Sooner or later, Amazon asks a health or personal-care brand for documents. It might be a licence number, a label photo, a test report or an invoice. Some requests block a listing until they're answered.
The usual mistake is sending a big folder of certificates and hoping something in it fits. Reviews go faster when the response answers exactly what was asked, for exactly the product in question. This page covers how to do that, and how to keep a product file that makes the next request easy.
Why was my natural health product listing removed from Amazon.ca? Usually because Amazon couldn't match the listing to a valid licence. The NPN, DIN or DIN-HM is missing from the listing, the details don't match the product's licence, no image shows the number, the label isn't in English and French, or the claims go beyond what the licence allows. The fix is to answer with the documents for that exact product, as described below.
Common requests for health products
What Amazon asks for depends on the store and the product. Common examples:
- Amazon.ca NHPs. Every drug and natural health product in the Canada store needs a valid DIN, NPN or DIN-HM. Listings need images of the complete packaging, including one that clearly shows the number, and NHP labels must be in English and French. See how an NPN application works.
- Amazon.ca category approval. Applying to sell in a restricted category can call for purchase invoices dated within the last 180 days, clear photos of all sides of the product, brand authorization letters where they apply and safety certifications when required.
- Amazon.com dietary supplements. Since April 2, 2024, supplements must be verified through a third-party testing, inspection and certification organization, started from the Manage Your Compliance dashboard. See FDA requirements for Amazon.com.
- Dangerous goods, safety data and product liability questions for some products.
Step 1: Turn the notice into a checklist
Start with the request itself. Save:
- The ASIN, marketplace and product variant.
- Each document or fact requested, copied word for word.
- The deadline.
- Where the response has to be submitted.
Make each item a line on a working list. Assign one person to collect the evidence, and a second to check that the final package matches the product.
Use the request shown in your account for the current path and due date. Requirements change, and old instructions from a forum or another seller may be out of date.
Step 2: Check that every document is about this product
Before submitting, compare these across the label, report, licence and invoice:
- Product name.
- Formula and dosage form.
- Pack size.
- Lot or model identifiers.
- Manufacturer and business name.
If a report names a capsule and the request is about a gummy, ask the lab or issuer whether the report covers that product. Keep their answer in the file.
Never alter a third-party report to make it look like it covers another item. Keep source documents intact. If something needs explaining, write a separate note that points to the page and describes the difference honestly.
Step 3: Make the response easy to review
- Name files after the request item they answer.
- Check that every file opens and is readable at normal size.
- Keep the lab or issuer details and the report date visible.
- List anything still missing, and who you're getting it from.
- Save a copy of the submitted package and the acknowledgement.
Step 4: Track the status honestly
Keep these states separate: submitted, under review, response received and resolved. A submitted correction isn't a fixed listing until the account shows it.
Record Amazon's reply next to the original request. If Amazon asks a follow-up question, answer that question with the relevant evidence. Don't resend the whole folder.
Build a product file before you need it
The fastest response is one you've half prepared. Keep one record per ASIN and variant, with links to:
- The current label, with its version date.
- The product licence (for Canadian NHPs) and its database record.
- Product specifications from the manufacturer.
- Supplier and site records.
- Test reports, with the product version each one covers.
- Past marketplace notices and your responses.
Give each document a version date. Don't overwrite files and call them all "final."
Current evidence versus old evidence
Keep old reports when they explain past decisions, but mark which product version they cover. A manufacturer's new business name, a formula change or a new pack size can create a mismatch, even if the old report still opens fine.
A document index with these columns helps: product version, issuer, date, status and the request it answered. It stops an old response being sent as current evidence by accident.
For Canadian NHPs, licence holders keep responsibility for product quality. Health Canada's bulletin on finished product specifications explains what it expects, including the duty to set and maintain specifications.
Give the file an owner
Someone has to own it. Their job is to record new notices, chase missing evidence and track replies. A simple status for each item works:
- Current evidence reviewed for this product.
- Missing or uncertain information.
- Response submitted, with a saved copy.
- Further question received.
- Decision recorded and next step assigned.
Review at change points
Reopen the file before you change the formula, manufacturer, label, marketplace or fulfilment route. Write down what changed and which documents you checked again. A good file supports a decision. Its size says nothing about whether the product is ready.
Related reading
- Listing suppression on Amazon.ca: first checks
- Restricted categories: checking eligibility
- How to sell supplements on Amazon Canada
How we handle this
Compliance requests are part of our account health work. Each issue gets an owner, the required documents and a follow-up date, and we tell a submitted correction apart from a confirmed recovery. For label and NPN questions, see NPN and NHP label compliance.
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