You search for your product in Seller Central, and Amazon shows “Apply to sell” next to it. That means you need category approval before you can list it.
To get category approval on Amazon India, click “Apply to sell”, fill in the form and upload your documents. Amazon says it reviews an application in 2 to 7 business days.
Amazon usually asks for invoices for at least 10 units, dated within the last 180 days. It also wants real photos of every side of the pack. Some products need a licence too, such as an FSSAI licence for food.
Say you sell a vitamin C face serum under your own brand. A contract manufacturer makes it for you. Your GST number, your Seller Central account and your printed packs are ready.
You open Add Products and search for serums like yours. Next to them, Amazon shows “Apply to sell”.
A few months later, you add a whey protein powder. It shows “Apply to sell” too, but Amazon asks for different documents.
The serum mostly needs photos. The protein needs your manufacturer’s central FSSAI licence.
What “Apply to sell” means
Amazon says it restricts some products to keep its store safe, authentic and legal. Before you can list them, Amazon checks your documents.
Amazon’s help pages say “Apply to sell” or “Request approval”. Amazon’s seller website calls these “gated categories”. Sellers call the process ungating, a word Amazon’s help pages don’t use.
Amazon can restrict a single product or a whole brand. It can also restrict a category, a sub-category, or a brand within one category.
So one product can need more than one approval. Getting a brand approved may not be enough to list a product in a restricted category. Check each product before you order stock.
How to check if your product needs approval
In Seller Central:
- Go to Add Products.
- Search for your product. If it isn’t on Amazon yet, search for products like it.
- Read the status next to each result.
“Not Available” means you can’t list that product. “Sell this product” means you don’t need approval. “Apply to sell” means you do.
Click “Show limitations” to see what Amazon wants for that product. On some pages, Amazon calls this link “Listing limitations apply”.
For the serum, click “Show limitations” next to a serum like yours. It tells you what your own application will need.
Which categories need approval on Amazon India
Amazon.in no longer publishes one list of restricted categories. Its help page on approvals dropped the list in October 2026. Amazon tells you to check what you need with “Apply to sell” on each product.
Amazon’s help pages and seller website still name the products below. The table shows what Amazon asks for with each one.
| What you sell | What Amazon asks for |
|---|---|
| Grocery: food and drinks | An FSSAI licence, two Amazon templates and photos of every side. Resellers add an invoice. |
| Supplements and protein powder | The manufacturer’s central FSSAI licence and a food declaration |
| Baby food | An FSSAI licence and a food declaration. Resellers add photos of every side. |
| Cosmetics, lotions and soaps | Photos of every side. Resellers add an invoice. |
| Baby gear: walkers, diapers, strollers, cots and car seats | Photos of every side. Resellers add an invoice. |
| Toys: remote-controlled, learning, infant, outdoor and building blocks | Photos of every side. Resellers add an invoice. |
| Feminine hygiene, medical supplies, masks and sanitisers | Photos of every side. Resellers add an invoice. |
| Blenders, food processors, slow cookers, helmets and pet care | Photos of every side. Resellers add an invoice. |
| Silver jewellery of 92.5% purity or more | Purity certificates for at least 10 products from a BIS-authorised lab. Resellers add an invoice. |
| Watches | Seller performance limits, the manufacturer’s barcode, and an invoice, warranty or warranty card |
| Clothing, accessories and sunglasses | Your brands and quantities, a yearly revenue estimate and your company details |
| ACs, fridges, washing machines and dishwashers | A detailed catalogue and an India warranty, says Amazon’s seller website |
| Over-the-counter medicines and medical devices | A drug licence in Forms 20 and 21 (or MD-42 for devices) and a pharmacist on site. Not through FBA. |
| Homeopathic medicines | A drug licence in Form 20C, sent to Amazon.in’s business team |
| Another company’s brand | An invoice, an authorisation letter, or both |
Amazon’s old list also named shoes, handbags and luggage. Check those products one by one in Seller Central.
For Ayurvedic supplements, Amazon’s seller website lists an AYUSH drug licence as an alternative to FSSAI.
