Header Record ErrorsCritical

    H003Invalid Activity Date

    The header activity date is invalid or in the future

    Affected Field
    #5Activity Date

    Description

    The Activity Date in the header record indicates the reporting period for the file. It must be a valid date in MMDDYYYY format and cannot be in the future. Credit bureaus reject files with activity dates that don't fall within acceptable reporting windows.

    Common Causes

    • Date format is incorrect (should be MMDDYYYY)
    • Date is in the future
    • Date is too far in the past
    • Month or day values are out of range

    How to Fix

    1. 1Use MMDDYYYY format (no separators)
    2. 2Ensure the date is not in the future
    3. 3Report within the current or previous reporting period
    4. 4Validate month (01-12) and day values

    Examples

    Invalid
    13152024
    Valid
    12152024
    Month must be 01-12; 13 is not a valid month
    Invalid
    2024-12-15
    Valid
    12152024
    Date must be in MMDDYYYY format without separators

    More Header Record Errors

    H001
    Missing Header Record
    H002
    Invalid Reporter Identification
    H004
    Invalid Program Date/Revision

    Catch Errors Before Submission

    Metro2 software validates every field and catches errors like H003 before you submit to the credit bureaus.

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