Amazon’s new barcode policy suggests that Amazon has started cross checking listing UPC’s against the GS1 database. What does that mean for sellers?
Barcodes 101
Those digits in a barcode- they actually mean something. The first 6-9 digits, known as the company prefix, is a unique identifier of the product’s manufacturer. The ONLY place you can buy legitimate, registered barcodes is through GS1.
Is it illegal to buy barcodes from someone other than GS1? Kind of… I consider UPC’s obtained from any source other than GS1 to be grey market. As of 2002, GS1’s license agreement has stated, “The license agreement for our membership prohibits any use of the Company Prefix other than for the use of the owner company, including but not limited to selling, sharing, leasing, sub-dividing, or re-selling the Company Prefix.” Most resellers are selling codes obtained prior to 2002. So they are not breaking the law. However, you are breaking Amazon policy if you use these codes on Amazon.
Acronyms to know:
GS1: (Global Standards 1) is a not-for-profit, international organization that develops and maintains standards for supply and demand chains across multiple sectors. (http://www.gs1.org/about/how-we-got-here).
GS1 supply companies with GTINs (Global Trade Item Numbers).
UPCs (Unique Product Codes), EANs (European Article Numbers) and JANs (Japanese Article Numbers) are all different kinds of GTINs
Listing Branded Products That Aren’t Your Brand
If you’re listing a branded product, that is NOT your brand, then you should be using the barcode supplied by the manufacturer.
If you try to put your own UPC on someone else’s product, that is against Amazon policy. Your listing and likely your seller account will be shut down. You may even hear from the brand owner’s lawyers. Just don’t do it.
What if the products I’m reselling don’t have a barcode?
Contact your supplier. If the products do not have GTINs, you can apply for an exemption from Amazon’s UPC requirement. You need a letter from the brand owner confirming that their products do not have a GTIN, a link to the product website, or images of the products. You can apply for the exemption here.
Listing Your Own Private Label Products
You should ONLY be buying your UPC’s from GS1. GS1 will assign you a company prefix, that will identify you as a brand owner.
May I buy cheap UPC’s from ebay or another reseller?
No. No, you may not. Go back and read Barcode 101. If you buy UPC’s from a reseller, the codes will identify someone else as the brand owner.
Should you ever decide to sell your products to major retailers, they will only accept GS1 issued UPCs with your company prefix.
May I list my private label products without a UPC?
In certain categories, you can apply for an exemption through Amazon’s Brand Registry. Amazon will assign your products a Global Catalog Identifier (GCID), which can be used in place of a UPC. You can apply for the Brand Registry here.
Listing Bundles
Here’s where things get tricky. Product bundles require a unique UPC.
The safest option is to only create bundles of your own private label products.
The second safest option is to only create bundles of products for which you are an authorized reseller (and can supply the documentation to back this up), put the bundle under your own private label, and your own GS1 issued UPC.
The least safe option (and not recommended) is to bundle items of different brands, for whom you are not an authorized reseller, and avoid using those brand names in the product titles. This is the current loophole some sellers are taking advantage of. It looks like a fast track to blocked listings and an account suspension, to me.
Listings with Incorrect Barcodes
I’m guessing that when you started out on Amazon, someone told you you could buy cheap UPCs from ebay. I still see this advice given regularly. So, chances are, you have existing listings with not-so-legit UPCs. Now what?
Resellers:
Is there already a listing with the correct information? List against that and shut down your listing with the incorrect UPC.
If there isn’t a correct listing, you should still shut down your listing, and re-list with the correct information.
Private Labels:
At this point, it looks like Amazon are targeting sellers listing other brands, and new listings. However, Amazon’s policy does state,
“We verify the authenticity of product UPCs by checking the GS1 database. UPCs that do not match the information provided by GS1 will be considered invalid. We recommend obtaining your UPCs directly from GS1 (and not from other third parties selling UPC licenses) to ensure the appropriate information is reflected in the GS1 database.”
It is only a matter of time before they begin cleaning up their entire catalog. Your best option is to close your listings and create new, correct listings with GS1 UPCs. Yes, you will lose your reviews. Would you rather lose your seller account?
Alternatively, you can try to contact Seller Central and ask them to update your listing with a new UPC. They may say yes. They may say no. Or they may choose to shut down your listing anyway.
2016 is the year of catalog cleanup for Amazon. It’s in their interest and it’s in their customer’s interest to maintain the integrity of their product listings. As a seller, you need to make sure your seller account is policy compliant. Weigh the expense of following the rules against the potential lost profits that comes with blocked listings and account suspension. You decide whether it’s worth it.
