When the NFIU rejects an STR or CTR filed via goAML, it returns an error message indicating the category of failure. Rejections are not automatically corrected — the reporting institution must identify the root cause, fix the report, and resubmit within the correction window. Understanding why reports are rejected is essential for meeting the 24-hour correction deadline.
When a report is submitted to the NFIU via goAML, the platform runs validation checks at two levels: schema-level validation (which checks that the XML structure and required fields are present and correctly formatted) and business-rule validation (which checks that the content makes logical sense — for example, that a predicate offense matches an indicator, or that the report type is consistent with the transaction described).
Schema-level errors are returned immediately on submission. Business-rule rejections are typically returned within the platform's processing cycle. Once a report is rejected, the institution has a 24-hour correction window to fix and resubmit it using the same reference number. Missing this window means the case must be treated as a new filing.
| Error category | Root cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong report type | STR — General selected when a specific category (Fraud, Corruption, Terrorism Financing etc.) was applicable | Re-select the correct STR category from the 6 available; use STR — General only as a last resort |
| Missing predicate offense | No predicate offense selected, or the offense does not match the report type | Select at least one predicate offense from the NFIU's defined list that matches the nature of the suspicion |
| Missing or invalid indicator | No indicator linked to the selected predicate offense | Add at least one indicator from the list associated with the chosen predicate offense |
| Incomplete party data | Missing BVN, NIN, full address (LGA, state, country), or nationality | Update party record with all mandatory fields before resubmitting |
| Date format error | Transaction date not in YYYY-MM-DD format (e.g. DD/MM/YYYY entered instead) | Reformat all dates to YYYY-MM-DD |
| Invalid currency code | Currency entered as "Naira" or "N" instead of the ISO 4217 code "NGN" | Use ISO 4217 three-letter codes: NGN, USD, GBP, EUR |
| Submission outside window | Report submitted after the 96-hour STR window or 7-day CTR window | File immediately; document the reason for delay for examination purposes |
| Duplicate submission | Same report submitted more than once with the same reference data | Use the correction flow — do not create a new report for the same incident |
Schema errors prevent the report from being accepted into the goAML system at all. They are typically caused by missing mandatory XML fields, incorrect data types, or malformed date or currency values. These errors are returned immediately on upload. Business-rule errors are caught after the report is accepted into the system and may take longer to surface. They usually relate to logical inconsistencies between fields — for example, a predicate offense that does not match any of the available indicators, or a party nationality that conflicts with an address in a different country.
A 24-hour correction window opens from the time a rejection notice is issued. The institution must use this window to correct the specific errors identified in the rejection notice and resubmit the report under the original reference number. Creating a new report instead of correcting the rejected one is a common error — it does not satisfy the reporting obligation and may create a duplicate record in the NFIU's system.
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