If you’ve noticed that your Amazon sales don’t appear in your accounting software immediately after a customer places an order, you’re encountering Amazon’s deferred transaction system—part of how their payment system works for all sellers. This guide explains why Amazon holds payments temporarily, how this affects transaction timing in Synder, and what to expect from deferred transactions. Here are the main points we’ll cover:
- What are Amazon’s deferred transactions?
- Why does Amazon defer transactions?
- What this means for your accounting management
- Why you don’t see recent sales immediately
- How to view your deferred transactions
- Managing cash flow expectations
- Important notes
- When to contact support
What are Amazon’s deferred transactions?
Amazon’s deferred transactions are sales where Amazon temporarily holds your sales funds and schedules them for payout at a future settlement date. Even though a customer has purchased your product and paid Amazon, you won’t receive those funds (or see them in Synder) until Amazon “releases” the transaction.
Think of it as Amazon holding your money in escrow until certain conditions are met, rather than paying you immediately when the sale occurs.
Why does Amazon defer transactions?
Amazon expanded this system significantly in November 2024 to balance seller cash flow with consumer protection. There are two main reasons your transactions might be deferred:
1. Delivery date based reserve policy (DDBR)
- What it covers: Most standard Amazon sales
- How long: Amazon holds payment until delivery is confirmed, plus 7 additional days (called “DD+7”)
- Why: To cover potential refunds, claims, or chargebacks after delivery
2. Amazon business invoice orders
- What it covers: Sales to Amazon Business customers who pay by invoice
- How long: 30-45 days from the order date (until the customer pays their invoice)
- Why: Amazon can’t pay you until they receive payment from the business customer
What this means for your accounting management
When Synder imports your Amazon transactions, you’ll see:
- Sales/Invoice Date: The date when the customer originally placed the order.
- Payment/Cash Date: The date when Amazon actually released the funds to your account.
This means there will be a gap between when you record the sale and when you record receiving the money, which accurately reflects your actual cash flow. This gap is referred to as “the reserved period”.
What you should expect
As of October 2024, both FBA and Merchant Fulfilled orders are subject to deferred transactions. For standard orders, you can expect to see payments appear 1–2 weeks after the original sale date. For Amazon business orders, the delay is typically longer—around 4–6 weeks after the sale.
Why you don’t see recent sales immediately
Synder can only import transactions that Amazon has “released” as Amazon doesn’t make deferred transactions available through their API or settlement reports until they’re ready to be released on a payout date.
This means:
- Recent sales (especially from the last 1-2 weeks) may not appear in Synder yet
- This is normal and expected behavior
- The transactions will appear once Amazon releases them in the settlement report
How to view your deferred transactions
While you wait for transactions to appear in Synder, you can check their status directly in Amazon:
- Log into your Amazon Seller Central account.
- Go to the Payments dashboard.
- Select “Transaction View”.
- Click on “Deferred Transactions”.
Here you’ll see a list of pending sales with their expected release dates.
Managing cash flow expectations
It’s completely normal to see a delay between when a sale happens and when it shows up in your accounting software. Here’s what to expect:
- A typical 7-14 day delay between the sale date and payment for most orders
- Recent high-volume sales days not yet reflected in your accounting software
- A mismatch between the date of sale and the date of payment
Since Amazon controls when payments are released, it’s helpful to:
- Build cash flow projections that account for the 1-2 week delay
- Understand that your “pending” transactions will sync into your accounting software once released
- Check Amazon Seller Central directly for the most accurate, real-time view of recent sales
Important notes
- This affects all Amazon sellers: Deferred transactions are part of Amazon’s standard payment system, not specific to Synder users.
- No action required: You don’t need to change any settings or contact support—this is how the system is designed to work.
- Transactions will appear: All legitimate sales will eventually be released by Amazon and imported to your accounting software.
When to contact support
Contact Synder support if:
- Transactions that Amazon shows as “released” (not deferred) don’t appear in your accounting software after 24-48 hours.
- You see discrepancies between Amazon’s released transaction amounts and what appears in your accounting software.
- You have questions about how transaction dates are being recorded.
For more information about Amazon integrations or other Synder features, visit our Help Center or reach out to Synder Team via online support chat, phone, or email.
