Amazon Business account for sellers: when it helps an eBay store, and where its limits are

What does an Amazon Business account for sellers change?

An Amazon Business account for sellers changes how you buy from Amazon, not what you are allowed to do with what you buy. Amazon Business is Amazon's buying service for organisations. Its UK and US pages offer a free account and list features such as quantity discounts, the ability to add users and manage their permissions, and centralised approval processes. For an eBay seller, that can make buying packaging, office supplies and stock for your own shelves cheaper and better organised.

Two things stay exactly the same. Every purchase is still made under Amazon's own terms, and eBay's rules on where your eBay orders come from do not change because the account that buys has "Business" in its name. This guide covers what the account offers, where it helps a reseller, and where it does not.

What does Amazon say Amazon Business offers?

The features below are taken from Amazon's own pages for Amazon Business UK and Amazon Business US. Amazon changes its features and terms, so check the current pages before you sign up.

Amazon's pages do not set out who is eligible in the sections quoted here, and other features, such as business-only prices or tax tools, vary by marketplace and product. Read the account terms during sign-up rather than relying on a summary.

Where does an Amazon Business account help an eBay reseller?

• Buying packaging and consumables. Boxes, mailing bags, labels, tape and printer supplies are regular purchases, and quantity discounts can lower the cost per order.
• Buying stock to hold yourself. If you buy units to keep, check and post from your own premises, a business account can make bulk purchases and their records easier to manage.
• Separating business and personal spending. A separate business account keeps your business orders apart from household shopping, which makes bookkeeping simpler.
• Working with a helper. Adding a user with limited permissions is safer than sharing your own password.
• Controlling spend. Approval rules stop a large or accidental order going through without your say.

What does an Amazon Business account not change?

Amazon's terms

Every Amazon purchase is made under Amazon's own Conditions of Use and Sale, together with any Amazon Business terms you accept. Read them yourself for anything about resale, quantities or cancellations. This article does not summarise what they say on those points.

eBay's drop shipping policy

eBay says dropshipping, where you fulfil orders directly from a wholesale supplier, is allowed. Listing an item on eBay and then buying it from another retailer or marketplace that ships directly to your buyer is not allowed. Amazon Business is part of Amazon's marketplace, so placing an order through a business account to send an item straight to an eBay buyer is still buying from a retailer or marketplace. The rule is on eBay UK's drop shipping page. Whatever your sourcing, you remain responsible for delivery within the stated time and for the buyer's satisfaction.

Your tax position

A business buying account does not register you as a business for tax, and it does not change when you must register for Self Assessment or VAT. Those rules depend on your income and turnover, as the next section explains.

How do VAT and sales tax fit in?

In the UK, a business must register for VAT if its VAT taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000, or if it expects to go over £90,000 in the next 30 days alone. Our guide to the VAT threshold for eBay sellers explains how to track it. If you are VAT registered and want to reclaim VAT on purchases, you need a valid VAT invoice for each one, so check what document each purchase comes with. If you are not VAT registered, you cannot reclaim VAT however you buy.

In the US, sales tax on purchases and any exemption for goods bought for resale are set by each state. A resale exemption, where it applies, covers goods you will resell, not supplies you use in the business. Check your state's rules and the current Amazon Business pages before assuming a purchase is tax exempt.

In both countries, check your own situation with HMRC, your state tax authority, the IRS or a qualified accountant.

How do you set up an Amazon Business account sensibly?

1. Use a business email address and your business details, so the account is clearly separate from your personal shopping.
2. Add a business payment method, ideally a card on a business bank account, so purchases land in the right place in your books.
3. Add users with only the permissions they need, for example a helper who can buy packaging but not change payment details.
4. Set an approval rule for purchases above a level you choose.
5. Decide where invoices and order records go: download or save them each month with your other business records.

Does it make sense for your business?

Example (hypothetical numbers): suppose you post 200 orders a month and use one mailing bag and one label per order. If bags bought in a larger pack cost 4p less each and labels 1p less, you save about £10 a month on those two items alone. That is modest, but the separate records, the approval rule and a safe login for your helper may matter more than the saving.

For a seller who buys little from Amazon, the main benefit may simply be keeping business purchases separate. For one who buys supplies and stock regularly, quantity pricing and team features can add up. In both cases, the account is a buying tool. It does not alter what eBay allows you to do with the items you buy.

How should you record Amazon Business purchases?

Treat every business purchase as a record you may need later, for tax or for a query from eBay or a buyer. Keep the order confirmation, the invoice or receipt, and a note of what the purchase was for: packaging, office supplies or stock. Our guides to record keeping for eBay sellers and allowable expenses explain what to keep and which costs you can claim.

Which mistakes do sellers make with a business buying account?

• Treating it as a wholesale supplier. Quantity discounts on a marketplace are not a trade relationship. If you need a wholesale supplier for dropshipping, you need a business that sells to trade on written terms.
• Assuming every purchase comes with a VAT invoice. Check each purchase. Without a valid VAT invoice, a VAT-registered business cannot reclaim the VAT on it.
• Assuming tax exemption. In the US, resale exemptions depend on state rules and on what you do with the goods. Supplies you use in your business are not goods for resale.
• Sharing one login. The point of adding users is that each person has their own access. Sharing your password defeats it and makes it hard to see who bought what.
• Mixing accounts. Buying business items on a personal account, and personal items on the business account, undoes the separation that makes the records useful.
• Forgetting delivery costs. A quantity discount can disappear if a bulky order carries a delivery charge. Compare the total cost per unit, delivered.

A checklist before you open one

• You have read the Amazon Business pages and terms for your marketplace.
• You know what you will buy through it: supplies, stock to hold, or both.
• Your eBay orders are fulfilled in a way that follows eBay's drop shipping policy.
• You have a business payment method and a monthly routine for saving invoices.
• Any helper gets their own user with limited permissions.
• You have checked your VAT or sales tax position with an adviser.