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N286 Remark Code: Missing Referring Provider NPI

N286 means the referring provider's primary identifier, their NPI, was missing, incomplete, or invalid. It most often appears with CARC 16, and the usual fix is to add or correct the referring NPI in box 17b and resubmit.

Code: N286 (RARC N286)
Status: Active In use since December 2, 2004.
Code set: Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes: CO (Contractual Obligation): Correctable claim data; add or fix the referring NPI. The patient is not responsible for the adjustment.
Official description: Missing/incomplete/invalid referring provider primary identifier.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified: September 24, 2026 against the official X12 list.

What N286 means

N286 is one of the most frequent companions to CARC 16. It tells you the payer needed the referring clinician’s NPI and either didn’t find one or couldn’t validate what it found. The pairing reads as: “missing referring provider NPI.”

Specialists, consultants, therapy providers, and diagnostic services see it most often, because their claims tend to require a referring provider.

Common causes

Box 17b was blank even though box 17 had a name.
The referring clinician’s group NPI was used instead of their individual NPI.
The NPI of your own rendering provider was entered as the referring provider.
A digit was mistyped, or the NPI belongs to a different clinician than the one named.
The referring clinician’s NPI is valid but not enrolled with the payer, and the payer enforces referring enrollment.

How to fix it

Identify the referring clinician from the referral, order, or intake record.
Verify the individual NPI in NPPES and confirm the name matches.
Enter the DN qualifier and name in box 17 and the NPI in box 17b (or the 837P referring provider fields).
If the payer requires enrollment for referring clinicians, confirm it. The provider enrollment guide explains this check.
Send a corrected claim with frequency code 7 in box 22 and the original claim number.

For a full walk-through of CARC 16 remark combinations, see the CO-16 missing information guide.

How to prevent it

Require a referring NPI at scheduling for services and payers that need one.
Store referring clinicians in a directory by NPI and select them rather than typing.
Run claims through Claims Validator to catch a blank or malformed box 17b before submission.

Codes that may appear with N286

CO-16 (Claim/service lacks information or has submission/billing error(s).): The most common pairing: the claim lacks information, and N286 names the referring NPI.
CO-183 (The referring provider is not eligible to refer the service billed.): The referring provider was identified but is not eligible to refer this service.
CO-208 (National Provider Identifier - Not matched.): The NPI reported did not match the payer's records.

N285 (Missing/incomplete/invalid referring provider name.): The referring provider's name is the problem.
N265 (Missing/incomplete/invalid ordering provider primary identifier.): The ordering provider's NPI is the problem.
N544 (Alert: Although this was paid, you have billed with a referring/ordering provider that does not match our system record.): An alert that a paid claim carried a referring or ordering provider that doesn't match payer records.
N754 (Missing/incomplete/invalid Referring Provider or Other Source Qualifier on the 1500 Claim Form.): The referring provider or other source qualifier on the 1500 form is missing or invalid.

N286 FAQ

Where exactly does the referring NPI go?

Box 17b of the CMS-1500, with the referring name in box 17 preceded by the DN qualifier. Electronic claims report it in the referring provider section of the 837P.

What if the patient self-referred?

If the payer requires a referring provider for the service and there is none, you may need a referral before the claim can be paid. If no referral is required, remove partial referring data from the claim.

Can I use the patient's primary care provider?

Only if that clinician actually referred the patient. Report the provider who made the referral, verified in NPPES.

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