Reviewed and verified as of August 24, 2026. Walmart updates its seller guidance without notice — the wording in your Seller Center account governs.
What a Walmart WFS SDS pending review actually means
A Walmart WFS SDS pending review is, in most cases, not a rejection. It means your item entered Walmart’s hazardous-materials compliance queue and a reviewer has not finished looking at it yet.
JurisdictionUnited StatesFederal scope
Walmart states that review can take up to 3 business days, and that weekends and holidays are not included. The status name on the WFS Compliance tab tells you whether you need to do anything at all — and if you do, most of the fixes cost nothing.
Why your item went into compliance review
Walmart defines hazardous materials for WFS as any item that is or contains chemicals, aerosols, pesticides or batteries. During item setup you answer attribute questions, and Walmart’s guidance is explicit about what happens next: for both Product Is or Contains a Chemical? and Product Is or Contains an Aerosol?, “If ‘Yes,’ the item requires a compliance review.”
The Safety Data Sheet field itself is required if your item is or contains a chemical, aerosol or pesticide, and/or one of four battery types: lead acid, lead acid (non-spillable), lithium metal or lithium ion.
This is attribute-driven, not universal. Walmart’s SDS guidance notes that some chemicals and aerosols do not require an SDS for the item or any component, and that items such as food, drugs or cosmetics may be exempt, with a label image required instead.
The compliance review applies to each UPC or GTIN, not a SKU. If your item clears review and you later change the UPC or GTIN, it goes through the process again before it can be listed in your WFS catalog.
The three WFS Compliance statuses
You track this on the WFS Compliance tab of the Pending Review page in Seller Center. That dashboard has three tabs — WFS Compliance, Trust and Safety, and Potential Duplicates. This page covers the WFS Compliance tab only; the Trust and Safety tab uses different statuses and monitors seller-fulfilled items.
| Status | What Walmart says it means | What to do | Is it a rejection? |
|---|---|---|---|
| In Review | The item is currently being reviewed, which may take up to 3 business days. Weekends and holidays are not included. | Wait. Resubmitting does not speed anything up. | No |
| Action Needed | Your item is missing information or may be incorrect. Fix the errors to resubmit the item. | Open the item edit page to see the specific errors, correct them, resubmit. | No — it is a correctable error state |
| Prohibited | The item is not eligible for the WFS program. | Check the WFS prohibited products policy. A better document will not change this. | Not a document problem |
If several items show Action Needed, Walmart documents a bulk path: go to the Action Needed tab, select Download and then Action needed in bulk, download the file once it finishes processing, fix the errors in it, then return to Pending Review and select Upload.
What Walmart requires in the document
Walmart’s SDS and label image guidance sets four document requirements. The SDS must be in English, be in PDF format, have a publicly accessible URL you can share that is viewable by anyone without a password or login, and include the 16 sections of information.
Walmart also states plainly that if your SDS does not meet these requirements, your item will not be published.
Beyond format, the document has to match the item. Walmart’s reviewers check that the SDS is specific to the product submitted and the same brand, that battery documents match the battery model, and that the physical state and UN number on the sheet match what you entered.
Multiple hazardous components
If your item contains more than one hazardous component, you need documentation for each, combined into a single PDF behind one link. Walmart’s own example is a remote-control car with batteries in both the car and the remote — two hazardous components. Your entry in Number of Unique Hazardous Components must match the number of documents you submit.
SDS or label image
Walmart’s SDS and label image guidance says to submit an SDS or a label image depending on the item, and not to submit both. In practice the required fields can differ: Walmart’s hazmat item-setup guidance lists label image fields as required for chemical, aerosol and pesticide items alongside the Safety Data Sheet field.
Treat the guidance as the general rule and submit whatever your current item-setup form and Seller Center actually request for that item. If the form asks for both fields, complete both; if it asks for one, submit only that one.
