Close-up of a laptop displaying the Amazon login screen with OTP fields, placed on a wooden desk next to a smartphone, accompanied by bold text reading 'Locked Out of Amazon? Recover Without OTP

Can’t Receive Amazon OTP Codes? Here’s How to Regain Access to Your Account

Amazon 2FA Locked You Out? Reset Access Here

If you’re locked out of your Amazon account and not receiving the One-Time Password (OTP) required to sign in, you’re not alone. A growing number of users – including both buyers and sellers – are facing issues where Amazon’s OTP text message never arrives. This problem often appears without warning, and worse, Amazon doesn’t provide a direct workaround on the seller side.

But here’s the key insight most sellers miss:
Amazon’s official recovery process happens through your buyer account, not Seller Central. That’s where you can reset your OTP method and get back in.

Let’s break down exactly how to do it – and what to avoid.

🔐 Why Amazon OTP Codes Aren’t Arriving

We’ve handled dozens of cases where Amazon sellers and buyers couldn’t receive OTPs, and most follow a similar pattern:

SMS blocking by your carrier, especially if you’re using VoIP numbers (like Google Voice) or newly ported lines.
Changes in phone number without updating your Amazon account.
Amazon security filters that flag your login attempt, stopping the OTP from being sent.
Blocked short codes on your phone (either by mistake or due to settings).

No matter the cause, the result is the same: Amazon won’t let you in without a valid OTP. And if you can’t receive the code – you’re stuck.

✅ The Solution: Recover Your Account Through the Buyer Portal

Amazon doesn’t allow you to reset Two-Step Verification directly from Seller Central. But you can bypass OTP login through a specific buyer-side process, using government ID to verify your identity.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Go to this official Amazon recovery link: 👉 https://www.amazon.com/a/recover/upload

2. Upload a photo or scan of a government-issued ID. Acceptable documents include:

Driver’s license
Passport
State-issued ID
Voter registration card

3. Requirements for the ID upload:

Your full name and address must be visible.
The issuing country or state should be clear.
You may blur or cover sensitive information like ID numbers or barcodes.
File formats accepted: JPG, PNG, PDF, DOC, DOCX.

4. Submit the document and wait for Amazon’s review. This usually takes 1–2 business days.

5. Once approved, Amazon will disable Two-Step Verification and email you a confirmation. You’ll then be able to log in with just your email and password.

🧠 Important Notes for Amazon Sellers

This recovery process must be done through your buyer account login page – not Seller Central.
If your buyer and seller accounts are linked (which they usually are), this reset will apply to both.
After regaining access, log in and update your phone number or switch to a more reliable authentication method.

Common Mistakes That Lead to Delays or Rejection

From our experience handling thousands of seller verifications, these are the most frequent compliance mistakes:

Using unofficial documents (screenshots, unsigned PDFs)
Submitting a self-attestation without a company stamp or signature
Not aligning your Seller Central address with your proof of address
Listing a corporate entity as a beneficial owner instead of tracing to individuals
Missing documentation for foreign parent companies

🔄 Switch to an Authenticator App (Highly Recommended)

To prevent this from happening again, once you’re back in your account, we strongly recommend you set up an authenticator app instead of relying on SMS.
Apps like:
- Google Authenticator
- Authy
- Duo Mobile
…are more secure and don’t depend on your phone carrier to deliver codes. That means no more missed OTPs due to blocked numbers or carrier changes.

🧩 What If You’re Still Locked Out?

If the ID upload fails, or Amazon doesn’t approve your submission, you may need professional help – especially if:

Your seller account is tied to a business or a suspended account.
You’ve lost access to both the phone number and the email on file.
You’ve already tried and failed the recovery route.

At ASA Compliance Group, we’ve helped over 3,600 sellers navigate complex account access issues – including Two-Step Verification failures, buyer-seller account disconnects, and identity mismatches. We know how Amazon handles these internally, and we can help push the process forward if you’re stuck.

📌 Final Tip

Bookmark this link:
👉 https://www.amazon.com/a/recover/upload

It’s the single most important URL for anyone locked out of their Amazon account due to OTP issues – and the only way to request identity verification for Two-Step reset.

Need Help?

If you’re unsure whether to proceed alone or need a professional to assist with account recovery or compliance strategy, we’re here.

👉 Contact ASA Compliance Group
Let us know your situation and we’ll guide you through the next steps.

Book a Free Compliance Review

Canada’s 2025 Beneficial Ownership Rules Now Enforced by Amazon: What Sellers Must Do

Amazon Canada Seller Verification in 2025: What You Need to Know

If you’re an Amazon seller operating in Canada – or a foreign entity selling on Amazon.ca – there’s a crucial compliance shift you need to be aware of. As of 2025, Amazon has updated its seller verification requirements to align with Canada’s Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations under FINTRAC (the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada). These aren’t just platform rules – they’re federally mandated legal obligations.

This article breaks down what’s changed, why it matters, and how you can stay compliant and avoid disruptions.

