12 February 2019
Chapter 1 Basic requirements for access
application
Article 1 Enterprises: You have to be a company that has been duly incorporated, and is normally operating under Italian law.
Article 2 Brands: In case that you operate through the use of a trademark, the trademark shall have been duly owned by or licensed to you. If you run some special trademarks (subject to system prompts), you may need to
provide evidence of owning or having licence to use said trademark. For these purposes, “Trademark” means a trademark that has been granted by the Italian Office of Patents and Trademarks (Ufficio Italiano Marchi e Brevetti) and/or the European Union Intellectual Property Office.
Article 3 Commodity Requirements: All goods must be shipped from a location within Italy, with a 14-day no-reason return service and two-year warranty under Italian law, without prejudice to other requirements applicable under Italian or other applicable regulations regarding consumer protection or otherwise.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the no-reason return service shall be 30 days and free of charge to the buyer (provided that the goods are returned in new, unused and in resalable condition) for the following product categories:
Home & Garden
Men’s Clothing
Mother & Kids
Apparel Accessories
Sports & Entertainment
Luggage & Bags
Jewelry & Accessories
Women’s Clothing
Shoes items
In addition, in case that you advertise, claim and/or represent that any specific products are “made in Italy”(eg by applying the “made in Italy” tag/listing them in such channel), the production of said products must have taken place totally or substantially in Italy. You may be required to provide evidence of said Italian production. If said evidence is not provided or is not considered satisfactory at the platform’s discretion, then:
-the relevant products listings may be removed and may never be allowed for relisting using “made in Italy” or similar as tags, in its description and/or in any exclusive channel;
-you may be forced to fully refund any buyer which has purchased the affected products; and/or
-if more than 5 products have already been removed, you may not be allowed to relist products using “made in Italy” or similar tags for at least 90 days (at the platform’s discretion), and other products on your store may also be removed from “made in Italy“ channel or similar tags (for the same time period).
Chapter 2 Detailed Requirements
Article 4 Apply for shop authority
You can apply to open one shop at a time. Each company can apply for opening up to 6 AliExpress shop accounts.
If you run some special categories (which will be announced to you through system prompts), you may need to provide relevant qualification before being able to post and sell products in such special categories.
Chapter 3 Restrictions
Article 5 Trademark restrictions
Unless specific circumstances are met, stores cannot sell products which are suspected of unfair competition affecting a related trademark (“Restricted Trademarks”), that is, any of the following types of trademarks or brands:
(1) It is the same or similar to AliExpress existing brands, channels, businesses and categories;
(2) contains the industry name or generic name or industry hot search words;
(3) brands that includes celebrities or place names;
(4) brands with the same or similar name to a well-known brand;
(5) pure graphic trademark.
When applying for the operation of Restricted Trademarks products, AliExpress has the right to refuse or terminate the application for entry; and for Restricted Trademark products which are already being sold, AliExpress has the right to take down the related listings.
Article 6 Impact on consumer rights brand restrictions
1. Without prejudice to other remedies set forth under applicable statutory law, the right to operate branded goods shall be discontinued if you run the brand in any of the following cases:
1) Branded goods are proved to be manufactured by manufacturers that do not have the manufacturing qualifications, or which do not meet the mandatory standards of the state, regional or local government, or those set by industry or enterprises; or a contractual restriction applies to the sale of those branded goods through AliExpress;
2) the brand is judged by AliExpress or a third party to be counterfeit or liable to confusion and misidentification among consumers due to its trademark, trade name, packaging and decoration, business name, product quality mark, etc.
3) During the operation period, the brand is proven to have a high dispute rate, a high complaint rate, a low market acceptance and the average score of branded product description is significantly lower than the industry average, seriously affecting the consumer experience. After being informed by the platform, no obvious improvement has been achieved within one month.
Chapter 4 Commission fees charged in real time
Sellers shall pay commission at a certain percentage of their sales on the AliExpress platform.
