The EDI 824 application advice is how a retailer tells you a document passed the 997 but failed its business rules. Status codes, error codes, which retailers send it and which do not.
The 997 tells you a retailer received your file. The 824 tells you whether its business system could use it. A UPC missing from the item file, a store number that does not exist, a price that does not match the order: the file was valid and the document still failed. This page covers how the 824 is built, what its codes mean, which retailers send one and which never do, and what to do when one arrives.
The EDI 824 is the X12 transaction set a trading partner uses to report the result of its business system's checks on a document you sent, most often an 856 advance ship notice or an 810 invoice. It says whether the document was accepted, accepted with errors, accepted with changes or rejected, and which data caused the problem.
It sits one layer above the 997. The 997 checks the envelope and the syntax. The 824 checks the business content against the retailer's own records: its item file, its store list, its purchase orders and its prices. That is why the 824 is the more expensive one to ignore. A 997 failure usually stops a file at the door. An 824 rejection means the file got in and the retailer's system threw it out.
Four documents that can each come back after you send something. They answer different questions.
| Document | What it checks | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| 997 | Syntax and structure: envelope, segment counts, mandatory elements | The file arrived and could be read. Nothing about whether the content was right. |
| 824 | Business content against the retailer's records | Accepted, accepted with errors or changes, or rejected, with coded errors tied to the original document. |
| 864 | Nothing; it is free text | Notices, warnings and explanations. Some retailers report application problems here instead of on an 824. |
| 855 | Sent by you, not to you | Your acceptance, change or rejection of a purchase order. A mismatch here can lead to an 824 on the invoice later. |
The heart of the 824 is the OTI loop: one per document being answered, each carrying a status, a reference back to the original, and the errors found in it.
| Segment | What it carries |
|---|---|
| ST / SE | Transaction set header and trailer. ST01 is 824; SE01 counts every segment from ST to SE. |
| BGN | Beginning segment. BGN01 is the purpose code (11 is a response), then a reference number and the date. |
| N1 | Who the message is from and to, with an identification code qualifier and the party's ID. |
| OTI | Original transaction identification. OTI01 is the status code. OTI02 and OTI03 carry a reference qualifier and value, such as the purchase order number, the invoice number or the shipment identification number of an ASN. Later elements carry the original group and transaction set control numbers, and OTI10 names the transaction set, such as 856 or 810. |
| REF / DTM | Additional references and dates for the original document. |
| TED | Technical error description. TED01 is the error condition code, TED02 a free-text message, and later elements can point to the segment and element in error. |
| NTE / RED | Notes and related data that explain the error or copy the value that failed. |
An illustrative 824. Not a retailer's file: a minimal example of a rejected invoice with two errors.
ST*824*0001~ BGN*11*AA20260928001*20260928~ N1*FR*EXAMPLE RETAILER*92*0001~ N1*TO*EXAMPLE BRAND*92*V12345~ OTI*TR*IV*INV10045*****000001234*0001*810~ TED*007*MISSING SHIP TO STORE NUMBER~ TED*024*PO NUMBER NOT ON FILE~ SE*8*0001~
Read it as: a response (BGN01 11) rejecting (OTI01 TR) invoice INV10045 (OTI02 IV), which was transaction set control number 0001 in group 000001234, an 810 (OTI10). Two errors: missing data (007) and an other unlisted reason explained in text (024). Eight segments, so SE01 is 8.
| TA | Transaction set accepted |
| TE | Accepted with errors: processed, but something needs correcting |
| TC | Accepted with changes the retailer made |
| TR | Rejected: not processed, correct and resend |
| BP | Batch partial accept or reject; Walmart's drop ship 824 uses it |
| 007 | Missing data |
| 008 | Out of range |
| 012 | Invalid combination |
| 024 | Other unlisted reason, explained in TED02 text |
The 824 is not universal. From the retailers AIMS360 has documented, each linked to its own page and sourced from that retailer's published guides.
| Retailer | How the 824 shows up |
|---|---|
| Kroger and Fred Meyer | Kroger requires most suppliers to accept 824 application advices, alongside grocery-shaped UCS documents. |
| Sam's Club | Listed among the required basic documents for the SamsClub.com drop ship program, with the 850, 855, 846, 856 and 810. |
| TJ Maxx and Marshalls | Part of the TJX document set, inbound, beside the 860, 855, 820 and 864. |
| HomeGoods and Homesense | The same TJX set, 824 included. |
| AAFES | Reports whether each transaction was accepted, rejected or accepted with changes, and publishes an extended error code list. |
| Rural King | Part of vendor certification before go live; a failed invoice comes back on an 824. |
| Saks Fifth Avenue | Returns the 824 as a human-readable PDF rather than an integrated feed, so it is a document your team reads. |
| Burlington | May use the 824 depending on the vendor relationship. |
| Walmart drop ship | Walmart's supplier developer documentation publishes an 824 for drop ship vendors, using batch partial status and code 024 with a text explanation. |
| Macy's and Bloomingdale's | No 824 in any published Macy's, Inc. mapping guide, at any version. |
| Urban Outfitters | URBN does not publish an 824. |
Master data more often than mapping. The document was built correctly from records that were wrong.
A UPC, style, color or size the retailer never set up. Usually a new SKU shipped before item setup finished.