Why This Matters to Amazon Sellers

Under Canada’s Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA), Amazon is now required to perform robust identity verification and beneficial ownership checks on all sellers operating through Amazon.ca.

This means:

You must disclose the individuals who actually control or benefit from your business.
You must prove the accuracy of this information using formal documentation.
If you don’t comply, you may face restricted disbursements, account suspension, or permanent removal.

Who Is a Beneficial Owner (and Why Amazon Cares)

A “beneficial owner” is any natural person who:

Owns 25% or more of your business (directly or indirectly),
Controls 25% or more of voting rights, or
Exercises control over your business through influence or agreements.

For trusts, you must disclose all trustees, settlors, and known beneficiaries. For partnerships, all partners who hold material ownership or control must be disclosed.

Amazon cares because FINTRAC regulations require reporting entities (like Amazon) to eliminate anonymous ownership in financial transactions to reduce the risk of money laundering, fraud, and terrorism financing.

What Amazon Now Requires from Sellers

Whether you’re registering a new account or undergoing re-verification, you’ll need to provide:

Self-Attestation Letter: On company letterhead, signed by a legal representative (CEO, director, trustee, etc.). This must:
- Outline the full corporate structure,
- Include names, dates of birth, and ownership percentages for all owners,
- List parent or holding companies, and their registration details.
Letter of Authorization: Required if the person managing the account is not the owner or director. Must be signed by a legal representative and state the contact person’s authority.
Identity & Address Documents:
- Passport, driver’s license, or national ID
- Utility bill or bank statement (no older than 180 days; no digital-only banks)
Corporate Formation Documents:
- Articles of Incorporation or Organization
- Certificate of Good Standing (within 180 days)
- Operating Agreement or signed By-Laws (including shareholding details)

Amazon may also request an organizational chart showing direct and indirect ownership layers.

Get Help Preparing Your Documents

Common Mistakes That Lead to Delays or Rejection

From our experience handling thousands of seller verifications, these are the most frequent compliance mistakes:

Using unofficial documents (screenshots, unsigned PDFs)
Submitting a self-attestation without a company stamp or signature
Not aligning your Seller Central address with your proof of address
Listing a corporate entity as a beneficial owner instead of tracing to individuals
Missing documentation for foreign parent companies

Tips to Ensure a Smooth Verification Process

Prepare in advance: Don’t wait until Amazon flags your account. Collect your documentation early, especially if you have a layered or international ownership structure.
Keep all documents current: Certificates and bills must be dated within 180 days. IDs must be valid for at least 6 more months.
Trace ownership clearly: Create a simple chart if there are multiple owners or parent companies.
Review everything twice: Ensure names, addresses, and spelling are consistent across all documents.
Anticipate re-verification: Even if you pass once, Amazon may ask for updated documents if ownership changes or risk triggers occur.

What Happens if You Don’t Comply?

Amazon gives you 60 days to complete verification, but during that time:

Your ability to sell or disburse funds may be restricted
After 60 days, you may lose access to your account permanently
Amazon may retain FBA inventory unless a removal order is placed

Remember: These verification steps aren’t optional – they’re part of Amazon’s obligations to Canadian law.

How ASA Compliance Group Can Help

At ASA Compliance Group, we’ve helped over 3,600 Amazon sellers navigate account verification, reinstatement, and compliance documentation across multiple marketplaces – including Canada.

We know the difference between a document that gets approved and one that triggers rejection.

Here’s how we can help:

Drafting fully compliant Self-Attestation and Authorization letters
Reviewing your full business structure and advising on beneficial ownership transparency
Creating clean ownership charts to map layered companies
Assisting with re-verification for sellers flagged by Amazon’s risk team
Preparing sellers for multi-country compliance, including cross-border taxation and DAC7 reporting

Final Thoughts

While some sellers view these regulations as a burden, smart operators recognize them as a chance to build trust with Amazon – and future-proof their business.

Compliance isn’t just paperwork. It’s a signal to Amazon that you’re a reliable, low-risk partner. And in today’s hyper-regulated e-commerce landscape, that’s an edge worth investing in.

If you need help preparing your documentation or want us to review your setup before submitting, reach out to our team. We’re here to help you stay compliant – and stay selling.

Questions? Our team is happy to walk through your current setup and give direct feedback. Just mention this article when you reach out.

Book a Free Compliance Review

Amazon Vine Review Manipulation

Vine Review Merging: The Risk Sellers Don't See Coming

Update: April 2025 – Amazon Issues Official Clarification on Vine Review Limits

Following widespread confusion and ongoing enforcement, Amazon has now released a formal clarification regarding Vine review aggregation and retention policies.

According to their updated documentation:

Reviews are aggregated at the parent ASIN level, not at individual child ASINs.
The number of Vine reviews displayed is capped based on your enrolment tier (2, 10, or 30 reviews depending on tier).
If you merge ASINs after Vine reviews are collected, only the top-rated Vine reviews up to the limit will be retained. The rest will be dropped.
Amazon now recommends enrolling all variations together from the start to avoid loss of reviews.

