Amazon begins quarterly tax reporting to Chinese authorities for cross-border sellers

Amazon announced on October 13, 2025, that it will begin quarterly tax reporting to Chinese authorities for the first time. The marketplace will submit seller identity information, transaction volumes, revenue data, and platform commissions to China's tax authorities starting October 31, 2025, according to a notice posted in Amazon Seller Central.

The initial reporting period covers data from July through September 2025. According to the announcement, "Amazon will conduct its first quarterly information reporting before October 31, 2025, covering information from July to September 2025." The disclosure requirements extend to seller identity information, transaction quantities, revenue details, and payments to the platform for commissions and services.

This development follows China's State Council Order No. 810, titled "Provisions on Tax Information Reporting by Internet Platform Enterprises," and accompanying Notice No. 15 from 2025 issued by China's State Administration of Taxation. These regulations established mandatory reporting obligations for all platforms serving Chinese sellers, regardless of whether those platforms operate domestically or internationally.

The policy eliminates what industry observers have characterized as tax gray zones in cross-border e-commerce. Chinese sellers operating on international marketplaces previously faced limited tax visibility, with authorities unable to systematically track revenue generated through foreign platforms. Under-reporting income represented a structural challenge within the sector, particularly as cross-border e-commerce expanded to represent billions of dollars in annual transactions.

Jianlong Hu, founder and CEO of Brands Factory, described the announcement as marking "a turning point of cross-border e-commerce in China" in a LinkedIn post sharing the seller notification. According to Hu, "The era of tax gray zones is officially over. Every transaction, every dollar earned will now be visible to tax authorities. Under-reporting income? Not an option anymore."

The reporting framework addresses a long-standing enforcement challenge. Chinese cross-border sellers have built substantial businesses on Amazon and other international platforms over the past decade. Temu and Shein, two Chinese e-commerce platforms, collectively ship approximately 600,000 packages to the United States daily, according to data referenced in coverage of Chinese e-commerce operations. While these companies represent different business models than individual Amazon sellers, the scale demonstrates the significance of Chinese participation in global e-commerce.

China's tax authority signaled this requirement in June 2025, according to Hu's analysis. The announcement specified that all platforms serving Chinese sellers must report tax data, eliminating distinctions between domestic and international marketplace operators. Amazon's compliance represents the marketplace responding to explicit regulatory requirements rather than voluntary transparency measures.

Sellers require no action in response to the reporting requirement. According to the Amazon notification, "You do not need to take any action. Amazon will report relevant information to Chinese tax authorities on a quarterly basis." This automated approach shifts administrative burden from individual merchants to the platform itself, creating centralized compliance mechanisms.

The technical implementation affects third-party sellers registered in China who conduct business through Amazon's global marketplaces. Amazon hosts approximately 60% of product sales from third-party merchants across its platform, as referenced in coverage of marketplace governance mechanisms. Chinese sellers represent a substantial portion of this merchant population, particularly in categories like consumer electronics, home goods, and small accessories.

Platform reporting requirements have emerged across multiple jurisdictions as tax authorities seek to address digital commerce challenges. The European Union's Digital Markets Act has driven transparency requirements for advertising platforms, leading Amazon to implement pricing transparency reports for its Demand-Side Platform. Amazon introduced these reports in March 2024 to provide EU advertisers and publishers with detailed breakdowns of publisher earnings, advertiser costs, and platform fees.

The Chinese reporting framework differs substantially from European advertising transparency measures. Rather than providing marketplace participants with pricing visibility, the Chinese regulation creates government access to seller financial data. Tax authorities will receive comprehensive transaction information enabling them to verify reported income against actual marketplace activity.

Cross-border e-commerce represents a significant component of China's export economy. The sector has grown rapidly over the past decade as Chinese manufacturers and merchants leveraged international marketplaces to reach global consumers. This growth occurred partly through operational structures that complicated tax enforcement, with sellers operating through foreign platforms while maintaining Chinese business registration.

Amazon's reporting capabilities demonstrate the technical feasibility of comprehensive transaction tracking. The company already collects detailed data on seller transactions, inventory movements, revenue, and fees as part of standard marketplace operations. Adapting these systems to generate quarterly reports for Chinese tax authorities represents an implementation challenge rather than a fundamental capability gap.

