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ACH return reason code

R50 return code: State Law Affecting RCK Acceptance

State law where the RDFI is located affects its acceptance of RCK entries.

What R50 means

R50 is the return reason code State Law Affecting RCK Acceptance. State law where the RDFI is located affects its acceptance of RCK entries.

RCK (re-presented check) entries.

It is sent by the RDFI as a return entry: the original entry goes back to the ODFI with an addenda record carrying R50, and the ODFI passes the return on to the Originator.

Typical causes

  • The law of the state where the RDFI is located affects its acceptance of RCK (re-presented check) entries.

Return timeframe

Available to the ODFI by opening of business on the 2nd banking day after the settlement date of the original entry.

Banking days are the Federal Reserve’s business days: weekends and Fed holidays don’t count, so a holiday in the window pushes the deadline out by a day.

Worked example

For an entry that settled on Wednesday, November 25, 2026, the day before Thanksgiving: must be available to the ODFI by opening of business on Monday, November 30, 2026.

Try your own settlement date in the ACH date calculator

What the Originator can do next

  • Collect the item as a paper check instead of re-presenting it through ACH.

How R50 appears in a NACHA file

A return is the original entry detail record (type 6) sent back with a return transaction code — 21 or 26 for a checking account, 31 or 36 for savings (21 and 31 return a credit, 26 and 36 a debit) — the original amount, and an addenda record of type 99 that carries the reason. The batch keeps the original entry’s SEC code.

Return addenda record (type 99) with R50
PositionsFieldIn an R50 return
1Record Type Code7 (addenda)
2–3Addenda Type Code99 (return)
4–6Return Reason CodeR50
7–21Original Entry Trace NumberTrace number of the entry being returned
22–27Date of DeathYYMMDD for R14 and R15; blank otherwise
28–35Original Receiving DFI IdentificationFirst 8 digits of the original entry’s RDFI routing number
36–79Addenda InformationFree text from the RDFI
80–94Trace NumberThe return entry’s own trace number

To read a return file record by record, open the file in NACHA Navigator, a free sister site that parses NACHA files in your browser without uploading them.

Look up R50 from code or an AI agent

The code table on this page is the one behind the REST API and the MCP server, so a script or an AI agent gets the same answer as JSON. No key and no account.

REST · GET · no key
curl -s 'https://payopskit.com/api/v1/codes/R50?set=ach-return'
MCP · tools/call · lookup_payment_code
{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "lookup_payment_code",
    "arguments": {
      "code": "R50",
      "set": "ach-return"
    }
  }
}
Response (JSON)
{
  "code": "R50",
  "set": "ach-return",
  "found": true,
  "matches": [
    {
      "set": "ach-return",
      "code": "R50",
      "name": "State Law Affecting RCK Acceptance",
      "description": "State law where the RDFI is located affects its acceptance of RCK entries.",
      "details": {
        "category": "return",
        "timeframe": "Available to the ODFI by opening of business on the 2nd banking day after the settlement date of the original entry",
        "timeframeKind": "banking-days",
        "timeframeDays": 2,
        "timeframeFrom": "original-settlement",
        "account": "any",
        "accountNote": "RCK (re-presented check) entries.",
        "writtenStatement": false,
        "initiatedBy": "RDFI",
        "note": "RCK only",
        "effectiveFrom": null,
        "upcomingChange": null,
        "caveat": null
      }
    }
  ]
}

The MCP server is at /mcp (Streamable HTTP, no key); the API and MCP docs show how to connect Claude, Cursor or VS Code.

The deadline for a settlement date: GET /api/v1/ach/return-deadline?settlement_date=2026-11-25&code=R50 or the MCP tool ach_return_deadline.

Source: Nacha Operating Rules, Appendix Four (Return Entries). The code’s title is the Rules’ own; the rest is this site’s plain-language summary. It is informational and not a substitute for the Rules, your ACH Operator’s schedule or your ODFI agreement.