About 93% of online shoppers say convenience is a top priority when deciding where to buy. Marketplaces have responded by investing heavily in faster, more reliable delivery, and Amazon’s latest policy is part of that push.
Starting Sept. 30, 2026, U.S. sellers who fulfill their own Business orders will need to meet a new performance standard: the Amazon Business Hour Delivery Rate (BHDR), with a required 90% minimum threshold. Falling short could eventually cost sellers their ability to sell to Amazon Business customers.
What Is the Amazon Business Hour Delivery Rate?
Amazon is introducing BHDR as a new requirement for seller-fulfilled (FBM) shipments to Amazon Business customers in the U.S. The goal is to ensure packages arrive while a business is actually open, reducing missed deliveries and redelivery attempts.
The metric tracks the percentage of seller-fulfilled shipments delivered within a Business customer’s operating hours, measured on a rolling 14-day basis. Sellers must maintain a 90% rate or higher.
- If a seller’s rate is below 90% as of September 30, Amazon will send a notification with improvement recommendations.
- If the rate hasn’t recovered by October 30, Amazon may deactivate that seller’s FBM offers for Business customers.
- FBA and standard retail offers are unaffected. This policy applies only to seller-fulfilled Business orders.
How Sellers Can Prepare
Amazon recommends several tools and practices to help sellers meet the new standard:
- Use reliable carriers with strong on-time delivery records.
- Set accurate handling and transit times.
- Enable Automated Handling Time.
- Turn on Shipping Settings Automation.
- Use Amazon Buy Shipping, which guarantees compliance when combined with the two automation tools above.
Sellers working with an experienced Amazon agency may also want a review of their operational settings as the deadline nears, though Amazon’s announcement points to the tools above as the primary path to compliance.
Amazon Is Tightening FBM Rules Globally
This change isn’t limited to the U.S. Amazon is extending stricter fulfillment requirements across several international marketplaces, with the U.S. BHDR rollout following similar updates already introduced in Europe.
Timing and enforcement vary by country, but the direction is consistent: tighter, more predictable delivery standards for seller-fulfilled orders everywhere.
Handling Time Accuracy Is Also Under Scrutiny
Alongside BHDR, Amazon is cracking down on handling time accuracy, reinforcing the same push for more reliable delivery promises.
- Starting July 15, accounts still using a default two-day handling time will be automatically switched to one day.
- SKUs with handling times longer than actual fulfillment performance may move to Automated Handling Time after September 1.
- If a SKU is consistently shipped at least a day earlier than its stated handling time, sellers get 30 days to fix the setting before Amazon takes over handling time management, providing late shipment rate protection for up to 180 days.
Amazon says these updates are meant to improve delivery-date accuracy and give customers more confidence at checkout, which it expects will boost conversion across its European marketplaces.
Sellers can also rely on Automated Handling Time, which adjusts estimates based on recent fulfillment history. Amazon evaluates performance over a rolling 30-day window and identifies the fastest handling time a seller can maintain without exceeding a 4% late shipment rate.
The Bigger Picture
Both BHDR and the updated handling time rules point to the same priority: Amazon wants seller-fulfilled orders, especially Business orders, to arrive when promised. For sellers, accurate handling times, reliable carriers, and automation are no longer optional extras. They’re what keeps offers eligible.
One exception: these requirements don’t apply to custom, handmade, or bulky less-than-truckload shipments.
With the September 30 deadline approaching, FBM sellers should check current delivery performance now and put the recommended tools in place well ahead of enforcement.
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