Amazon doesn’t take new sellers for some products. It isn’t taking applications for precious jewellery. That covers gold, platinum, real diamonds and precious gems.
Fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh eggs and temperature-sensitive food are by invitation only. For some other products, Amazon doesn’t take applications at all. You won’t see a “Request approval” option for them.
Some checks aren’t approvals, but they still stop a new listing. Since 30 September 2024, you can’t list a new product until Amazon approves any compliance documents it asked for. You’ll find Amazon’s request in Manage all inventory, under “Review listing restrictions”.
Amazon asks for a BIS certificate for 30 kinds of product, from power banks to pressure cookers and toys. Our BIS guide explains how the certificate works.
For toys, Amazon wants a BIS certificate for IS 9873, or a screenshot of your BIS licence page. Its toys page no longer lists a lab test report as an option.
The documents Amazon asks for
For most applications, Amazon asks for invoices and photos. If you sell another company’s brand, Amazon may also ask for an authorisation letter.
Amazon’s overview of categories has a column for resellers and one for manufacturers. Resellers usually send invoices and photos. Manufacturers usually send photos only.
If a contract manufacturer makes your product, keep their invoice ready too. It’s your proof of where the stock came from.
Invoice requirements
Amazon won’t accept:
- an invoice for fewer than 10 units of the product
- an invoice more than 180 days old on the day you apply
- an invoice without your business details
- an invoice without your supplier’s contact details
- an invoice someone has changed, on paper or on screen
- a pro-forma invoice, a purchase order, a sales order or a receipt
- an invoice that doesn’t name the product
- an invoice from an import-export company
For the serum, that’s your contract manufacturer’s invoice to you. It must name the serum and show at least 10 units.
Photos of every side
Amazon wants photos of every side of the product or pack, so it can read every label. Use real photos of the product you’ll sell.
Amazon rejects mock-ups, computer-generated images and catalogue images. On its brand approval page, Amazon describes a real photo as one with the product in your hand or on a table.
For the serum, photograph the bottle and the carton. Take every side of each: front, back, sides, top and bottom. For a set, photograph every item in it.
Authorisation letters
Amazon’s name for this letter is a letter of authorisation, or LOA. It shows that the brand owner lets you use their trademark.
Amazon’s page on authorisation letters lists five terms every letter must have:
- Licensor: the company that owns the brand
- Licensee: your company
- Grant: what the owner lets you use, and how
- Geographic scope: where you may use it, which can be worldwide
- Term: how long the permission lasts, which can be for ever
The letter goes on the brand owner’s letterhead. Someone who can sign for the brand owner signs or stamps it. An email from the brand’s own domain also works.
An invoice, a distribution agreement or a purchase order isn’t an authorisation letter. Amazon may contact the brand owner to check the letter.
Documents alone may not be enough. Amazon says approval also depends on your account health. Open your Account Health page and fix any open issue before you apply.
Supplements and protein powder need a central FSSAI licence
Amazon’s supplements policy covers protein powders sold for muscle growth or workout recovery. For each product, Amazon wants the manufacturer’s FSSAI licence. The licence must:
- be in the manufacturer’s name
- show “Manufacturer” as the kind of business
- name your product in its scope
- be a central licence, because Amazon doesn’t accept a state licence for supplements
- be valid for more than 60 days
If you can’t get a copy, Amazon accepts the manufacturer’s 14-digit FSSAI number. A snapshot from FSSAI’s website also works. For an imported supplement, send the importer’s FSSAI licence.
Your photos must show every side of the pack, with the manufacturer’s FSSAI number on it. Your own FSSAI number goes on your Amazon storefront.
Ask your contract manufacturer for their licence before you order the protein. If it’s a state licence, Amazon won’t accept it. FSSAI’s own 2026 table also says making supplements needs a central licence, whatever the turnover.
Food and drinks follow different rules. Our guide to Amazon grocery approval covers the FSSAI licence, Amazon’s two templates and the photos. Our FSSAI guide covers what your food pack must show.