Leah McHugh
ecommerceChris
Leah has over 7 years of ecommerce experience, as an operations manager and then ecommerce consultant. She co-created the Amazon Appeal course with Chris McCabe and they are currently working together on a new one (or two).
She takes full advantage of working online by living as a digital nomad. If you see her in a co-working space, come and say hi.
Hello Leah, how do I know the codes that were obtained before 2002 that you quoted, have a specific numbering? Thanks
You can check the code’s history in the GEPIR database.
Hi Leah,
I’m currently having my first product manufactured in China and now looking to acquire a UPC code.
I’m having the manufacturer add an additional item, that compliments the main product, into the package. Do I need just 1 UPC code for the bundle or separate UPC codes for every item inside my products package?
If you’re selling them as a single unit, you only need 1 code for the pack.
My company is not affiliated with GS1 and we work with many of the large US retailers and Amazon. The misinformation on many of the reseller sites is awful. As Leah point out, sellers should trust the information from Amazon in regards to their UPC policy. UPC barcodes are not a legal requirement and it is up to each trading partner to dictate what they would like from their suppliers. In the US, GS1 US is a monopoloy, but they do provide the assurances to trading partners that UPC identification is indeed unique. Amazon, (like Home Depot, Kroger, WalMart,etc) relies on the GS1 tools to validate the GS1 Company Prefix against the brand. Here is our link https://www.barcode.graphics/not-all-upc-barcodes-will-work-for-amazon/ . Amazon is has taken this a step further by establishing their own Brand Registry. https://www.barcode.graphics/amazon-brand-registry-transparency-program/
Should you register in GS1 using your DBA business name or the brand of the actual product? I design products that have their own trademark, but the trademark itself is not a company, just a product. I see companies like Pepsi that sell Starbucks coffee in bottles due to their business deal, so when you lookup the barcode in GS1 it says Pepsi, even though the bottle is branded as Starbucks. So it seems the GS1 entry would be the DBA business and not necessarily the name of the product and brand in some cases.
Would this scenario be the same on Amazon? Register on amazon under DBA name even though products might have a different trade name.
You need to register with GS1 using your legal company name or DBA if you are a sole proprietor. You can add the brand information using GS1’s data hub.
Hi Leah,
A great article, and great Q&A! I am a beginning private label seller via Amazon FBA. I want to do the right thing and buy (rather lease) from GS1 directly. As much as I want to be in this for the long haul, I just don’t have the success yet, to invest in so many GS1 codes.
1. If I get 100 barcodes for $750 and a renewal fee of $150, does that mean I have to pay that $150 in perpetuity, to keep a listing valid on AMZ ?
2. Suppose I have a cash crunch, and I don’t renew for a year, and I come back to re-register, can I just get my old GS1 account reopened, and go back to paying my $150 fee, and keep using the bar codes in my name ?
3. Suppose I never renew, and I used 20 out of my 100 GS1 codes, what happens to those unused codes ?
Just trying to see if GS1 thinks about small businesses too..
Thanks PS!
In answer to your questions:
1. Yes, that means you have to pay $150 every year for as long as you intend on using your prefix.
2. You’re leasing the prefix, so I would imagine that whether you could use the same codes would depend on whether GS1 had re-leased the prefix in the time that your membership had lapsed.
3. So again, you’re paying for the prefix, not the UPC codes. It’s not a matter of used versus unused codes. If you underestimate your needs when purchasing a prefix you can always purchase another (prefix).
Thank you so much Leah! One follow up question on #3:
If I understand you correctly, I could purchase another prefix under the same company, correct ? ie, GS1 doesn’t allows multiple prefixes per company..
If so, it gives us a somewhat affordable option until we have more money: Start with 10 barcodes at $250/$50 renewal, and then add another set of 10 if required.. we could do this for upto 3 sets of 10, before it matches up to the $750/150 option. This buys us enough time to build and grow, or just fail
Yes you can purchase multiple prefixes as needed.
What if you are selling something that was made before barcodes? We sell old vinyl records.
Hi Karen,
You would need to apply for an exemption here.
Hey,
A couple of Q’s if you would please.
1. Selling presently existing brand products from a known company/manufacturer. Do I Only need to add the UPC for the item in the listing to be in the green? And to confirm, the UPC is the actual full barcode in the product right?
2. With PL, does it matter where in the world you live or what Amazon marketplace you sell on as to whether or not you use a UPC or EAN as I live in Ireland and will sell on .com
Thanks a million,
Harry J.D.
