border shipments — Items must have an active catalog entry in the destination marketplace before they can be included in a shipment to that region.
• Fulfillment center capacity issues are often temporary — If no fulfillment center can receive your product, retrying later frequently resolves the problem as capacity shifts.
• Dangerous goods review can freeze your shipment — Products under hazmat review require complete documentation, including Safety Data Sheets and battery exemption forms, before they can proceed.

SKU Conflict Errors

The error message stating that a SKU is already being used for another product is one of the most frequently encountered issues during shipment creation. This typically happens when an existing FBA offer shares the same Merchant SKU (MSKU) but is mapped to a different ASIN or product condition. To resolve this, sellers have two main options: either update the existing listing to match the correct ASIN and condition so the conversion to Amazon-fulfilled can proceed, or create an entirely new listing with a different MSKU and sell the product under that new identifier. Before opening a support case, it is worth rechecking the listing in your account and attempting the AFN conversion again, as the error sometimes resolves on its own once underlying catalog data synchronizes.