FAQ about Amazon Payments

To view the list of Questions, click "Amazon Payments FAQ" below. Then, to view an answer for a particular question, click the question. 


 Amazon Payments FAQ
 When a decline occurs, do I receive an email notification?

When a decline response occurs and the "Amazon returned DECLINED for the authorization" note appears on the order, the order then moves to Accounts Receivable and sends an email to all users with the notification; "Process Amazon Payment". 

Whitelisting merchant email notifications

Since the order email notifications UltraCart sends out are notification only emails and you do not reply to them, your email client may eventually begin to mark/filter those notification as SPAM.
See: the "Default Email Addresses and Troubleshooting sections for more details in this help doc; "Email Addresses". 

 Do I receive the customers full email address for Amazon Payments orders to send them their digital products?

Yes, you receive the customers actual full email address just like you would for any credit card on your store.

 Are auto orders (recurring orders) compatible with Amazon Payments?

No, not at this time.  Amazon Payments is not displayed when the cart contains an auto order item just like PayPal.

 I understand the fee is 2.9% +$0.30 per transaction (over $10). Is that fee in addition to the credit card fee?

That is the entire fee for processing the Amazon Payments transaction.  Please note the fee structure is lower for transactions under $10 and the percentage also drops for merchants that process higher volumes of payments.

 How frequently does Amazon pay?

There’s a 14 day reserve after your account is established, after which you begin at Tier 1, which is a 7 day reserve.  Higher volume merchants can submit their account to be evaluated for Tier-2, which lowers the reserve to 3% of daily purchase volume and any outstanding refunds/claims.  More information about our full reserve policy is here: https://payments.amazon.com/help/Amazon-Payments-Advanced/Getting-Paid/What%27s-a-Reserve 

 Is it basically acting in place of the merchant account? If yes, how is it different?

Amazon Payments does not replace your merchant account which allows direct credit cards.  What it does allow is the customer to login to their Amazon account and use the addresses and credit cards they have on file with Amazon.  It gives the customer a very fast way to check out.

 How does it handle refunds?

Use the refund functionality within UltraCart just like you would credit cards.  It all happens automatically.

 How does it handle chargebacks?

Amazon leverages all of it's anti-fraud technology while processing payments.  There is still a chance of a chargeback scenario similar to any other payment method.  Amazon will contact you via the Amazon Seller Central web interface if there is a disputed charge.

 Why do Amazon Payment orders go into pending clearance?

When properly configured, Amazon Payment orders stay in the pending clearance section of UltraCart for a few minutes.  The orders go through the Confirm Order -> Authorization -> Capture.  If you have live orders staying in the pending clearance section longer than that then you failed to configure the Amazon Payments Instant Payment Notification feature in step 3 of the configuration tutorial.  If you fail to configure this UltraCart will check all pending clearance orders at 9AM EST and release them so that they will still flow.

 Is Amazon Payments compatible with Upsell After?

Yes (see also the following Q/A regarding shippable items and upsell after)

 upsell after offer- added a tangible/shippable item into the order (initial purchase item is billing only) but it's ignored. Why?

The way the Amazon payments integration works, it requires the initial checkout to contain a shippable item in order for an upsell after that requires shipping details to be triggered.

 Is Amazon Payments compatible with the Single Page Checkout?

Yes, the Amazon Payment option will appear in the single page checkout configuration. However, the Amazon Payment components must load in sequence, so that payment option requires that the customer go through a multi-page flow if they select that payment option. 

 Why is the the payment button is not appearing in my checkout?

If your button disappears when you un-check the sandbox testing setting, your account may have a hold on it that is preventing the live mode form functioning. Please contact Amazon customer service to ask them to review your account and confirm that is ready to function in the live mode.

 Can I test my live Amazon Payments account with my own Amazon account?

No, Amazon will detect that the two accounts are associated because of the email or credit card number.  You should use another unrelated Amazon account other than the business such as an employee's personal Amazon account.

 I am testing the live account and I am getting an error "Amazon Pay is currently not available on this site. Try a different payment option." What do I need to do to resolve this error?

There are two possible errors that will cause this error message to display.

Error codeCauseSolution
InvalidAccessRequestYour Amazon Payments merchant account hasn’t been verified and is inactive.To get your Amazon Payments merchant account verified, provide Amazon Payments with all required documents.
Learn more
InvalidButtonAccessRequestThe URL on which you added the Amazon Pay button hasn’t been verified.

Add the website URL to your Allowed JavaScript origins and Return URLs in Integration Central.
Learn more

Error code: InvalidAccessRequest

When testing your Amazon Pay integration with a live transaction you might come across a message that says:

Something went wrong

Amazon Pay is currently not available on this site.

Try a different payment option.

In the details of that message you find the error code InvalidAccessRequest.

What's the issue?

You can’t process live transactions because your Amazon Payments merchant account hasn’t been verified and is inactive.

How can I solve it?

To get your Amazon Payments merchant account verified, provide all required documents.

To understand what information is required and how to upload it, check the performance notifications in your Amazon Payments merchant account in Seller Central.

  1. Sign in to Seller Central with your Amazon Payments merchant account.
  2. From the drop-down menu on top of the page, choose Amazon Pay (Production view).
  3. Click Performance, and then click Performance Notifications.
  4. Provide all required information and complete all steps outlined in the notification.

If you haven’t received any performance notification, contact merchant support for assistance.

Note After you submit documents, Amazon Payments will review your information, and might contact you for further clarification, if needed, within 4-7 business days. Contact will likely come via email. Check your emails regularly.

Error code: InvalidButtonAccessRequest

When testing your Amazon Pay integration with a live transaction you might come across a message that says:

Something went wrong

Amazon Pay is currently not available on this site.

Try a different payment option.

In the details of that message you find the error code InvalidButtonAccessRequest.

What's the issue?

Amazon Pay can't process this transaction because the URL on which you added the Amazon Pay button hasn't been added to your JavaScript origins, Return URLs, or both in the Client/Store ID configuration. It's also possible that the URL you added hasn't been verified by Amazon Payments yet.

How can I solve it?

If you've already added the URL of the website where the error occurred to your Client/Store ID configurations, the URL might still be under review. Wait for email confirmation from Amazon Payments that your URL has been verified before you enable Amazon Pay on your website.

If you haven't added the URL of the website where the error occurred to your JavaScript origins, Return URLs, or both in Seller Central, follow the steps below:

  1. Sign in to Seller Central with your Amazon Payments merchant account.
  2. From the drop-down menu on top of the page, choose Amazon Pay (Production view).
  3. Click Integration, and then click Integration Central.
  4. At the bottom of Integration Central, click View client ID/store ID(s).
  5. Choose you corresponding configuration from the drop-down App or store name. If you haven't set up a configuration yet, click Create new configuration.
  6. Click Edit and add your website URLs to the Allowed JavaScript origins and Return URLs.
  7. Click Save changes.
  8. Wait for email confirmation from Amazon Payments that your URL has been verified before you enable Amazon Pay on your website.

Note Verification of newly added JavaScript origins and Return URLs can take up to 48 hours. After verification is complete, you receive an email notifying you of the status. If the JavaScript origin or Return URL is approved, the URL will show under JavaScript origins or Return URLs. Rejected URLs don't show.


Reference Documenation:https://pay.amazon.com/help/BNU8UTA8Z5U7SRJ