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N708 Remark Code: Order for the Service Not Received

N708 means the order for the billed service is missing. For services that require a practitioner's order, such as diagnostic tests, equipment, therapy, or home health, the payer won't pay until it sees the order.

Quick facts

Code
N708 (RARC N708)
Status
Active In use since March 1, 2014.
Code set
Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes
  • CO (Contractual Obligation): The performing provider is expected to keep and supply the order. The denial isn't a patient balance.
Official description
Missing orders.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified
against the official X12 list.

What N708 means

For ordered services, the performing provider is the one who bills, but the justification begins with someone else. A lab, imaging center, therapy practice, equipment supplier, or home health agency needs the treating practitioner’s order to show the service was requested. When the payer asks for that order, or its policy requires it with the claim, and nothing arrives, the remittance shows N708.

Why orders go missing

  • The order came by phone or fax and wasn’t saved to the patient’s record.
  • The ordering office used an electronic system that didn’t transmit a copy.
  • A walk-in patient brought a paper order that was returned instead of scanned.
  • The order exists only in the ordering provider’s notes, not as a separate document.
  • A records request for the order went unanswered.

How to fix it

  1. Search your own records first, including scanned documents and fax archives.
  2. Request a copy from the ordering provider if you can’t find it, explaining the payer’s deadline.
  3. Confirm it predates the service and covers what was billed, so you don’t end up with an N707 denial next.
  4. Send it through the payer’s attachment process with the claim reference, or with a corrected claim if the payer requires one.
  5. Appeal with proof of timely submission if you already sent the order.

How to prevent it

Don’t perform ordered services until a copy of the order is in the patient’s record. Scan paper orders at check-in and link electronic orders to the encounter automatically. A Claims Validator check can also flag ordered services that lack an ordering provider on the claim before submission.

Codes that may appear with N708

  • CO-16 (Claim/service lacks information or has submission/billing error(s).): The claim lacks information needed for adjudication; N708 names the order.
  • CO-252 (An attachment/other documentation is required to adjudicate this claim/service.): Documentation is required to adjudicate the claim.
  • CO-173 (Service/equipment was not prescribed by a physician.): The service or equipment was not prescribed by a physician.
  • N707 (Incomplete/invalid orders.): An order was received but was incomplete or invalid.
  • N667 (Missing prescription.): A prescription, rather than an order, is missing.
  • N29Deactivated (Missing documentation/orders/notes/summary/report/chart.): An older combined remark for missing documentation, orders, notes, or reports.

N708 FAQ

Is a verbal order enough?

Some payers and settings accept verbal orders if they're documented and later signed within a set time. Others require a written order before the service. Check the payer's rules.

What if the ordering provider's office won't send the order?

Explain that the service can't be paid without it and ask for the order or the relevant note. Some payers accept the ordering provider's medical record entry showing the intent to order.

Does the claim need to list the ordering provider?

For many ordered services, yes. Report the ordering or referring provider in box 17 and the NPI in 17b when the payer requires it.