Please refer to the table below for AliExpress platform’s current commission rates for Italian sellers across different categories.
categories |
Commission Rate applicable now |
Commission Rate expected to be implemented as fromMarch 2019 |
|
Food |
8% |
8% |
|
Special Category |
8% |
8% |
|
Home Appliances |
5% |
5% |
|
Office & School Supplies |
8% |
8% |
|
Beauty & Health |
8% |
8% |
|
Phones & Telecommunications |
Mobile Phones |
5% |
5% |
Mobile Phone LCDs |
5% |
5% |
|
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Tools |
Garden Tools |
5% |
8% |
Measurement & Analysis Instruments |
5% |
8% |
|
Power Tools |
5% |
8% |
|
Tool Sets |
5% |
8% |
|
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Furniture |
5% |
5% |
|
Apparel Accessories |
8% |
8% |
|
Computer & Office |
Office Electronics |
5% |
5% |
Tablets |
5% |
5% |
|
External Storage |
5% |
5% |
|
Computer Peripherals |
5% |
5% |
|
Computer Components |
5% |
5% |
|
Memory Cards & Accessories |
5% |
5% |
|
Networking |
5% |
5% |
|
Computer Cables & Connectors |
5% |
5% |
|
Mini PC |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptops |
5% |
5% |
|
Demo Board |
5% |
5% |
|
Industrial Computer & Accessories |
5% |
5% |
|
Servers |
5% |
5% |
|
Desktops |
5% |
5% |
|
KVM Switches |
5% |
5% |
|
Computer Cleaners |
5% |
5% |
|
Software |
5% |
5% |
|
DIY Computer |
5% |
5% |
|
Workstations |
5% |
5% |
|
LCD Hinges |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptop Adapter |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptop Batteries |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptop Cooling Pads |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptop Docking Stations |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptop LCD Inverter |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptop LCD Screen |
5% |
5% |
|
Laptop lock |
5% |
5% |
|
Replacement Keyboards |
5% |
5% |
|
Kids Tablet |
5% |
5% |
|
Tablet LCDs & Panels |
5% |
5% |
|
Tablet PC Stands |
5% |
5% |
|
Tablets Batteries & Backup Power |
5% |
5% |
|
Internal Storage |
5% |
5% |
|
Demo Board Accessories |
5% |
5% |
|
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Sports & Entertainment |
Sneakers |
5% |
8% |
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Women’s Clothing |
8% |
8% |
|
Weddings & Events |
5% |
8% |
|
Hair Extensions & Wigs |
10% |
10% |
|
Underwear |
8% |
8% |
|
Apparel & Accessories |
8% |
8% |
|
Security & Protection |
5% |
5% |
|
Automobiles & Motorcycles |
Engine Oil |
5% |
8% |
Tires |
5% |
8% |
|
Motorcycle Engine Oil |
5% |
8% |
|
Motorcycle Tires & Wheels |
5% |
8% |
|
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Shoes |
5% |
8% |
|
Electronic Components & Supplies |
8% |
8% |
|
Men’s Clothing |
8% |
8% |
|
Food |
8% |
8% |
|
Consumer Electronics |
Portable Audio & Video |
5% |
8% |
Camera & Photo |
5% |
8% |
|
Accessories & Parts |
5% |
8% |
|
Home Audio & Video Equipments |
5% |
8% |
|
Smart Electronics |
5% |
8% |
|
Games & Accessories |
5% |
8% |
|
DIY Parts |
5% |
8% |
|
Power Source |
5% |
8% |
|
Portable HiFi |
5% |
8% |
|
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Mother & Kids |
8% |
8% |
|
Luggage & Bags |
8% |
8% |
|
Lights & Lighting |
8% |
8% |
|
Watches |
8% |
8% |
|
Toys & Hobbies |
8% |
8% |
|
Home Improvement |
Hardware |
5% |
8% |
Bathroom Fixture |
5% |
8% |
|
Kitchen Fixture |
5% |
8% |
|
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Jewelry & Accessories |
Fine Jewelry |
5% |
8% |
others |
8% |
8% |
|
Novelty & Special Use |
8% |
8% |
|
Home & Garden |
8% |
8% |
|
Travel and Coupon Services |
8% |
8% |
AliExpress also reserves the right to adjust the commission rate according to category developments at any time. The notification will be published on the platform’s website or delivered through intra-net messages. Sellers need to pay attention to updates or modifications to these Rules.
Chapter 5Business assessment
AliExpress puts emphasis on the consumer experience:
Commodity service index Evaluation
Evaluation time |
on the 10th and on the 25th of each month. |
Evaluation criteria |
According to the feedback received from consumers, the listings that seriously affect the consumer experience will be taken down. |
AliExpress Categories Performance evaluation
Announcement Time |
Examination results will be announced on April 15th, July 2nd, October 2nd and January 2nd (Beijing time). |
Assessment index |
“categories 90-day SNAD rate” and “category 90-day DSR of product description” |
indicators |
Will be announced by the end of December |
Assessment penalties |
The right to operate in the corresponding categories will be suspended if the assessment criteria are not met (i.e., failure to meet either of the indicators). The right to operate can be restored in the next assessment period. |
Remarks |
For new shops opened within the last 6 months, there is no assessment |
Shop management supervision
The platform will regularly check and supervise overall business indicators (detailed seller ratings/dispute rate). In case that the indicators for the operation of the stores under verification are much lower than the industry standards (i.e., much lower than the average level, low rate of praise, etc.), which seriously affects the consumer experience, the platform has the right to freeze the store operating authority, terminate the business, and/or disable the account.