Hi Harry,
1. Not sure what you mean by in the green? Resellers should use the manufacturer’s UPC or EAN. It is likely the barcode on the product, but not all barcodes are UPCs/ EANs- the barcode could be a store sku or something else.
2. You need to register with GS1 in the country that your business is registered in. Amazon lets you create listings using either UPC or EAN (or JAN).
If I buy in bulk overseas from a manufacture and plan to sell on Amazon with OEM packing and some without OEM packaging, do I need to purchase my own UPCs from GS1?
Plan to use FBA, but might decide to use FBM.
Looking for all approaches and possible solutions depending on which scenario I go with.
Thanks!
In this situation, you have 2 options:
1. Purchase UPCs from GS1.
2. Apply for Amazon Brand Registry and use get the UPC exemption.
Hello, I want to ask you something. I have a branded product with barcode and I want to sell like this: 1 branded product X + 1 same brand product Y. It’s like a bundle or something (buy 1 get 1 free bonus). Can I buy new UPC and create new listing or there is another way to do this?
Yes the bundle needs to have it’s own barcode. So, in your example you would have 3 UPCs- 1 for product X, 1 for product Y, and 1 for the XY bundle.
Rinii,
Don’t delete your listing! Just add a variation without the UPC and use your unique identifier. Send all your new stock in on this listing. After the stock runs up on the old listing delete it. Presto! You’re compliant!
Nick, We’re saying the same thing :). Deleting a variation is deleting a listing. It will still result in losing the reviews and rank as the new variation will be a new ASIN.
Hi Leah,
Our brand is registered on amazon with Key attribute as Manufacturer part # and not the UPC code. However we did supply non GS1 UPC code while we created the listings. So my question is Now since I already provided invalid UPC codes to my listings, I cant not just remove the UPC code, even though GCID is our own manufacturer part #. Are my listings still violating amazon listing policy? If it is violating amazon listing policy, Is there any way to fix this without closing the listing completely and relisting with GS1 complain UPC code?
Thanks!
Hi Rina,
The absolutely foolproof way would be to delete the listings and relist with the correct information. Unfortunately, that means you would lose the product’s sales rank and reviews.
Otherwise, you can try to contact the catalog department and ask them to remove the information from the listing. In my experience, you have a 50/50 chance of them doing it.
We sell our private label product on amazon and we have brand registry for our brand. We have selected Manufacturer part number as unique identifier for all our listings which is different than UPC, However we also provided UPC code along with Manufacturer part #. But these UPC codes were not bought on GS1 website so GS1 does not have our company info for these UPC code.
Now amazon changed the policy on us suddenly. Even though I have not received any complain from amazon about any of our listing, Is this policy update will affect our listing which is under our brand registry with unique manufacturer part # along with so called non complain UPC code.
Thanks for the great information. I am selling on Amazon UK – is there a target date for when the UPC codes directive will be implemented in the UK? And the second question – is there a UPC in the UK or are we to buy UPCs only from GS1?
Hi Barbara,
EANs are generally used in the UK, which is another type of GTIN, similar to a UPC. GS1 are the supplier of EANs as well. Their UK specific site is https://www.gs1uk.org.
Amazon UK has a Product UPCs/EANs and GTINs policy page. It also recommends purchasing from GS1, and states that Amazon verifies the information with the GS1 database.
The full policy page can be viewed here
Thanks for this information
I bought my UPC barcodes from Speedybarcodes.com and I got an official document from them that I own the UPC and no one can use it they also claim on their website that
“Speedy Barcodes sells legal and legitimate barcode numbers.
All of the barcode number SpeedyBarcodes.com sells were originally issued by the UCC (Uniform Code Council), known today as GS1, and were issued prior to August 28, 2002. That date is important because that’s when GS1 started sending out renewal notices demanding that past prefix holders pay renewal fees and agree to the new terms and conditions. Eventually, a class action suit was filed against GS1, in the State of Washington, and GS1 lost. All prefix owners prior to August 28, 2002 became discharged from any GS1’s renewal fees and a new codified agreement. The settlement agreement indicates that if a prefix holder paid a membership fee to the UCC prior to August 28, 2002, the prefix holder will be entitled to perpetual membership in the UCC and not be obligated to pay annual renewal fees to the UCC, either now or in the future. Also, the Terms and Conditions of the original ownership agreement with the prefix holder and the UCC, was deemed null and void. All of the barcodes sold by SpeedyBarcodes.com are included in the terms and conditions as stated above and therefore, all of our barcodes are legal and legitimate.”
