eBay labels
How to void (cancel) an eBay shipping label
To void an eBay shipping label, open Shipping Labels in Seller Hub, choose Cancel Label, pick a reason and select Send request. You have 28 days for an unused USPS, FedEx or UPS label. The refund can take up to 21 days, because the carrier has to approve it first.
Bought the wrong label, or two? eBay gives you a way back. Void and cancel mean the same thing: the button says Cancel Label, and older posts still call it Void.
How do you void a shipping label in Seller Hub or My eBay?
- Open your label listIn Seller Hub, go to Shipping Labels. In My eBay, go to Manage shipping labels.
- Choose Cancel LabelFind the item, then select Cancel Label in the Actions column.
- Pick a reason and sendChoose your reason for canceling the label, then select Send request. That sends the request to the carrier, and your money doesn't come back on the spot.
How do you cancel a shipping label in the eBay app?
Start from the order, not from a list of labels. These are the steps from the help page:
- Open the orderTap Selling, then Orders, then the order.
- Open Manage shippingTap the arrow to the right of Leave Feedback, then tap Manage shipping.
- Tap the three dotsA list of actions opens. Choose View and cancel labels.
How long do you have to cancel an eBay shipping label?
You have 28 days for an unused USPS, FedEx or UPS label bought on eBay. That sounds generous until you can't remember which order the spare label was for.
Say you buy a label on October 1. Twenty-eight days later is October 29. Send the request that day and the carrier has up to 21 more days to approve or reject it, which runs to November 19. eBay doesn't say whether day 28 is still open, or which hour or time zone ends it, so cancel the day you notice.
Older forum replies say 5 days, as in a March 2024 thread. eBay's help page says 28, so go with the page and check the post's date.
Outside the US the window differs. The eBay.ca page gives 14 days for Canada Post labels.
Bought two labels by accident? Use one and cancel the other inside the window. With a pile of old ones, eBay's page describes canceling one label at a time from the Actions column, so start with the oldest.
When does the eBay shipping label refund show up?
Not right away. An approved refund goes back to the card or account you paid with, but the carrier decides first, and it can say no.
One seller reported 2 to 4 weeks in August 2024, and others 3 to 4 weeks in September 2025. In that second thread, the original poster was still waiting at 17 days. Meanwhile the money sits with the carrier and you pay for the next label, so cancel the day you spot the mistake.
The help page doesn't say how you'll hear the carrier's answer. One seller's tip from the August 2024 thread: eBay sends no email, so check the Shipping Labels list and filter your transaction list to Refunded.
Which eBay shipping labels can't you cancel?
Our reading of eBay's pages: once a carrier scans a label, it counts as used and can't be canceled. The table lists each case. The middle column is eBay's rule unless it says our reading, and the last column is our advice.
| Label | The rule | Our advice |
|---|---|---|
| eBay standard envelope, printed | Can't be canceled once printed. The program terms call the charges non-refundable and non-voidable. | Plan on not getting it back. Our eBay standard envelope guide covers these labels. |
| Already scanned by the carrier | eBay's cancel section is written for unused labels, and a scanned one isn't unused (our reading). | Check tracking for a scan first. If you bought several labels, make sure you opened the unused one. |
| On a SCAN form USPS has scanned | A SCAN form is one sheet the post office scans in place of every package. Labels assigned to a scanned form get no credit if canceled. | Cancel an extra label before the form goes to the post office. |
| QR code scanned at drop-off | The label is used and can't be canceled. | If you won't use a QR code, cancel it before anyone scans it. |
| Older than 28 days | The page gives 28 days and says nothing about later. | Expect the request to fail, and contact eBay instead. |
Why does eBay say "This shipping label can't be cancelled"?
Usually one of the rows above applies. Two threads show that exact message, from March 2024 and April 2025. In March, the poster's label turned out to be an eBay standard envelope label. In April, a regular asked whether the seller was trying to cancel the unused label or the one with scans.
Work down the table from the top. The first row that fits is your reason. If none does, check that you picked the unused label, then contact eBay.
Should you cancel the label or just reprint it?
If the label is right and only the printing failed, reprint it. A reprint is free for 7 days. If the label itself is wrong, cancel it. In the April 2025 thread, a seller whose label wouldn't print was trying to cancel it, and a reply said to try the free reprint first.
| What went wrong | Do this |
|---|---|
| Printer jammed, out of ink, or you lost the file | Reprint. Our reprint guide has the steps. |
| Wrong service, weight or package size | Cancel it and buy a new label. |
| Label printed at the wrong size | Cancel and buy again (our reading). The help page says the label size can only be changed before you buy. |
| Wrong delivery or return address | Cancel the first label and buy a new one. You pay for the new label when you buy it. The first label's money comes back only if the carrier approves the cancel. |
What do you do after you cancel?
Make sure the order ends up with one good label and a tracking number eBay can see.
- Buy the replacement the same day. The refund takes weeks, so don't wait on it.
- Add the new tracking number. If you intend to ship the order that had the canceled tracking number, add the new one to the order as an additional tracking number.
- Don't ship with nothing eBay can see. A seller in a March 2025 thread canceled, shipped without the eBay label, couldn't mark the order shipped and had funds on hold. To be protected from an Item not received claim, the tracking page says tracking must come from a carrier eBay works with directly and show an acceptance scan (the carrier's first scan, proof that it took the package). Our lost or damaged package guide covers the claim side.
- Watch handling time. It runs from payment to the carrier scan (see the handling time page), and nothing on the label page says canceling pauses that count. Ship by the original deadline. Our handling time guide has the details.
Can I get a refund for a voided shipping label on eBay?
How do I cancel a shipping label on eBay?
How to fix eBay shipping label?
How do I manage shipping labels on eBay?
Today, open Shipping Labels and look for any label you bought and never shipped. If it's an extra, cancel it while the window is open. Then set a reminder for 21 days after you send the request, and if the refund hasn't arrived by then, contact eBay.
Disclosure Shipping for Sellers is published by the team behind FlowLister, AI eBay listing software that turns item photos into complete eBay listings, shipping included. It's AI, so it misses things: weigh and measure the packed box before you trust any shipping number, ours included. We make FlowLister, so read this as a disclosure, not a recommendation.
Keep reading
How to reprint a shipping label on eBay
Where the reprint button is, how long you have, and what to do when it's gone, so you don't buy the same label twice.
eBay standard envelope: what qualifies and how to use it
Which items and envelopes qualify, how the label works, and the mistakes that turn a cheap label into an upcharge.