How to Prove Supplier Authorisation to Amazon

Last Updated: November 5, 2026

Table of Contents

• What Amazon Means by Supplier Authorisation
• Documents Amazon Accepts as Proof of Supplier Authorisation
• Writing an Amazon Supplier Authorisation Letter That Gets Accepted
  • What the letter must include
  • Signatures, letterhead and recency
• Documenting Your Supplier’s Supplier
• Assembling Proof of Purchase and Invoices
• Building an Evidence Pack for an Authenticity Appeal
• Redacting Documents and Handling Them Safely
• Troubleshooting Rejections and What to Do Next With Your Supplier Evidence
• Frequently Asked Questions

What Amazon Means by Supplier Authorisation

If you sell a brand’s product on Amazon, you may be asked to prove that your supply of that product is legitimate. Amazon’s supplier authorisation request is its way of checking that the goods you list came through a genuine route. Knowing what the request is for will help you send the right evidence the first time.

In plain terms, Amazon wants to see who supplied you, and whether that supplier is allowed to sell the product. The check usually comes up when a listing is flagged for possible inauthenticity.

Here is what sellers commonly need to show:

• The brand or its official distributor authorised your supplier to sell the product
• Your supplier bought the stock through a traceable chain
• The purchase records match the products you actually listed

This is not a request for a single magic document. It is a request to show a clear chain from the brand to you. Each link in that chain needs its own proof.

Documents Amazon Accepts as Proof of Supplier Authorisation

Amazon’s requirements for each case are set by the request itself, so always check the specific request you received before assembling your evidence. You can compare these against our page on what evidence Amazon requires for order fulfilment appeals.

• Authorisation letters from the brand or its official distributor
• Supplier invoices showing the stock you bought
• Delivery orders or receipts confirming the goods arrived
• Written agreements with your supplier, where they exist

A common mistake is to send only an invoice and hope it is enough. An invoice shows a sale happened. It does not, on its own, prove the seller was authorised to make it. Pair invoices with a letter that addresses authorisation directly.

Always check the wording of the specific request you received. Amazon’s exact requirements can differ by category and by request type.

Writing an Amazon Supplier Authorisation Letter That Gets Accepted

An authorisation letter is often the single most important document in your pack. It needs to say clearly that your supplier is allowed to sell the brand’s products. A vague letter is one of the most frequent reasons evidence gets rejected.

What the letter must include

A strong letter usually contains these details:

• The brand name and the product or product range covered
• The full name and contact details of the supplier you are authorised through
• A clear statement that the supplier is authorised to sell those products
• The date the letter was issued
• The name and title of the person signing for the brand

Keep the language direct. Avoid general phrases such as “we work together” when you mean “we authorise this supplier to sell our products.”

Signatures, letterhead and recency

The letter should look official. Use the brand’s own letterhead where possible, and make sure the signature is clearly visible and the document is legible.

Recency matters too. Check the date on every document before you submit, since Amazon may require supporting documents to be recent. An old letter, even a genuine one, may be treated as out of date.

Documenting Your Supplier’s Supplier

Sometimes your supplier is not the original source of the stock. Your supplier may have bought the goods from another party, and Amazon may ask to see that upstream link too. Sellers often call this the supplier’s supplier.

To document it, gather the records that connect each step. That usually means invoices or delivery orders from your supplier’s own purchases, plus any authorisation that covers that earlier source. Build the chain in order, from the brand down to you:

1. Brand or official distributor
2. Authorised wholesaler or supplier
3. Your supplier
4. Your own purchase records

For each link, you want two things: a commercial document showing the goods moved (an invoice or delivery order) and, where the link involves authorisation, a document showing the party was permitted to sell. A common pattern is that sellers have a clean invoice from their own supplier but nothing showing where that supplier obtained the stock. That gap is exactly what Amazon’s request is designed to surface.

When you request upstream documents from your supplier, be specific. Ask for the invoice that covers the exact batch or quantity you bought, not a generic trading history. Ask for the supplier’s own authorisation letter if one exists. Explain that the documents will be used only for Amazon verification and that you will redact unrelated commercial information.