In other words, Vine review merging no longer results in combined review totals across ASINs – and attempting to do so may not only be ineffective, but also trigger enforcement if Amazon sees a pattern of review manipulation.

Vine Review Merging: The Risk Sellers Don't See Coming

Amazon’s Vine program was created to help sellers generate early, authentic reviews from trusted reviewers. When used properly, it’s a powerful tool for new product launches. But recently, a subtle and seemingly innocent strategy involving Vine reviews and variation merges has started triggering serious enforcement from Amazon – leaving many sellers blindsided.

At ASA Compliance Group, we’ve been tracking a rise in account flags, suppressed listings, and review removals tied to this very tactic. The issue? Most sellers using it don’t realize they’re violating Amazon’s policies – because it feels completely valid. Let’s unpack the issue, the violation, and what a safer path looks like.

What’s the Tactic?

The process usually starts with a new variation – or a stand-alone ASIN – launched with a minor tweak to an existing product (different color, packaging, or quantity). Sellers enroll that ASIN in the Vine program to collect early reviews. Once 20-30 Vine reviews are secured, the ASIN is merged into a high-performing parent listing.

This strategy is tempting because it boosts the overall review count and often improves the listing’s average rating. The Vine reviews, although technically legitimate, get inherited by the parent listing. It looks like a win – but Amazon’s systems (and enforcement teams) are now actively flagging this as a form of review manipulation.

Why Amazon Is Cracking Down Amazon’s core concern is review attribution. Every review is supposed to represent the actual experience with a specific ASIN. When you shift reviews from one ASIN to another, even within a variation family, it creates a misleading narrative – especially when the merge is done primarily to aggregate reviews rather than represent true variation.

Here’s how Amazon interprets the violation

Vine reviews that were originally posted for a specific ASIN are now appearing on a different product variation, confusing customers.
If the merged ASINs aren’t truly different formats of the same product (e.g. not a legitimate size/color variant), Amazon sees it as a misuse of the variation structure.
Amazon considers this tactic to be artificially inflating the star rating and credibility of a listing by introducing reviews from a separate product experience.

Most sellers caught in this trap didn’t act with deceptive intent – but in Amazon’s policy logic, intent doesn’t matter as much as outcome.

What Enforcement Looks Like

We’ve handled dozens of cases related to this tactic, and the fallout can range from mild to severe:

Amazon silently unmerges the listing and removes the Vine reviews.
Listings are suppressed due to detected review abuse or variation policy violations.
Accounts receive performance notifications or warnings under the “Abuse of Ratings, Feedback, or Reviews” category.
In rare but serious cases, sellers face ASIN-level suspensions – or even account reviews triggered by “pattern behavior.”

We’ve also seen sellers lose Vine review slots entirely after a misuse, meaning they can’t re-enroll future ASINs. That’s a painful, long-term hit to product launch strategy.

Why This Is Especially Risky for Brand Owners

This issue tends to affect brands who do care about compliance. These aren’t black-hat sellers gaming the system – they’re established private label sellers, often advised by agencies or consultants who haven’t kept up with enforcement trends.

The bigger problem? This tactic is still being recommended in Facebook groups and course communities, which leads many sellers to believe it’s a smart “gray area” move. But once Amazon flags it, it’s no longer gray – it’s a clear violation.

What You Should Do Instead

If you want to use Vine and stay fully compliant, here’s how to protect yourself:

Use Vine only for ASINs that will remain standalone or part of a variation family with valid justification. Don’t use Vine to collect reviews on a disposable ASIN with the plan to merge it later.
If you must merge ASINs, make sure the products meet Amazon’s variation guidelines. Ask yourself: Would a customer expect these variations to share a review section? If not, don’t merge.
Avoid review aggregation tactics entirely. Whether intentional or accidental, any strategy designed to shift reviews from one ASIN to another is a long-term risk.
Document your variation structure choices. If enforcement hits, you’ll want to show that your merges were based on genuine product differences, not review benefits.

How to Fix It If You’ve Already Done It

If you’ve already used this tactic and Amazon hasn’t flagged you yet, now is the time to proactively fix it.

Consider reversing the variation merge – detach the ASINs and allow each to stand alone with its earned reviews.
If you’ve received a warning or notice, don’t panic – but don’t ignore it either. Craft a detailed, honest Plan of Action explaining what happened, how it was unintentional, and what changes you’ve made to ensure compliance moving forward.
If Vine slots were misused, accept the consequences and reframe your launch strategy. It’s better to stay clean than risk deeper enforcement.

Final Thoughts

This issue isn’t about tricking Amazon. It’s about an enforcement shift that sellers haven’t fully caught up with. Vine review merging might look clever, but Amazon is watching it more closely than ever – and treating it as a violation of core trust principles.

At ASA Compliance Group, we specialize in guiding sellers through exactly these kinds of issues. If you’re unsure whether your variation strategy or Vine usage puts your account at risk, let’s talk. We’ve helped over 3,600 sellers recover and grow stronger – and we’re here to help you do the same.

Resolve my Suspension Now

Amazon 2FA Locked You Out? Reset Access Here