R09

What Is ACH Return Code R09?

ACH return codes are used to identify the reason an ACH payment has been returned by the recipient's bank. They make it easier for originating and receiving financial institutions to spot and communicate payment failures.

ACH Return Code R09, also known as "Uncollected Funds," is a standard code used in Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions. It indicates that a debit entry was returned due to uncollected funds in the receiver's account—in other words, the customer does not have enough available funds in their account to cover all of their pending transactions.

How To Address ACH Return Code R09

Nacha prescribes separate rules for handling each return code since each one represents a unique scenario. ODFIs (Originating Depository Financial Institutions) and RDFIs (Receiving Depository Financial Institutions) are responsible for handling ACH return codes according to these rules.

For example, if your business is attempting to initiate an ACH debit for $100, but your customer does not have enough available funds in their account to cover that transaction, the bank would return the transaction with code R09. It is important to note here that even if your customer technically has enough funds in their account, their bank can still return a transaction with R09 if there are not enough available funds in the account—meaning that there are not enough funds in the account less their other pending checks, debits, or other transactions to cover your $100 ACH transaction. The customer’s bank must return the transaction with code R09 within 2 banking days.

If you encounter R09, you can try the following to address it:

• Reach out to your customer and see if they are able to move funds into their account to cover the amount of your transaction.
• Wait a duration of time long enough to allow for the customer to have additional funds in the account to cover the transaction, then process the transaction again (Note: this probably is not the best course of action, as it requires you to wait for payment)

What Is An ACH Return Code?

ACH return codes identify the reason an ACH payment was returned by the recipient's bank. They make it easier for originating and receiving financial institutions to spot and communicate payment failures. Each code begins with 'R' followed by a two digit number. ACH return codes are standardized and maintained by NACHA, the governing body for the ACH network.