Watch out: if your supplier will not disclose its upstream source, do not guess, invent records or create a document that implies a link you cannot prove. Keeping supplier statements and supporting records together also helps establish a clear business identity, which is an important part of Amazon business setup.

A useful way to test your chain before you submit is to draw it as a simple diagram: brand, distributor, your supplier, you. Next to each arrow, write the document that proves that step. If any arrow has no document beside it, that is the link to fix first.

The table below sets out the four links Amazon may ask you to evidence, from the brand down to your own records.

Assembling Proof of Purchase and Invoices

Proof of purchase is the record that ties your stock to a real transaction. Invoices are the core of this. Make sure each invoice shows the supplier’s name and address, the date, the product description and quantity, and the price paid.

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Small errors here can cause delays, such as mismatched product names, quantities that do not add up, or dates outside the recency window. Check each invoice against the listings it supports.

Sort your records by product or by batch. Label each folder clearly so you can find a document quickly if Amazon asks a follow-up question. This small habit saves a lot of time during a busy appeal.

Building an Evidence Pack for an Authenticity Appeal

An evidence pack is a single, organised set of documents you send together. For a fuller walkthrough of what to gather, see our step-by-step guide to dropshipping suspension appeal evidence. A well-built pack is easier for reviewers to follow, and it reduces the chance of a request for more information.

A simple structure works well:

• A cover note listing each document and what it proves
• The authorisation letter from the brand or distributor
• Supplier invoices for the relevant stock
• Delivery records linking the invoices to your inventory
• Any upstream documents covering your supplier’s supplier

Number each page and make sure the file names match your index. Use clear PDF or image formats that are easy to open.

Redacting Documents and Handling Them Safely

Supplier documents often contain information you do not need to share, such as bank details, personal addresses, or unrelated customer data. Before you send anything, remove details that are not relevant to the request.

Redact carefully. Use a tool that truly removes the underlying text, not just a black box drawn over it. A box placed over text can sometimes be lifted off, which can expose the information you meant to hide.

Store your documents in a secure folder, limit who can access them, and delete any copies you no longer need. Treat supplier paperwork as confidential business information.

Troubleshooting Rejections and What to Do Next With Your Supplier Evidence

A rejection usually points to specific things to fix. The most useful approach is to treat the rejection reason as a checklist and work through your documents one by one.

Authorisation letter rejected. Check that the letter names the brand and the specific product or range, not just the supplier. Check that the signatory’s name and title are visible and that the letter is on brand letterhead where possible.

Invoice rejected. Check the supplier’s legal name and address against the name on your account and on the authorisation letter. Mismatched legal names can cause rejection.

Delivery order or receipt rejected. Check that it links to the invoice it supports, either by a reference number or by matching product and quantity details. A delivery note with no connection to the invoice looks like an orphan document.

Upstream documents rejected. Check that each upstream document connects to the next link in the chain. Our guide to documenting dropshipping customer service issues explains how to record supplier responses that strengthen a resubmission.

Scan or legibility rejected. Check that every page is clear, straight and complete. Cropped edges, dark photos and missing pages are easy to fix by rescanning.

Redaction rejected. Check that you have not obscured requested details such as the supplier name, product description, date or signature. Redact only unrelated commercial information, and use a tool that removes the underlying text rather than drawing a box over it.

Once you have identified the defect, resubmit with a short cover note that states what was wrong and what you have changed. Keep a log of each submission, the reason for any rejection and the fix you made.

If your supplier will not share its upstream source, do not guess or invent records. Ask the supplier for a written statement of where it bought the goods, and ask for the authorisation that covers that source.

For a wider view of options when an appeal is not working, you can also compare your alternatives with our guide to Amazon suspension appeal alternatives. If your case involves a broader plan of action, our walkthrough on how to write an Amazon suspension appeal plan of action explains how to set out your steps clearly.

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