Amazon FBA Auto-Liquidation Default: Seller Guide (2026)

As of September 30, 2025, Amazon makes FBA Liquidations the automatic default for unsold inventory and FBA Donations mandatory (no opt-out) for US and Canada sellers. If you haven't configured your automated fulfillable and unfulfillable settings, Amazon can liquidate or donate your unsold stock — and mandatory donations return no cash. The move for sellers: review your FBA settings before they trigger, then decide where to recover value from surplus you'd rather sell.

What Changed with FBA Liquidations & Donations

• FBA Liquidations is now the default. If you haven't configured your automated fulfillable and unfulfillable settings, Amazon automatically enrolls your unsold inventory in the Liquidations program. You can still opt out of Liquidations at any time.
• FBA Donations is now mandatory. As of September 30, 2025 you can no longer opt out of Donations, and anyone who had previously opted out was re-enrolled.
• US and Canada. The change applies to the US and Canada FBA Liquidations and Donations programs.
• No change to program fees — but donations return no cash recovery (only a potential tax certificate for US sellers), so unconfigured inventory can leave your account for little or nothing.

The practical effect: control over your unsold FBA inventory shifts to Amazon's defaults unless you act. Reviewing your automated settings before they trigger is step one — deciding where to recover value from surplus is step two.

What This Means for Your Unsold Inventory

Mandatory donations are good for waste reduction, but for a seller they mean zero cash back on stock that still has resale value. If you'd rather recover value than watch surplus get liquidated or donated on Amazon's terms, the move is to clear it proactively. Knowing how to price surplus stock for a quick sale and how surplus buying compares to dropshipping helps you choose the channel that clears inventory fastest.

Recover Value from Surplus You'd Rather Sell

If you'd rather recover value than let surplus be liquidated or donated on Amazon's terms, you have options — from your own DTC channels to dedicated liquidation marketplaces. Forthclear is one such marketplace: it's free to list, and you pay only when your inventory sells — no broker haircut on the way through — putting surplus in front of vetted bulk buyers on your terms.

How to List Surplus on Forthclear

1. Go to Forthclear and start a surplus listing.
2. Add your surplus or dead-stock inventory with quantities and condition.
3. Publish the listing so vetted bulk buyers can find and purchase your surplus.

Frequently Asked Questions

What changed with Amazon FBA Liquidations and Donations in 2025?

Effective September 30, 2025, Amazon made FBA Liquidations the automatic default for unsold inventory (sellers who haven't configured their automated settings are auto-enrolled, with opt-out still available) and made FBA Donations mandatory with no opt-out for US and Canada sellers, re-enrolling anyone previously opted out.

Can I still opt out of FBA Liquidations or Donations?

You can still opt out of FBA Liquidations at any time, but as of September 30, 2025 you can no longer opt out of FBA Donations in the US and Canada.

How can I recover cash from unsold inventory instead?

Forthclear is a free-to-list liquidation marketplace for listing and clearing surplus and dead-stock inventory, where sellers pay only when stock sells, so you can recover value from excess inventory rather than donating it for no cash.

Your Options for Unsold FBA Inventory, Side by Side

The wider journey of unsold stock — markdowns, outlets, liquidation, returns — is mapped in where unsold inventory really goes.