Are you saying it’s all a fraud and i don’t own the rights to this UPC? All of my UPC start with the same prefix
Thanks for your time
Hi Sam,
As I said in the article, barcodes from (good) resellers are from prior to 2002. Everything you said is correct. I am not saying barcode resellers are breaking the law.
GS1 don’t actually sell barcodes per se. They sell the prefix used to create the barcodes, which identify the manufacturer/ brand owner.
What I am saying is that the prefix on the resold codes identify the original purchaser. Prior to this policy change, that was perfectly acceptable to Amazon. But now, in an attempt to reduce the number of duplicate listings, and people putting their own UPC on someone else’s product, they are cross checking the brand against the GS1 database. And, when they do that, and the codes are from a reseller, the GS1 database will not identify the correct brand.
This is why most big box stores will also not accept resold UPC’s. The company prefix is used throughout the supply chain, not just for UPCs.
Hi, i try to find where i can legally find barcodes, and wrote to sppedybarcodes.com, and here below their response:
Hi Aykhan,
Thank you for contacting us. A while back Amazon joined one of the managing boards of a non-profit company named GS1. Then around February 2016, Amazon updated their company policy and put a barcode ownership verification process in place. Amazon is now using GS1’s GEPIR database as the sole means of verification. We have contacted Amazon to let them know that the database they are using is not current and does not reflect correct ownership information for all of the barcode numbers GS1 has listed, but as per an email from them, they have no plans to change their process. At this time, you have no choice but to obtain barcodes from GS1 if you want to list your products on Amazon.
Amazon accepted our barcodes for years without any issues and even referred people to us when they asked where to buy barcode numbers from. It wasn’t until they made their policy change that they no longer accepted our codes. If you haven’t already done so, register for a free account on our website because if we can get Amazon to accept our barcodes again we plan to email all of our customers to let them know.
We purchased UPCs from another reseller in FL called Barcodes Talk and had the same problem with Home Depot. When we spoke with their consultant, the rep from Barcodes Talk came up with the same bogus conspiracy theory about Home Depot joining the board of GS1. The consultant said that most got away with using reseller UPCs in the past due to the enormous amount of misinformation on the internet. As companies grow the reliance on good data is imperative and that is why these companies are all now directing all suppliers to GS1.
What is your recommendation for me, i have a lot of items at FBA which don’t have the correct UPC, i have not created these listings but i’m selling it also, do i need to delete them all?
Even though you did not create the listing, you could still be reported for selling on an incorrect listing. I would recommend finding the correct listing, and listing on that. Or create a new, correct listing if one does not exist.
UPC Index is an aggregator of existing product UPC’s from the internet. It’s certainly useful for looking up product information, but it is not an “official” list, and it is worthwhile checking this information with the manufacturer.
Note the disclaimer at the bottom of UPCindex, “Disclaimer: Information provided for reference only and is not guaranteed to be accurate.”
Leah,
Thank You for your information,
But where can i lookup UPC to see if it’s the current UPC
I don’t believe there is an official, publicly available list. There is no requirement for registering individual UPC’s. Your best source is the manufacturer.
Hi Leah,
Thanks for your answers, they are extrimly helpfull!
One more question I have.
I have registered my brand in Amazon Brand Registry program.
While registering my brand I used UPC code as a Key attribute.
Now I want to use Amazon Brand Registry program to have an ability to list products without UPC. However I need a UPC because it is a Key attribute of my Amazon Brand. It is some kind of vicious circle.
Any ideas on the possible way out? Is there the ability to change Key attribute of an Amazon Registered brand?
Thank you.
Best regards,
Sergey
You’re welcome, Sergey 🙂
You can contact Seller Support and request support with Brand Registry. Ask them to change your key attribute to whatever you want to change it to. You should get a response from the brand registry team whether the change is successful or not.
Thanks again, Leah!
Already done, waiting for their reply. Hope they will be able to help.
They can change it just open a case with the catalog team, do you think changing the key attribute will help? Maybe if you once put in the UPC tags might be a problem any thoughts?
Leah
Thanks for your help, do you think if I originally used my key attribute for brand registry as UPC and I change it to style number, do you think I’ll avoid this UPC issue?
I think making your listings compliant with policy is always the best course of action.
Is this new guideline only on kit items or on all packs?
The new UPC policy applies to all items listed on Amazon that does not have a UPC exemption.
Hi,
Do you really believe Amazon is going to shut down all millions of sellers on Amazon? Almost every single seller that does private labeling bought UPCs from companies like speedy bar codes etc. , this is a new policy is Amazon going back on listings that were created before this policy?
