Amazon Sellers Facing “COVID-19” Storage Restrictions

In a surprising turn that echoes the logistical headaches of early-pandemic Amazon, many sellers have recently encountered a wave of unexpected FBA inventory rejections—despite operating well within their account-level capacity limits.

Dozens of SKUs, particularly those being manually transferred from Amazon Warehousing & Distribution (AWD) to FBA, are being flagged and blocked with a message stating: “You are already at the maximum inventory allowed for this product, due to capacity or other restrictions.” This behavior appears to disregard Amazon’s account-level metrics system that replaced the notorious ASIN-level limits phased out in 2021.

Issue Extends Beyond AWD

The issue seems to go beyond AWD transfers. Sellers attempting to ship products directly from their factories to FBA—completely bypassing AWD—are also encountering the same block messages. This suggests the problem is rooted in FBA’s internal intake capacity or enforcement logic, rather than stemming from distribution center miscommunication or an isolated system glitch. Many sellers report being well under their stated capacity limits, making these restrictions not just confusing but potentially harmful during critical sales windows.

Timing is a significant factor. With Father’s Day inventory being prepared as well as Prime Day, sellers are deliberately increasing stock beyond trailing sales averages to accommodate seasonal demand. However, Amazon’s internal algorithms may be interpreting this proactive restocking as over-inventorying, despite it being a predictable and necessary surge. This disconnect between seller forecasting and Amazon’s automated thresholds is forcing some businesses to reconsider how and when they send in seasonal goods.

There's some speculation the error is a short-term glitch that will be resolved quickly. However,there’s growing speculation that the issue may stem from broader fulfillment center congestion.

With the looming threat of tariff increases, it’s possible that sellers across categories are rushing to get inventory in early—leading to a quiet, unannounced tightening of FBA intake across the board. The lack of communication from Amazon has only added to the frustration, prompting a flood of support tickets and escalations from sellers trying to understand why previously accepted SKUs are suddenly being blocked.

If this pattern continues, sellers may find themselves back in the micromanaged inventory environment many thought was left behind. What was once a predictable logistics flow is now being disrupted by inconsistent enforcement and vague capacity messaging. Whether this is a temporary hiccup or a sign of Amazon recalibrating its warehouse strategy under pressure remains to be seen—but the consequences for sellers planning around seasonal peaks could be significant.