The label image route applies to the categories Walmart names: medication or supplement (human or pet), cosmetic, personal care, and medical testing kits and devices. The image must show the complete ingredient list, drug facts, nutrition facts or over-the-counter dosage and instructions, and it must be a JPG, PNG or BMP under 1 MB, hosted behind a publicly viewable link and pasted into the Label Image URL field.
This is Walmart’s platform routing for its own review. It is not a legal exemption, and it does not mean the product falls outside any other rule that might apply to it.
Action Needed: Walmart’s documented errors and how to fix them
Every row below comes from Walmart’s own troubleshooting table. Note how many are link or data-entry problems rather than document problems.
| What Walmart flags | The underlying issue | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| SDS or battery documentation link is inaccessible; main image URL broken or is a website | Reviewers cannot open what you submitted | Set the link so anyone can view it without a password or login, then resubmit |
| SDS not specific to the product (same brand); battery document not model-specific; physical state or UN number mismatch; more than one hazardous component | The document does not match the item | Check that item name, brand, model number, manufacturer and battery model on the sheet match your entries; combine one SDS per component into a single PDF |
| SDS incomplete, missing pages or blank sections; required PDF link missing; label image does not show the full ingredient list; net content is zero or uses “each” or “count” | Required information is missing or incomplete | Confirm all 16 sections are present; make sure the label image shows the full packaging and is not cut off; enter a real net content measure and unit |
| Contained battery type incorrect; lithium ion or lithium metal details wrong (watt-hour rating, packaging, form factor, weight, count, model) | Battery details do not reflect the actual battery | Correct Product is or contains this battery type and pull the specific values from the battery’s SDS or packaging |
Walmart states that providing inaccurate information may result in item setup delays and regulatory liability, and that falsely representing items to bypass these assessments is prohibited and could result in expulsion from the WFS program — naming incorrect responses, misrepresenting the item in name, description or images, intentional misspellings, and omitting key information to add it after review. Do not treat any of those as shortcuts.
What to do now, cheapest step first
- Read the status before you act. If it says In Review and you are inside the 3-business-day window, there is nothing to fix yet.
- Confirm which document your item needs and submit exactly what the item-setup form requests.
- Test your link in a private browser window. If it asks for a login, reviewers cannot open it either. This single check resolves a whole error family.
- Re-check your item fields, not just the document: brand, model, battery type and details, net content measure and unit, and Number of Unique Hazardous Components.
- Verify the document matches — physical state, UN number, all 16 sections present, no blank pages, one combined PDF for multi-component items.
- Get the exact manufacturer sheet if yours is wrong. Start at the manufacturer’s website. Under OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard, a chemical manufacturer or importer must provide a safety data sheet on request to distributors or employers (29 CFR 1910.1200(g)(6)(iv)). Whether that paragraph reaches your particular commercial relationship depends on your role in the supply chain, and it sets no response deadline.
- Treat Walmart’s SDS Search Engine as a lead, not an answer. Walmart says it cannot guarantee that each SDS there is the latest, most up to date from the manufacturer. Verify anything you find against the manufacturer.
Free diagnostic: Check your SDS before resubmitting to Walmart → to review the file, exact-product match, required sections, and listing consistency.
Our general SDS correction workflow covers the diagnosis in more depth, and marketplace SDS requirements shows how Walmart’s rules differ from other platforms so you do not carry the wrong assumption across.
When review runs past three business days
Walmart’s instruction is specific. If items are in review for longer than 3 business days, contact Support by selecting the Help button in the Seller Center menu bar, and provide the impacted GTINs or UPCs, and the Feed ID from your last attempt to add or convert the item — usually found on the Activity Feed page.
Walmart does not publish how long a Support response takes, so treat that as unknown rather than assuming a turnaround.
Separately, Walmart notes it may review items with potential geographic shipping restrictions and may email you from its eCommerce Compliance team during setup. Responding quickly avoids additional delays.
What Walmart’s review is and is not
Walmart explains the purpose of these documents in its own FAQ: the additional information lets Walmart safely store and handle WFS items, and comply with requirements to properly store, handle, transport and dispose of potentially hazardous materials in its network.
