What happens when I generate qualifying purchases on products or games in "Pre-Order" status?

Associates earn commission income when visitors follow tagged links from their sites to Amazon, make a qualifying purchase, and the item is shipped. Usually, the items are eligible for shipping within few days from the order date. Since pre-order items are not eligible for shipping until their launch date, the commission income will remain pending until that date, for example in the case of Amazon Games, the game’s launch date.

Will I be able to track the pre-order item under my Reports?
Yes. The item and the credited commission income will be visible under the “Ordered Items” of your reports on Associates Central.


How are my account settings affected by this order status?
The qualifying revenue therefore generated will be taken into account for the calculation of your PAAPI Threshold limit and trigger the review of your application.


When will I get paid?
You will get paid the commissions generated by a product that is in Pre-Order status after the product has shipped, per our usual 60-days payment terms. The effective shipment date is taken into account to initiate the payment process, for this reason you will have to wait for the shipment of the product to trigger the earnings generation for your qualifying purchase. Please visit Payment Schedule help pages to learn more.

  • For instance, the game Lost Ark is pre-ordered by one of your visitors or followers via your tagged link in October 2021. The order will be reported in your AC reports under the section “Ordered Items”. The related “earnings” reporting line will be updated with the commissions calculated in March 2022 (the game’s effective launch date and therefore the “Order Shipment date”). Finally, we’ll proceed with the payment of the commissions in May 2022.

What happens if the pre-order item is returned?
There is no change in the returns guidelines. However, please keep in mind that an item can only be returned once shipped. For refund guidelines, please refer to this page.

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