Amazon Associates Program Requirements

Approval thresholds, the required disclosure, where links may and may not be used, the price-display rule, and how Amazon's terms sit alongside the law.

The Amazon Associates program has specific requirements that go beyond the law, set out in its Operating Agreement and program policies. Meeting them matters because Amazon enforces its own terms and can remove affiliates who breach them. This overview is educational and not affiliated with Amazon; always confirm the current terms in your Associates account.

Getting and keeping approval

New applicants are typically admitted provisionally and must generate a minimum number of qualifying sales within a set window (historically at least three within 180 days) to be fully approved. Accounts that never produce qualifying sales, or that violate policies, can be closed.

Core requirements

• Display the required disclosure — a clear statement that you earn from qualifying purchases, such as “As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.”
• Use links only in permitted places. Associate links are restricted from email, off-site documents, e-books, and certain other contexts.
• Do not state prices manually. Prices change constantly; Amazon restricts stating a specific price except via approved, real-time methods.
• Do not cloak or misrepresent links in ways the agreement prohibits.
• Keep content policy-compliant — no prohibited, infringing, or inappropriate content around your links.
• Do not use links for your own purchases or engage in manipulative tactics.

Where this fits with the law

Amazon’s requirements sit alongside the FTC rules and your other obligations: the clear-and-conspicuous disclosure standard, correct link attribution, and, if you have EU or UK visitors, cookie consent. See also understanding affiliate program terms generally.

Last reviewed July 2026. This page is general educational information, not legal or tax advice.