Thanks
Hi Shea,
I don’t believe this policy is directed at PL sellers. I believe it is intended to reduce duplicate listings and people putting their own UPC’s on other people’s products.
However, Amazon’s wording is very clear that this policy applies to all UPC’s: “All invalid product UPC listings will be removed and may result in your ASIN creation or selling privileges being temporarily or permanently removed. For more information on licensing UPCs from GS1, see the GSI standard website.”
The problem is Amazon is putting a policy in place after millions and millions of private sellers put third UPCs do you think Amazon will make all PL to take down their listings?
Hi Shea, As I said, I don’t think this policy change is specifically targeting PL sellers at this time. The GS1 requirement being put into policy gives Amazon tighter control of what constitutes a valid listing and reduces the chance of duplicate listings. However, the wording on the help pages does apply to all sellers. So, I think it makes sense to clean up your listings to comply with the policy change.
Hi,
What if I have brand registry and I my key attribute is style not UPC will that help me if my UPCs are not good?
Thanks
Hi Shea,
If you have brand registry, then you do not need to list with a UPC.
But what should I do if I did ? Should I change my key attribute to style number? And like this my brand won’t need a UPC. Any thoughts?
I think if you don’t plan on getting GS1 UPC’s it makes sense to change your key attribute.
Thanks for an article, Chris.
Couple of questions and thoughts I have:
1. Is it possible to obtain UPS code from GS1 like a private person, not a company? Many PL sellers on Amazon do not have a company, as you know, what should they do?
2. What information from my listing and Amazon account should be matching with a GS1 database?
Is it “By: [brand name]” field (which is under the title) which should be the same as mentioned in GS1 database? As far as I understand, it is a brand name there and it can differ from a company name. If that is right, then my third question appears.
3. What is Amazons possible checking process? It looks like they cannot fully automate the process, because even if everything was done correctly by the seller, it is not necessary that the information from GS1 database should match the information from Amazon account. That means that they should do lots of work manually. If it is right and Amazon will need to contact each company to confirm there ownership for the particular brand, it looks like an impracticable piece of work.
What do you think, Chris?
Highly appreciate your reply.
Best regards,
Sergey
I have a similar questions as Sergey,
The basic lookup tool on gs1 shows a company name associated with the UPCs
The company name I use on Amazon is a DBA.
My company name I use on GS1 cannot be a DBA according to their application.
How is Amazon checking all of this?
Hi Kurt,
That is a very valid question, and honestly, I don’t know the answer.
But, in this scenario, you would be compliant with their policy. So, if it came to your listings being blocked because your DBA didn’t match your company name in GS1, you could very easily provide your DBA paperwork and GS1 certificate, proving your codes are legit.
These are all great points. Thank you, Sergey, for bringing them up.
1. If you are a sole trader, your business entity is your own name, or the business name you registered under. You do not need to be incorporated to get a GS1 prefix. As a PL seller, you also have the option of enrolling in the Amazon Brand Registry (link in the article) which gives you an exception from requiring UPC’s
2. At this time it looks like Amazon are checking the manufacturer field, brand and title to match against GS1.
3. From what we have seen, Amazon has started:
* automatically checking UPC’s against their list of Designated Brands Requiring UPCs when a new listing is being created.
* possibly using automation when checking existing listings that cite a Designated Brand as the manufacturer, or mentions them in the title.
* checking UPC’s manually when a seller is under investigation for other reasons, such as misuse of ASIN Variations.
How can we check our UPCs?
Hi Kass, you can use GS1’s tool, Who Owns This Barcode
Hi Leah,
Where is the update regarding GS1 barcodes in Amazon’s TOS? I can’t see it linked in the article.
Hi James, It’s on Amazon’s Product UPC and GTINs page, which now states, “We verify the authenticity of product UPCs by checking the GS1 database. UPCs that do not match the information provided by GS1 will be considered invalid. We recommend obtaining your UPCs directly from GS1 (and not from other third parties selling UPC licenses) to ensure the appropriate information is reflected in the GS1 database.”
Chris,
I noticed a lot of big companies on Amazon are using resold UPC’s. I’m not talking about companies like Nike, Reebok, but companies that are definitely multi-million dollar companies.
What do you think will happen to them? Surely Amazon won’t shut down all of these million dollar companies?
Hi Pat,
Amazon regularly block listings or suspend accounts of multi-million dollar companies for policy violation. I don’t see this being treated any differently.
But, as I said, for the time being, it looks like they are targeting resellers of brands, and new listings. These larger companies should take the time now to fix their listings.