Overview

Amazon sellers using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) sometimes need to pull inventory out of Amazon’s fulfillment centers. Whether the stock is mislabeled, nearing expiration, or tied to a seasonal campaign that has ended, creating a removal order is the official mechanism to retrieve or dispose of those units. Mastering the removal‑order workflow helps sellers avoid surprise fees, free up storage space, and keep key performance metrics healthy.

Key Points

• Trigger events — Common reasons to initiate a removal include labeling mistakes, product recalls, or excess seasonal inventory; for example, a vendor with 1,200 units of a summer‑only accessory may file a removal after September 30 to stop accruing long‑term storage charges.
• Per‑item fees — Amazon levies a flat fee for each unit removed; a standard 12‑oz item costs $0.50 per unit, so extracting 500 units adds $250 to the seller’s expense.
• Processing window — After submission, Amazon typically processes removal requests within 3‑5 business days, then ships the items to the seller’s chosen address or a disposal facility.
• Partial vs. full pulls — Sellers can request a partial removal (e.g., 200 of 1,000 units) to retain safety stock while freeing space, or a full removal to clear the SKU entirely from the fulfillment network.
• Metric impact — Removing defective, outdated, or slow‑moving inventory improves the “Sell‑through Rate,” a factor that can boost a product’s visibility in Amazon’s search algorithm.

How Amazon Removal Order Works

1. Log into Seller Central — Access the “Inventory” tab and open “Manage Inventory.” A seller handling a catalog of 3,500 SKUs clicks the dropdown next to a specific product and selects “Create removal order.”
2. Select the SKU(s) to pull — Tick the checkboxes beside the items you wish to retrieve. For instance, a vendor with 400 units of a discontinued kitchen gadget checks only that line, leaving active SKUs untouched.
3. Enter removal quantity — Specify the exact number of units; entering “0” signals a full removal, while any positive integer triggers a partial pull. Example: typing “150” removes 150 of the 600 units currently stored for that SKU.