The timing follows a period of increased regulatory scrutiny affecting Chinese e-commerce companies operating internationally. Temu, operated by PDD Holdings, completely ceased all Google Shopping advertising campaigns in the United States on April 9, 2025, coinciding with intensified U.S. tariff policies toward Chinese imports. While that situation involved trade policy rather than tax compliance, both cases reflect growing government attention to cross-border e-commerce flows.

Marketplace compliance requirements have evolved substantially throughout 2024 and 2025. Amazon introduced a Seller Challenge feature in October 2025 enabling Account Health Assurance participants to request enhanced reviews of enforcement decisions. German regulators challenged Amazon's algorithmic price caps in June 2025, finding potential competition law violations. These developments demonstrate increasing regulatory engagement with marketplace governance practices across multiple jurisdictions.

The tax reporting requirement addresses concerns about fairness within the Chinese business environment. Domestic Chinese e-commerce platforms like Alibaba's Taobao and JD.com operate under comprehensive tax reporting obligations. Cross-border sellers using international platforms previously operated under different enforcement mechanisms, creating competitive disparities between merchants serving similar customer bases through different channels.

Implementation questions remain regarding enforcement mechanisms and penalty structures. The announcement provides no details about how Chinese tax authorities will process reported information, what triggers will prompt audits, or what penalties apply for discrepancies between reported marketplace revenue and filed tax returns. These operational details will likely emerge as authorities begin receiving quarterly data submissions.

For Chinese sellers, the requirement creates immediate operational implications. Merchants must ensure their tax filings accurately reflect marketplace revenue, as authorities will possess comprehensive transaction data for verification purposes. This shifts the compliance equation from estimated self-reporting toward documented reconciliation against platform-provided information.

The development fits within broader trends toward increased transparency and regulatory oversight in digital commerce. Multiple jurisdictions have implemented or proposed requirements for platform reporting of seller information, transaction data, and revenue details. The European Union's VAT rules for e-commerce, implemented in 2021, similarly require marketplaces to collect and remit taxes on behalf of sellers in certain circumstances.

Amazon's role as information intermediary raises questions about data handling and privacy considerations. The company will transmit detailed business information about Chinese sellers to government authorities on a recurring basis. This creates permanent records of business activity accessible to regulatory agencies, potentially for purposes beyond tax enforcement.

Hu characterized the development as inevitable given regulatory direction. According to his LinkedIn analysis, "This isn't sudden. Back in June 2025, China's tax authority made it clear: ALL platforms serving Chinese sellers—domestic or international—must report tax data." His assessment emphasized that compliance represents the only viable operational path: "The Wild West days of Chinese cross-border e-commerce have ended. Compliance is now the only path forward."

The announcement affects sellers across all Amazon marketplaces where Chinese merchants maintain active accounts. This includes Amazon's U.S., European, Japanese, and other international sites where Chinese sellers list products. The quarterly reporting cadence will generate four annual data submissions, creating regular touchpoints between platform transaction records and tax authority databases.

Reactions within the seller community reflected recognition of the compliance shift. LinkedIn responses to Hu's post included acknowledgment of the change's significance for marketplace operations. One commenter noted the development as "Nice change," while another characterized it as "a defining moment for cross-border e-commerce with transparency and full tax compliance."

For the marketing community, this development underscores the evolving regulatory landscape affecting digital commerce platforms. Marketplaces face increasing requirements to serve as information intermediaries between sellers and government authorities across multiple jurisdictions. These obligations create additional compliance costs and operational complexity for platform operators while simultaneously enhancing government visibility into commercial activity.

The quarterly reporting requirement may influence seller behavior beyond tax compliance. Enhanced government visibility into business performance could affect strategic decisions about growth rates, inventory investment, and operational scaling. Sellers may adjust business structures or marketplace participation patterns in response to increased scrutiny of financial performance.

Amazon's implementation represents one platform's response to Chinese regulatory requirements. Other international marketplaces serving Chinese sellers will face identical obligations under the same regulatory framework. This creates industry-wide compliance requirements affecting eBay, Walmart Marketplace, and other platforms with Chinese seller populations.

The development demonstrates how national regulatory frameworks increasingly reach beyond territorial boundaries to govern commercial activity conducted through foreign platforms. Chinese authorities established reporting requirements that compel U.S.-based Amazon to collect and transmit detailed information about Chinese nationals' business activities conducted internationally.

