R16 - Account Frozen / Entry Returned per OFAC Instruction
Funds in the account are unavailable because the RDFI or a legal/regulatory action has frozen it, or because OFAC sanctions screening instructed the entry to be returned. This is a compliance stop, not a balance problem.
R16 - Account Frozen / Entry Returned per OFAC Instruction
Funds in the account are unavailable because the RDFI or a legal/regulatory action has frozen it, or because OFAC sanctions screening instructed the entry to be returned. This is a compliance stop, not a balance problem. This rejection is final: resubmitting the same payment will fail again — resolve the underlying situation first.
What this code means
Funds in the account are unavailable because the RDFI or a legal/regulatory action has frozen it, or because OFAC sanctions screening instructed the entry to be returned. This is a compliance stop, not a balance problem.
Typical causes
- Court order, levy or garnishment freezing the account
- OFAC/sanctions match on a party to the transaction
- Bank froze the account on suspicion of fraud
What to do
Do not reinitiate. If OFAC-driven, the Originator should not attempt to move funds for this party at all and should escalate to compliance.
What it looks like in an ACH return
The return arrives as an Addenda Record (type 99), 94 characters wide. The return reason code sits in positions 4-6.
799R16091000010000001 09100001 091000019000001Tools for this code
Decode a real status report, or check a payment file before you send it — all in your browser, nothing uploaded.
Related codes
Source: Nacha ISO 20022 mapping guide + Federal Reserve ACH Return Reason Report + US Treasury Green Book · Last verified: 2026-07-13
Checked against: nacha.org · frbservices.org