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Hand an FBA inbound plan to a 3PL or supplier

When the stock for an FBA shipment sits at a 3PL, or a supplier ships straight to Amazon, the people packing the boxes aren't in SKU.io. You still run the plan, but you hand the physical work to them through a portal link: a page they open without an account, where they confirm what they can send, build any kits, enter box contents and say when the shipment is ready. SKU.io emails them, reminds them, and alerts you as they finish each part.

Before you begin​

  • You've started an inbound plan and picked a 3PL Warehouse or a Supplier as its source. See Send stock to FBA with an inbound plan.
  • The 3PL warehouse or supplier has a contact email in SKU.io.
  • To have SKU.io chase late shipments, open the 3PL warehouse under Contacts → Warehouses and, in its settings, turn on FBA Inbound Reminders and set the Reminder schedule (days after sending). The default is 3, 7 and 14 days.

Ask them to confirm the stock​

  1. On the plan's Verification step, choose how to ask: Send Inventory Inquiry (EDI 840), Download Inventory Inquiry PDF, or Verify Manually.
  2. If you send the inquiry, the 3PL or supplier gets an email with a Verify Inventory Inquiry button. On the portal they enter, per line, the Qty you can fulfill, and click Submit Verification.
  3. Back in SKU.io, the plan shows All Items Verified, or Inventory Shortage Detected with what's short. Accept their quantities or change the plan, then click Mark as Verified.

For a kit, the portal tells them whether to ship pre-built kit stock or assemble the kit from components, and lists the components per kit.

Send them the shipment​

  1. Submit the plan to Amazon as usual. Once it's submitted, open the Fulfillment step.
  2. Click Build Packet. SKU.io gathers the documents, the prep instructions and the FNSKU labels into one packet. Edit the Prep Instructions if they need more detail.
  3. Under Portal Link, click Email the 3PL/supplier, or Copy the link and send it yourself. Rotate link replaces a link you no longer trust.
  4. Click Send Order.

On Pack Boxes, a 3PL or supplier plan offers two ways to get box contents: Option A — Give your … portal access, so they enter box contents themselves, or Option B — Request by email & enter it yourself.

What the 3PL or supplier does on the portal​

The portal walks them through How this works:

  1. Build Kits First, then Mark Kits as Built, if the shipment has kits to assemble.
  2. Print the FNSKU Item Labels and follow the Prep Instructions.
  3. Enter each box in Box Contents (scan items, or import a CSV), then click Submit box contents. Pallets go under Pallets.
  4. Click Confirm — ready to ship. If kits weren't marked as built, this marks them.

You get an alert as each part comes in: box contents submitted, kits built, pallet details submitted, ready to ship, or fulfillment overdue. Once boxes are in, carry on with Placement, Transport and Labels & Ship, then click Send shipping details on the Fulfillment step so they have the labels and pickup details.

What happens to your stock​

  • Components for a kit built at the source are held at the 3PL when you verify, and become kit stock when the kits are marked as built.
  • A 3PL-sourced plan gets a warehouse transfer per Amazon shipment, like your own warehouse.
  • A supplier-sourced plan holds no stock of yours. It gets a purchase order per Amazon shipment instead, so the units reach your FBA stock at the supplier's cost.

Next steps​

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