A ship-to or store number that is outdated, mistyped or closed.
A SCAC that is wrong for the carrier or left off the ASN.
An invoice that disagrees with the purchase order, or with the acknowledgment you sent on the 855.
A PO number with a typo, a missing prefix, or one the retailer has already closed.
An invoice number the retailer's payables system has already processed.
The cheapest 824 is the one that never comes back, and that is mostly decided before the document is sent.
The 810 comes from the shipment and the original purchase order. The 856 comes from the cartons scanned at packing. Nothing is retyped into a file, so the content an 824 checks is the content in the system.
UPCs live on the item, store numbers on the customer, carrier codes on the carrier. When an 824 points at one of them, the correction is made once in the record and the corrected document is resent from AIMS360, so the next shipment does not fail the same way.
How an 824 reaches you varies: an X12 document, a readable PDF as Saks sends, or a portal notice. During setup the AIMS360 team confirms the route for each trading partner and who on your team owns it.
When an 824 problem turns into a deduction anyway, it is logged against the original order in chargeback management, with the reason, so it can be disputed or fixed at the source.
The EDI 824 is the X12 transaction set a trading partner uses to report the result of its business system's checks on a document you sent, most often an 856 advance ship notice or an 810 invoice. It says whether the document was accepted, accepted with errors, accepted with changes or rejected, and which data caused the problem.
The 997 confirms a file arrived and was structurally valid: the envelope, segment counts and mandatory elements. The 824 comes after that, from the retailer's business system, and says whether the content made sense: a UPC that is not in the item file, a store number that does not exist, a price that does not match the order. A document can pass the 997 and still be rejected on the 824.
OTI01 is the application acknowledgment code. TA means the transaction set was accepted. TE means it was accepted with errors, so it was processed but something needs correcting. TC means it was accepted with changes the retailer made. TR means it was rejected and was not processed, so it has to be corrected and sent again. Batch level codes also exist; Walmart's drop ship 824 uses BP, batch partial accept or reject.
TED01 is the application error condition code. 007 means missing data, 008 means out of range, 012 means an invalid combination of values, and 024 means other unlisted reason, which retailers use with a free-text explanation in TED02. Many retailers also publish their own extended list, such as missing or invalid UPC, store number, purchase order number or carrier code.
Through the OTI segment. OTI02 and OTI03 carry a reference qualifier and value, such as the purchase order number, the invoice number or the shipment identification number of an ASN. Later OTI elements carry the group and transaction set control numbers of the original file and, in OTI10, the transaction set it was, such as 856 or 810. That is how a rejection is matched back to the exact document that caused it.
Among the retailers AIMS360 has documented: Kroger and Fred Meyer require suppliers to accept 824s, Sam's Club lists it among the required documents for its SamsClub.com drop ship program, TJX uses it across TJ Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods, AAFES uses it to report accepted, rejected or accepted with changes, Rural King includes it in vendor certification, Saks returns it as a readable PDF, and Burlington may use it depending on the vendor relationship. Walmart publishes an 824 for drop ship vendors.
No 824 appears in any published Macy's, Inc. mapping guide for Macy's or Bloomingdale's, at any version. A brand moving from department store EDI to a grocery, off-price or military exchange account has often never processed one, which is why the first 824 tends to arrive as a surprise.
The 824 is structured: a status code, a reference to the original document and coded errors a system can match to that document. The 864 is free text with no structure to act on. Some retailers report application level problems in an 864 instead of an 824, so it is worth knowing which one each of your trading partners uses.
A rejected 824 means the document was not processed. A rejected invoice is an invoice that will not be paid until it is corrected and resent. A rejected ASN means the distribution center has no usable record of your freight when it arrives, which turns into whatever the retailer's compliance guide charges for receiving without one. An accepted with errors 824 is a warning that tends to become a rejection if the cause is never fixed.
Master data more often than mapping: a UPC that is not in the retailer's item file, a ship-to or store number that is wrong or inactive, a missing or invalid carrier code, an invoice price or quantity that does not match the purchase order, a purchase order number the retailer cannot find, or an invoice number that was already used. The fix belongs in the record the document was built from, not just in the file.
Yes. In EDIFACT the application error and acknowledgement message, APERAK, plays the role of the 824, while CONTRL is the syntax level counterpart of the 997. Retailers that trade in EDIFACT outside North America use APERAK to report business level problems with a dispatch advice or an invoice.
AIMS360 builds the documents an 824 checks from records that already exist: the 810 from the shipment and the original purchase order, the 856 from the cartons scanned at packing, with UPCs, store numbers and carrier codes held on the item, customer and carrier records. The fix for an 824 is made once in the record and the corrected document is resent from AIMS360. How each retailer's 824 reaches you varies, and the AIMS360 team confirms the route and the owner for each trading partner during setup.
Last reviewed 28 September 2026 by the AIMS360 EDI team. X12 code meanings are from published 824 implementation guides and the X12 reference. Retailer usage is from the AIMS360 retailer pages linked above, each sourced from that retailer's own published guides, and from Walmart's supplier developer documentation for drop ship. Requirements are set per retailer and change, so confirm the 824 rules for your account with each trading partner.
See how AIMS360 builds the ASN and the invoice from the same records an 824 checks, in a 30 minute demo.
