Business

Amazon changes rules: Vouchers no longer redeemable for every purchase

Amazon changes voucher policies: What does this mean now for birthday and Christmas gifts?

Eulerpool News Jan 23, 2024, 3:00 PM

Amazon gift vouchers are a popular gift for many on birthdays or Christmas. However, they may now lose popularity due to the recent changes in the company's gift voucher usage policies.

These new regulations have an impact on both customers and sellers. Up until now, Amazon vouchers could not only be redeemed directly on Amazon, but also with many third-party sellers on the Amazon Marketplace. However, this versatility has now been restricted. Customers who purchase through the Marketplace may be confronted with an error message stating that their gift balance cannot be used for the order.

Amazon justifies this by stating that additional information may be requested due to regulations for payment services in order to verify the identity of the gift voucher user. As reported by t3n, this step is related to a planned EU anti-money laundering directive that requires detailed collection of personal data from buyers before a transaction with a gift voucher is possible.

Until now, this regulation only applied to vouchers worth over 150 euros, but according to t3n, it is expected to also apply to smaller amounts in the near future. However, the exact extent of the changes has not yet been finalized and depends on EU legislation, which is expected to be adopted in 2025.

The effects of these regulations could be significant for Amazon and the numerous sellers on the Amazon Marketplace. According to eDesk, there were already over two million third-party sellers on Amazon in 2022.

Marketplace of great importance for small businesses, especially. During the peak of the Corona crisis, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Germany generated about two-thirds of total revenue on Amazon.de.

If the new EU directive is decided as planned, this would have significant effects on Amazon and the merchants using the marketplace. It remains to be seen how the situation will develop. A final decision on the EU directive is expected to be made in 2025.

Until then, there could be further restrictions for Amazon and sellers on the marketplace or alternatively, solutions might be found to comply with EU regulations.

In any case, the immense importance of third-party sellers for Amazon and the crucial role that the Marketplace plays for small businesses is once again evident. The coming years will show how all parties involved deal with the new policies and the ultimate impact they will have. The development in this area will be closely observed.

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