ACH Return Error Codes
What to do if there is an ACH error or return, and how to resolve
When an ACH payment can't be completed, the receiving bank returns it with a standardized error code that explains why. This guide walks through the most common codes you may see in Charted, what each one means, and the steps to resolve them.
If you received an email from Charted Support linking you here in the case of an ACH return, jump to the code referenced in your email:
R01 — Insufficient Funds
R02 — Account Closed
R03 — No Account / Unable to Locate Account
R04 — Invalid Account Number
R16 — Account Frozen (Payee Bank)
R23 — Credit Entry Refused by Receiver
R29 — ACH Debit Not Authorized
Other — Not listed above
Before you start: a few terms
A handful of concepts come up across most resolutions. Quick definitions:
Funding source — the bank account Charted debits to fund your payments.
Balance Transfer — the action of moving funds between your Charted balance and your bank account. Balance Transfers can take up to 2 business days to settle. See how to initiate a Balance Transfer for the step-by-step.
Bill Payment (NetSuite) — the payment record in NetSuite tied to one or more vendor bills. Voiding a Bill Payment reopens the underlying bills so a new payment can be created.
Payee invite — the request you send a vendor to submit (or update) their banking information directly. See Payee Invitations for more on the invite flow.
⚠️ Don't retry a failed payment method. Retrying the same payment method after a failure will suspend the account. Always work through the resolution steps below before reissuing payment.
R01
Insufficient Funds
What this means: The available balance in your funding bank account wasn't enough to cover the debit amount.
Where your funds are now: Banks have up to 2 business days after settlement to flag an R01 return. Depending on when your bank flagged it, one of two things happened:
[Most Common] The return was flagged before the debit settled. No funds left your bank account, so no Balance Transfer is needed.
The debit settled, then was returned afterward. The funds were withdrawn from your bank account and have been returned to your Charted account balance. Initiate a Balance Transfer to move them back to your bank account.
How to resolve:
Confirm with your bank that sufficient funds are available.
In NetSuite, void the original Bill Payment to reopen the related vendor bill(s).
Once funds are available, create a new Bill Payment and release it.
To prevent this in the future: Make sure funds are available in your funding account before releasing payments.
R02
Account Closed
What this means: Your vendor's bank account on file is no longer active.
How to resolve:
Contact your vendor and confirm whether they have a new account to receive payments.
If they do, either:
Send them a new payee invite so they can submit their updated account details, or
Collect their new account information and update the payment method on their behalf.
Once the vendor's payment information is updated, initiate a Balance Transfer to re-fund your account.
Void the original Bill Payment in NetSuite, create a new Bill Payment using the updated payment method, and release the payment.
R03
No Account / Unable to Locate Account
What this means: The account number is structured correctly, but it doesn't match the individual identified in the entry, or the account isn't open.
How to resolve: Follow the same steps as R02 — Account Closed. The vendor will need to provide updated account details before payment can be reissued.
R04
Invalid Account Number
What this means: The account number doesn't have a valid structure or isn't registered to a bank account.
How to resolve: Follow the same steps as R02 — Account Closed. The vendor will need to provide a valid account number before payment can be reissued.
R16
Account Frozen (Payee Bank)
What this means: Your vendor's bank received the payment but returned it because their account is subject to a frozen account notice.
Important: Because of this return, the vendor has been temporarily deactivated for payment until the issue is resolved. See Payee Deactivation for more on how deactivated payees are handled.
How to resolve:
Initiate a Balance Transfer to retrieve the returned funds.
Contact your vendor to determine why their bank refused the payment.
Ask the vendor to provide an alternate bank account for payments. Approve the new payment method as a preferred payment method for the payee, and remove the previous payment method. This is the fastest path to getting them paid.
If the vendor wants to continue using the same account, they must provide a bank letter confirming the account is active and no longer frozen. The letter must include the routing number and account number. Expect this review process to take several business days.
Void the original Bill Payment in NetSuite to reopen the related vendor bill(s), create a new Bill Payment using the updated payment method, and release the payment.
Need help updating the vendor's information or re-enabling their payment method? Contact [email protected].
R23
Credit Entry Refused by Receiver
What this means: The payment reached your vendor's bank but was rejected. Common reasons include an incorrect amount, an overpayment, account restrictions, or the vendor not recognizing or authorizing the payment.
Important: Because of this return, the vendor's payment method has been removed and must be re-added before another payment can be issued.
How to resolve:
Initiate a Balance Transfer to retrieve the returned funds.
Contact your vendor to determine why their bank refused the credit and confirm how they'd like to proceed. They have two options:
Use a different account — the vendor provides new bank account information and adds a new payment method (or you update it on their behalf), or
Keep the same account — the vendor confirms with their bank that the account can accept ACH credits, then re-adds their previous bank information as a new payment method.
Once the vendor's account is verified or updated, void the original Bill Payment in NetSuite to reopen the related vendor bill(s), create a new Bill Payment using the updated payment method, and release the payment.
R29
ACH Debit Not Authorized
Important: Your funding source has been temporarily frozen while our team resolves the issue. Do not retry the transaction until you've heard back from Charted Support. If you haven't heard from our team within 1 business day, reach out to [email protected].
R29 returns are handled in two stages: an initial freeze while we investigate, and a re-approval step once the issue is cleared.
Stage 1: Funding source temporarily frozen
What this means: Your funding bank account has a debit block in place, or the bank has been instructed to stop or cancel the payment.
Where your funds are now: R29 is returned at the debit leg of the transaction, and in most cases the return is flagged before the debit settles — meaning no funds leave your bank account and no Balance Transfer is needed. If the debit did settle before the return, the funds will be returned to your Charted account balance and you'll need to initiate a Balance Transfer.
What we need from you:
Respond to the email from [email protected] confirming that:
Your bank allows debits from Charted originator ID
945440567_, andThere are no debit blocks, business rules, or recent payment cancellation requests in place on your account.
Once you've confirmed this, our team will work with our payments partner to unfreeze the account. You'll receive a follow-up email when your funding source is ready to be re-linked.
Stage 2: Funding source re-approved
Once your funding source has been re-approved, complete these steps before reprocessing any payments:
Add your funding source using the same account and routing information.
Verify the funding source.
Link the funding source.
After these steps, you can resume processing payments as usual.
To prevent this in the future: If this error was caused by a stop payment requested directly with your bank, please submit all future cancellation requests through [email protected] instead. Stop payments placed at your bank can trigger account freezes on Charted.
Other
Other ACH return codes account for less than 5% of returns and typically require investigation by our team.
If you received an email referencing one of these codes, our Support and Engineering teams have already been notified and will reach out with next steps. If you have questions in the meantime, reply to the email or contact Charted Support.
Still need help?
If any step in this guide is unclear or you need help completing it, reply to the email you received from [email protected] and our team will assist you.
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