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What is an EDI 214?

The EDI 214 is the carrier’s shipment status message: where the freight is and what has happened to it, from pickup through interim scans to delivery.

Carrier → shipper / consignee
Written by EDI specialists
Everything is on the page, nothing to fill in

Last reviewed October 6, 2026 by Effective Data's EDI specialists.

Where it fits

When the 214 is used, and which way it travels

How the EDI 214 travelsThe 214 Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Message goes from Carrier to Shipper / consignee. In sequence with: 211, 856, 214, 240.CarrierShipper / consignee214Transportation Carrier Shipment Status MessageIn sequence211Bill of lading856Ship notice214Shipment status240Package status
How the EDI 214 travelsThe 214 Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Message goes from Carrier to Shipper / consignee. In sequence with: 211, 856, 214, 240.CarrierShipper /consignee214Transportation Carrier Shipment Status MessageIn sequence211Bill of lading856Ship notice214Shipment status240Package status
Which way the 214 travels, and the documents it is usually traded alongside. Partner implementation guides can add or drop documents from this set.

Carriers send 214s at the status events the trading partner profile asks for: picked up, departed, arrived at a terminal, out for delivery, delivered, or exceptions such as a missed delivery. Each status carries a code, a reason where relevant, and a date, time and location.

Effective Data lists the 214 as freight shipping status among the transportation documents a 3PL operation runs on, alongside the 211 bill of lading and the 240 package status.

Also called the Freight Shipping Status, the Shipment Status. Same document, same number.

Inside the document

The segments, and what each one carries

The published X12 structure, minus the segments most partners never use. Each partner's implementation guide narrows this further: which qualifiers, which identifiers, how many decimals. That guide, not the standard, is what your file is validated against.

Structure of the EDI 214An ISA/IEA interchange envelope wraps a GS/GE functional group, which wraps the 214 transaction set from ST to SE. Header: B10, L11, N1. Detail: LX, AT7. Summary: none listed.ISAInterchange envelopeIEAGSFunctional groupGESTTransaction set 214SEHeaderB10L11N1Detailrepeats per line or loopLXAT7Summaryno segments listed
Structure of the EDI 214An ISA/IEA interchange envelope wraps a GS/GE functional group, which wraps the 214 transaction set from ST to SE. Header: B10, L11, N1. Detail: LX, AT7. Summary: none listed.ISAInterchange envelopeIEAGSFunctional groupGESTTransaction set 214SEHeaderB10L11N1Detailrepeats per line or loopLXAT7Summaryno segments listed
The 214 inside its X12 envelope. ISA and GS wrap every interchange; ST and SE open and close this document; the segments between them are the ones listed below, in the part of the document they belong to.
SegmentNamePartWhat it carries
ST Transaction Set Header Header Identifies the document as a 214 and opens the control number the trailer must match.
B10 Beginning Segment for Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Header The carrier’s reference number and the shipment identification the statuses belong to.
L11 Business Instructions and Reference Number Header The reference numbers that let the receiver match the status to an order: PO number, BOL number, pro number.
N1 Party Identification Header Shipper, consignee, and the party the status is reported to.
LX Assigned Number Detail Numbers the status loops.
AT7 Shipment Status Details Detail The status itself: status or appointment code, reason code, and the date and time it happened.
SE Transaction Set Trailer Summary Closes the set. Segment count and control number must match the ST.
ST Transaction Set Header Header
Identifies the document as a 214 and opens the control number the trailer must match.
B10 Beginning Segment for Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Header
The carrier’s reference number and the shipment identification the statuses belong to.
L11 Business Instructions and Reference Number Header
The reference numbers that let the receiver match the status to an order: PO number, BOL number, pro number.
N1 Party Identification Header
Shipper, consignee, and the party the status is reported to.
LX Assigned Number Detail
Numbers the status loops.
AT7 Shipment Status Details Detail
The status itself: status or appointment code, reason code, and the date and time it happened.
SE Transaction Set Trailer Summary
Closes the set. Segment count and control number must match the ST.
The part that costs money

Why yours is being rejected

Every EDI provider publishes what an 214 is. What matters in production is why one fails, and these are the failure modes we can put a source against today:

  1. Reference numbers that match nothing. A 214 whose L11 references do not tie back to a PO, BOL or pro number the receiver knows lands as an orphan status, and the shipment it describes goes dark in the receiver’s tracking.

If one of these is happening to you right now, skip to the bottom of the page and describe it. Diagnosing rejected documents is most of what we do.

Related documents

The documents the 214 travels with

211

Motor Carrier Bill of Lading

Read it →
240

Motor Carrier Package Status

Read it →
856

Ship Notice/Manifest

Read it →

Frequently asked

+ What is an EDI 214?

The Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Message: the carrier’s report of where a shipment is and what has happened to it, sent at pickup, in transit, at delivery and on exceptions.

+ What statuses does a 214 carry?

Coded status events with dates, times and locations: picked up, arrived, departed, out for delivery, delivered, and exception codes with reasons, as narrowed by each trading partner’s profile.

+ Why does the 214 matter to a 3PL?

It is the tracking-status document in the transportation group: with the 211 and 240 it manages shipping processes, shipment details and package-level updates between logistics partners.

Is your 214 failing, or being mandated by a partner?

Describe the situation and a named EDI specialist will tell you what it takes, including when the answer is that you do not need us.

Or call 847.969.9300

Answered by a named EDI specialist on the same business day. If we are not the right answer we will say so on the first call.