Chapter 6 Restrictions and clearance
Article 7 In case that sellers release products under the category of non-operating major categories in order to avoid AliExpress entry categories policies, or sellers cheat the annual sales or resort to fraud, the platform has the right to limit the release of sellers, apply temporary penalty such as freezing an account, or closing an account.
Article 8 If there are any serious offenses such as selling fake goods, speculation, fraud, etc., the seller’s account can be closed by AliExpress, the seller may be removed from the operating category or be restricted to operate in AliExpress.
Article 9 In case of serious infringement of AliExpress platform related agreements or rules, leading to serious damage to the interests of consumers, affecting the operating platform, the platform has the right to immediately freeze the account or shut down the seller operating authority.
Article 10 You shall promise and promise to the platform that all information provided to the platform during the period of your application to start and carry on operations, including but not limited to the accuracy, truthfulness and accuracy of the company’s registration documents, trademark registration documents, authorization documents, and relevant information of the company and its legal representatives, is valid and up-to-date. Otherwise, AliExpress reserves the right to terminate or refuse your application at any time. After you complete the joining process, AliExpress has the right to cancel your account based on a fundamental breach of contract and stop the service. AliExpress also reserves the right to include you in a list of non-honest clients and to refuse to provide you with other services in the future.
Article 11 Transaction violations
1) Falsified delivery
Scope of application:
In order to ensure a healthy market order in the platform, to avoid the existence of fake deliveries and to improve the experience of platform users, the following rules shall apply, without prejudice to other platform rules applicable to seller’s misbehavior on the platform.
Definitions:
“Falsified Delivery” means a delivery regarding which during the prescribed delivery period:
(1)the cargo waybill number filled in by the seller is invalid; or
(2)although the said number is valid, it is unrelated to the order transaction;
which may misguide the buyer and/or AliExpress.
For example, in order to evade punishment for “Closing but not Selling”(i.e., closing a transaction order but in which there has not been an actual sale), a seller could fill in an invalid cargo waybill number, or a cargo waybill number which is obviously unrelated to the order transaction.
Where:
“The cargo waybill number filled in by the seller is invalid” means that the cargo waybill number does not exist (which situation shall also include without limitation the alleged use of a non-registered small package shipping channel which entails non-traceability of the logistics information).
“Although the said number is valid, it is unrelated to the order transaction”means that, although the cargo waybill number exists, it is inconsistent with the time of placing the order (for example, the receiving time is obviously earlier than the time of placing the order), or the shipping address is different from the address provided by the buyer (for example, the shipping address and the address of the receiver are not in the same country).
Punishment: In case of violation:
-the relevant products listings may be removed;
-you may be forced to fully refund any buyer which has purchased the affected products; and/or
-Your account may be frozen or shut down.
2) Disobeying commitment assumed by the seller: it means that the seller has failed to provide service for the buyer as committed (either in the product detail page, via private communication with the buyer or otherwise) and, thus, the proper rights and interests of the buyer are impaired.
Punishment: In case of violation:
-the relevant products listings may be removed;
-you may be forced to fully refund any buyer which has purchased the affected products and if the funds of the order have been released to the seller, AliExpress shall have the right to deduct money refund to the buyer from the seller’s account; and/or
-For serious violation, your account may be frozen or shut down.
AliExpress reserves the right to modify these rules or adapt them to specific conditions at any time.
Chapter 8 Transaction rules
Article 12 Once 20 calendar days have elapsed since the moment the buyer placed the order, in case that the buyer has not paid for the order or the payment has not been received, then the order may be automatically cancelled.
In case of special promotions (such as flash sales or limited time sales) and similar scenarios, the order may be closed within a shorter period (eg 30 minutes) as decided at the platform’s discretion.
