Routing Number Check Digit Error
Category: Format & data Initiated by: RDFI
Applies to (SEC scope)
ALL
camt.053 mapping
FF09 — Invalid Cheque Number
Reinitiation
Restricted — permitted only within the Rules’ limits
Nacha's definition
The Check digit for a routing number is not valid.
Verbatim from Nacha — ISO 20022 Guide to Mapping U.S. ACH Return Items and Notifications of Change, August 2023, Version 2.01 (Table 1, return reason codes) (return reason code table). Applies to: ALL.
How it appears in an ISO 20022 statement
Nacha's mapping guide maps R28 to camt.053 reason code FF09 (Invalid Cheque Number) — ISO definition: Cheque number missing or invalid.
Return time frame
Nacha's public rule pages refer to the standard "two-day" return time frame for returns that are not extended (unauthorized) returns. The governing time limit for this code is set in the Nacha Operating Rules, which Nacha sells and which were not used here, so it is not restated.
Can the entry be reinitiated?
Nacha's reinitiation rule page allows reinitiation "to correct administrative errors", with fields other than Company Name, Company ID and Amount modified only to the extent necessary. A corrected resubmission of a returned debit is therefore treated as a reinitiation, within the Rules' limits and carrying RETRY PYMT. Nacha's reinitiation rule addresses returned debits; a returned credit falls outside it.
correct the field the RDFI identified, and code the resubmission correctly.
What an operator does next
The routing number's check digit fails. Validate routing numbers before origination.
PaymentBrief guidance, not Nacha text. Your ODFI's procedures and the current Nacha Operating Rules govern.
Where this comes up on PaymentBrief
Sources for this code
- Nacha — ISO 20022 Guide to Mapping U.S. ACH Return Items and Notifications of Change, August 2023, Version 2.01 (Table 1, return reason codes) — nacha-mapping-guide, retrieved 2026-09-06
- Nacha — rule page 'ACH Network Risk and Enforcement Topics' (unauthorized return rate threshold; reinitiation of entries) — nacha-rule-page, retrieved 2026-09-06