How to apply for category approval on Amazon
- Go to Add Products in Seller Central.
- Search for your product.
- Click “Apply to sell”.
- Fill in the application form.
- Upload your documents.
- Submit the application.
Amazon says a review takes 2 to 7 business days. If Amazon asks for more, reply within 14 days.
You can save an application as a draft and finish it later. Track it on your Selling Applications dashboard. You also send new documents from there.
Approval isn’t the last check. Amazon says it can ask for more documents at any time. Keep your invoices and licences where you can find them.
Brand approval and error 5461
Category approval lets you sell in a category. To create new products for a brand, you may need brand approval too.
Error 5461 means you aren’t approved to create new products for that brand. If the brand is yours, you may not have linked your Brand Registry account to your Seller Central account.
Amazon says to link them from “Brand Registry selling roles”. Not enrolled yet? Our Brand Registry guide covers who qualifies and every step.
Otherwise, apply for brand approval from the link in the error. Amazon asks for:
- the exact brand name, with the same capital letters
- the barcode number, unless Amazon has let you list without one (a GTIN exemption)
- the full title, the manufacturer and a description
- real photos of every side of the product and pack, including the barcode
After the approval email, it can take up to 24 hours before you can list. For some brands, you can create new products only in the 96 hours after approval. After that, you apply again.
Errors 5664, 5665 and 5668 are about the brand name itself:
- 5665: Amazon hasn’t approved your brand name yet.
- 5668: the brand name is missing.
- 5664: you may be listing an unbranded product without “generic” as its brand.
To get a brand name approved, send an image of your brand’s logo on its own. You can add two or more real photos of the branded product and pack. Amazon wants the brand printed, stitched, stamped or glued on. It mustn’t come off easily.
For clothing and jewellery, branded hang tags are fine. Amazon declines a brand name that’s a product type, a description or a model number.
A brand name approval works in every Amazon store. After approval, it can take up to 24 hours before you can use the name.
What to do if Amazon says no
“Your account does not qualify” is final. You can’t appeal it, and Selling Partner Support can’t tell you more.
Any other refusal isn’t final. Find what was missing, then apply again with new or corrected documents. Check these before you do:
- Is the invoice under 180 days old today?
- Does it show at least 10 units of this product?
- Is it a real invoice, not a pro-forma or a purchase order?
- Does it show your business name and your supplier’s contact details?
- Are the photos of the real product, not a mock-up?
- For a supplement, is the licence central, with your product named?
- Does your authorisation letter have all five terms?
If Amazon blocks a product for compliance, appeal from Account Health:
- Open the “Product policy compliance” tab and choose the issue.
- Click “Submit” next to the product.
- Add your documents, or click “Appeal requirement” if you think the rule doesn’t apply.
Amazon wants original documents, not edited copies.
People search for “amazon ungating 100 units”. Amazon.in’s pages ask for invoices for at least 10 units, not 100.
Amazon.in’s help pages don’t mention a fee to apply. An old Amazon seller blog from 2017 says some categories “might require additional fees”. Amazon’s current help page says “additional documents” in that sentence.
Approval isn’t for ever, either. Amazon can change what you may sell when it adds restrictions, or when safety rules change. A performance notification on your account can change it too.
Never edit an invoice or buy one. And don’t pay anyone who promises a guaranteed approval. Amazon decides.
Selling on Flipkart or Amazon abroad
Every marketplace has its own approval rules. If you sell on Flipkart too, read our guide to Flipkart brand approval.
Amazon’s stores abroad have their own rules as well. Start with our guides to Amazon US compliance and selling on Amazon UAE.
Where we come in
We onboard and list sellers on Amazon, and we get them approved in restricted categories. We know where first-timers get stuck: an invoice over 180 days old, a mock-up photo, a supplement with a state licence.
We check every document against Amazon’s current rules, and we never create or change one. We shoot the photos, file the application and apply again if Amazon says no. Our category approval service runs in your own Seller Central account, and you keep the login.