Article 13 Once the buyer’s payment has been confirmed, the seller shall ship the goods within 5 calendar days. The seller may negotiate with the buyer for an extension of such shipment period, in which case the seller shall ship the goods within the period agreed with the buyer. Otherwise, if the shipment is not made within the relevant period, the order will be closed and the payment will be refunded in full to the buyer. if the seller does not make the shipment within the relevant stipulated period on several occasions, given that this may seriously affect the buyers’ shopping experience, the relevant products listings may be removed, and if the circumstances are particularly serious or if there is a substantial number of repeated cases, the account may be frozen or shut down.
Article 14 The buyer may
apply for cancellation of the order at any time once the buyer has successfully paid and until the seller makes the shipment. Once the buyer requests to cancel the order, if the seller agrees to cancel the order, then the order will be closed and the payment will be refunded to the buyer in full; if the seller does not agree to cancel the order and the seller has shipped the product, the order shall not be cancelled. If the seller does not fully complete the shipment within 5 calendar days from payment of the order, the order will be closed and payment will be refunded to the buyer in full.
Article 15 The seller must provide a 30 calendar day transaction protection period from the moment the buyer receives the goods (during which the buyer has the right for no reason return of the products as indicated above).
Article 16 The seller must ensure that all of its products are delivered on time (the delivery term set by the seller in accordance with these rules, which shall be no longer than 20 days from the shipment date if delivered within Italy, or 20 days from the shipment date if delivered in Eurozone countries, this is also known as “On-time Delivery”. On-time Delivery starts the moment the seller has shipped out the product. If a buyer has made a purchase on AliExpress, but does not receive the product within the seller’s guaranteed delivery time, if the buyer files a dispute, the buyer can get a full refund (and keep the product).
Article 17 The buyer may file a dispute once five calendar days after the seller has made the shipment or should have made the shipment. Dispute resolution rules:
a)Dispute for goods not received: Once the buyer has filed a dispute on these grounds:
1.(Rule applicable until mid-January 2019) the seller must respond within 72 hours.
2.(Rule applicable after mid-January 2019 or later subject to the platform’s prior notice) the seller shall respond within 72 hours provided that the buyer may not submit a dispute of unreceived goods until the delivery term set by the seller has elapsed.
3.If the seller does not respond within the term set forth above, the payment will be automatically refunded to the buyer in full. If the dispute cannot be resolved after negotiation between buyer and seller, it can be submitted to the platform to settle the dispute.
4.Notwithstanding the above, if the delivery of the goods is late (i.e., is not an On-time Delivery as defined above), the buyer can get a full refund (and keep the product).
b)30 calendar days no-reason return dispute procedure:
1.Once the buyer applies for this dispute procedure, the system shall automatically prompt the seller to upload the return order number within 24 hours. If the seller does not respond or the time elapses, the buyer will be directly refunded.
2.Once the seller uploads the return order number, the buyer shall download the return information, then:
i.If within 20 calendar days the seller confirms receipt of the return of the products, the payment will be refunded to the buyer;
ii.If within 20 calendar days the seller has not confirmed receipt of the return of the products and the seller has not filed a dispute, the payment will be refunded to the buyer;
iii.if within 20 calendar days the seller has not received the return of the products or the goods received have issues (eg they have been damaged, not fully returned, they have been used and/or are not in resalable
condition), the seller can also apply for a dispute to be settled by the platform.
c)Other disputes: Once the buyer files for other types of disputes, the seller must respond within 72 hours. If the parties cannot resolve the dispute, the platform will decide according to the evidence provided by the buyer and the seller.
d)In order to improve the buyer’s experience and confidence in the platform and in the sellers, the platform encourages sellers to actively negotiate with buyers; if the negotiation does not result in a settlement being reached, the platform has the right to actively participate in the proposal solution. However, in such cases, the involvement of the platform shall not prejudice the equal standing in the negotiation of the buyer and the seller.
e)Seller accepts that the platform may make the necessary arrangements for seller’s funds to be applied to refund the buyer in case of a dispute.
Article 18 The funds corresponding to the price paid for the order (after applicable deductions, including the transaction fee charged by the platform) may be released to the seller after the buyer confirms the receipt of the goods or after the logistics channel confirms ordinary delivery has taken place. Without prejudice to the release of said funds, the seller shall provide a 30-day transaction protection period (including said no reason return right) as mentioned above. If the buyer files a dispute over the order on these grounds and a refund shall be made, then the seller shall make the corresponding total or partial refund, with the platform being entitled to cause that the relevant funds be applied from the relevant seller’s account to the buyer (which procedure is expected to be implemented as from March 2019). Until said procedure is launched, the funds shall be released to the seller after the end of the 30-day transaction protection period.