Similar regulatory approaches may emerge in other jurisdictions as governments seek enhanced visibility into digital commerce conducted by their citizens or residents through foreign platforms. The precedent of mandatory platform reporting creates a template that other tax authorities might adopt for their own enforcement purposes.

For Amazon, the requirement adds to existing compliance obligations across multiple regulatory frameworks. The company already navigates complex reporting requirements in the European Union, faces regulatory scrutiny from the Federal Trade Commission regarding advertising practices, and manages diverse transparency obligations across different jurisdictions.

The quarterly reporting mechanism creates ongoing administrative requirements. Amazon must maintain systems to identify Chinese sellers, aggregate their transaction data, format information according to Chinese regulatory specifications, and transmit reports on schedule. This infrastructure will persist as a permanent operational component rather than a one-time compliance project.

Sellers affected by the requirement may seek guidance on reconciling marketplace data with accounting records. Discrepancies between Amazon's reported figures and sellers' own financial tracking could trigger questions from tax authorities, creating incentives for precise record-keeping and reconciliation processes.

The announcement received 165 likes and generated 22 comments on LinkedIn within the first two days of Hu's post, indicating substantial interest within the e-commerce community. Engagement patterns suggest the development carries significance beyond affected sellers, drawing attention from industry observers, competitors, and marketplace participants globally.

China's regulatory approach emphasizes comprehensive data collection and centralized oversight. The quarterly reporting requirement aligns with broader government strategies to enhance visibility into economic activity, particularly in sectors like cross-border e-commerce that have historically operated with limited direct supervision.

The development marks a maturation point for Chinese participation in global e-commerce. As the sector has grown from emerging opportunity to established industry, regulatory frameworks have evolved from permissive approaches toward structured oversight with comprehensive compliance requirements.

For marketplace platforms, the requirement demonstrates how platform operations increasingly involve serving as intermediaries not just between buyers and sellers, but between sellers and regulatory authorities. This role creates additional responsibilities beyond facilitating transactions and resolving disputes.

The implementation timeline allows limited preparation period. Amazon announced the requirement on October 13, 2025, with initial reporting due before October 31, 2025. This eighteen-day window suggests the company had already developed necessary systems and infrastructure before making the public announcement to sellers.

Looking forward, the quarterly reporting cadence creates an ongoing relationship between Amazon's platform data and Chinese tax enforcement activities. Each quarter will generate new data transmissions, providing authorities with regular updates on seller performance and marketplace activity. This persistent information flow establishes a new normal for cross-border e-commerce operations involving Chinese sellers.

Timeline

• June 2025: China's State Administration of Taxation announces that all platforms serving Chinese sellers must report tax data, including international platforms
• October 13, 2025: Amazon publishes notification in Seller Central announcing quarterly tax reporting requirement for Chinese sellers
• October 31, 2025: First quarterly tax report due to Chinese authorities, covering July-September 2025 transaction data
• July 2025: Amazon introduces star-only seller feedback systems, affecting marketplace compliance mechanisms
• September 2025: FTC launches investigation into Amazon and Google over advertising pricing disclosures
• April 2025: Temu withdraws from U.S. Google Shopping amid tariff challenges affecting Chinese cross-border e-commerce

Summary

Who: Amazon and Chinese cross-border sellers registered in China who conduct business through Amazon's global marketplaces. The requirement was established by China's State Council and State Administration of Taxation.

What: Amazon will submit quarterly reports to Chinese tax authorities containing seller identity information, transaction volumes, revenue data, and platform commissions for all Chinese sellers. This mandatory reporting eliminates previous tax gray zones where sellers could under-report income.

When: The reporting begins with the first submission due before October 31, 2025, covering the period from July through September 2025. Subsequent reports will occur quarterly on an ongoing basis.

Where: The reporting affects Chinese sellers operating across all Amazon international marketplaces, including the United States, Europe, Japan, and other regions. Reports will be submitted to China's State Administration of Taxation.

Why: This requirement implements China's State Council Order No. 810 and Notice No. 15 from 2025, which mandate that all platforms serving Chinese sellers—domestic or international—must report comprehensive tax data. The policy aims to eliminate tax evasion in cross-border e-commerce and create parity between domestic and international platform operations.