That is a platform workflow. It is not a determination under federal law, and Walmart’s own pages state that its guidance is not considered legal advice.
The federal rule sits in a different place entirely. Under 29 CFR 1910.1200, chemical manufacturers and importers must obtain or develop a safety data sheet for each hazardous chemical they produce or import, and the sheet must be in English with the numbered section headings in the listed order. Appendix D makes the detailed content mandatory for sections 1–11 and 16, and states that sections 12–15 may be included but are not mandatory — OSHA notes it will not be enforcing the information requirements in sections 12 through 15. That is a workplace and supply-chain rule about hazard communication, not a rule about whether a listing publishes.
So the two can diverge in both directions. Walmart asks for all 16 sections, which is more than OSHA enforces, plus requirements OSHA has no view on at all — PDF format, an open shareable link, brand matching. A document that fully satisfies OSHA can still fail Walmart’s review because the link needs a login. And clearing Walmart’s review is not a finding that you meet any legal requirement. You can read how we source and check these claims in our methodology.
When paid correction or authoring is justified
Work the free list above first. Most pending-review problems are a link setting, a mismatched field or a missing component sheet, and none of those need a purchase.
Paid help becomes a reasonable option in one narrow case: the manufacturer cannot supply a usable, exact, complete safety data sheet for your product, and the product legitimately requires one. That is when correction or authoring services are worth comparing. Nothing about buying a document guarantees that Walmart will approve your item — Walmart applies its own criteria and its own eligibility rules.
Compare SDS correction options when you reach that point, not before.
Frequently asked questions
Is “In Review” the same as a rejection?
No. In Review means Walmart is still looking at the item. Walmart states it may take up to 3 business days, with weekends and holidays excluded. Only Action Needed means something is wrong, and Prohibited means the item is not eligible for WFS at all.
How long does the WFS compliance review take?
Walmart says up to 3 business days, not counting weekends and holidays. If it runs longer, Walmart directs sellers to contact Support with the impacted GTINs or UPCs and the Feed ID from the last submission attempt.
Do I submit both an SDS and a label image?
Walmart’s SDS and label image guidance says to submit one or the other depending on the item. Its hazmat item-setup guidance, however, lists label image fields as required for chemical, aerosol and pesticide items alongside the Safety Data Sheet field. Submit whatever your current item-setup form and Seller Center actually request for that item.
What do I do if my item has more than one hazardous component?
Provide documentation for each component, combined into a single PDF behind one shareable link, and make sure the number you entered in Number of Unique Hazardous Components matches the number of documents you submitted.
Why was my SDS rejected when the document itself looks fine?
Often the problem is not the chemistry. Walmart’s own error list includes links reviewers cannot open, sheets from a different brand, physical state or UN number mismatches, missing component documents, and incorrect battery details entered during item setup.
Does a correct SDS guarantee my item gets published?
No. Meeting Walmart’s document requirements removes one obstacle. Walmart applies its own review and its own WFS eligibility rules, and some items are not eligible for the program regardless of documentation.
Sources
- Walmart Marketplace — WFS compliance: Safety Data Sheets (SDS) and label images
- Walmart Marketplace — WFS hazardous materials (hazmat): Item setup
- Walmart Marketplace — Troubleshoot items on hold
- Walmart Marketplace FAQ — Why are compliance information and documents required for WFS items
- OSHA — 29 CFR 1910.1200 Hazard Communication
- OSHA — 1910.1200 Appendix D, Safety Data Sheets (Mandatory)
Limitations
This page covers Walmart Marketplace US sellers using Walmart Fulfillment Services. It does not cover Walmart Canada, seller-fulfilled listings, or the Trust and Safety track of the Pending Review dashboard. It summarizes Walmart’s published guidance and US regulatory text as accessed on August 24, 2026; Walmart changes its policies without notice and the current wording in your Seller Center account governs. This is informational only and not legal advice. XrdaGrid explains your options and how the process works, but cannot guarantee that Walmart or WFS will approve any item or publish any listing.