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N505 Remark Code: Partial Real-Time Estimate

N505 is an alert that the payer's real-time response estimated only some of the services submitted. Services that could not be estimated in real time were left out of the response, and no estimate will be provided for them.

Code: N505 (RARC N505)
Status: Active In use since November 1, 2008; last modified March 1, 2017.
Code set: Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes: PR (Patient Responsibility): Any patient amounts shown are estimates for the services the payer could price in real time. They do not cover the services omitted from the response.
OA (Other Adjustment): Some payers attach real-time informational messages to an other adjustment. No correction is being requested.
Official description: Alert: This response includes only services that could be estimated in real-time. No estimate will be provided for the services that could not be estimated in real-time.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified: September 24, 2026 against the official X12 list.

What N505 means

Some payers let providers send claim data in real time, often at checkout, and receive an immediate estimate of what the plan will pay and what the patient owes. Not every service can be priced that way. N505 tells you the response is partial: it covers the services the payer could estimate instantly and says nothing about the rest.

The alert does not deny anything. It warns you that the patient responsibility shown is incomplete.

What to do

Identify which services are missing from the real-time response.
Base any point-of-service collection only on the services that were estimated, and tell the patient the rest will be determined later.
Submit the final claim normally. All services, including those left out, are adjudicated then.
Reconcile the final remittance against the estimate and settle any patient balance or credit.

If certain services never estimate in real time with a payer, note them in your front-desk scripts so staff set clear expectations with patients.

Codes that may appear with N505

CO-101 (Predetermination: anticipated payment upon completion of services or claim adjudication.): Predetermination: the amounts reflect anticipated payment, not a final adjudication.
PR-1 / PR-2 / PR-3 (Deductible, coinsurance, and co-payment.): Estimated patient cost-sharing for the services that could be estimated.

N506 (Alert: This is an estimate of the member's liability based on the information available at the time the estimate was processed.): Warns that any real-time estimate is not final and is not a guarantee of payment.
N508 (Alert: This real-time claim adjudication response represents the member responsibility to the provider for services reported.): A real-time adjudication response, rather than an estimate.

N505 FAQ

Why couldn't some services be estimated?

Payers do not always say. Services that need manual review, lack pricing on file, or depend on medical records often fall outside real-time processing.

Should I collect from the patient based on the estimate?

You can use it to guide a point-of-service collection for the estimated services only, following your financial policy. The services left out still have unknown patient liability.

Do I need to resubmit anything?

Not because of N505. The omitted services are adjudicated when the actual claim is processed.

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