Ulta Beautydeduction codes, decoded
Ulta Beauty does not print a numbered reason code on each claim the way Walmart and Target do. It scores suppliers against six compliance categories and charges against the category, so the first job on an Ulta deduction is working out which programme it came from. Two clocks run at once, and the shorter one is easy to miss.
Stop chargebacks before they happen
Compliance scoring and chargeback detail sit in the Ulta Supplier Portal, with the current fee schedule published in Ulta’s Supply Chain Guide rather than on any public page.
Reported at 60 days from notification before a chargeback is applied to an invoice, which is the window to contest it. Shortages run on a separate and much shorter clock: a Purchase Order Audit is reported to be required within 30 days of the Remittance Advice Form.
Every charge, and what settles it
- Ulta is reported not to use numbered reason codes. Anything presenting a numbered Ulta code list is worth checking against your own remittances before you rely on it.
- Public summaries of the six categories disagree at the edges. Shipping accuracy, fill rate, labeling, and invoice accuracy appear in every version; some list PO acknowledgement and inbound delivery where others list on-time shipping and overages. Confirm the current set in the Supply Chain Guide.
- Per-category fee amounts are not published. Reported structure is a flat fee for most categories, with shipping accuracy and fill rate charged against non-compliant units or cost of goods.
No code matches. Try the number on the remittance, or a word from the reason.
Ulta’s shipping accuracy category charges for shortages and overages measured against the advance ship notice, so the 856 you transmitted is the number Ulta receives against.
Units received at the distribution centre do not match the quantity declared on the ASN. Pack-out differences, a carton left behind, and an ASN built from the order rather than the shipment all produce a variance.
Worth contesting when the ASN and the delivery paperwork agree with each other. The category is measured against your own declaration, so an ASN describing a shipment you did not send is a self-inflicted charge rather than a recoverable one.
- 1 ASN (EDI 856) as transmitted, with carton and SSCC detail
- 2 Purchase Order Audit request filed inside the reported 30-day window
- 3 Signed bill of lading with the case count as tendered
- 4 Proof of delivery without a shortage exception noted
The ASN has to describe the pallet that actually left, not the order that was placed. Building it from the completed pack closes the gap this category measures.
Ulta’s invoice category charges for 810s that are late, missing, or inconsistent with the order and the receipt.
An invoice that disagrees with the purchase order on cost or quantity, arrives outside the expected window, or never transmits at all.
Documentary and usually quick to settle either way. A transmitted 810 with a matching 997 answers a missing-invoice charge outright.
- 1 Invoice (EDI 810) as transmitted, with timestamp and 997
- 2 Purchase order (EDI 850) showing cost and quantity as ordered
- 3 ASN (EDI 856) for the shipment being invoiced
- 4 Any accepted cost change with its effective date
Generate the invoice from the shipment rather than the order, so cost and quantity cannot drift between the three documents Ulta compares.
Ulta’s PO acknowledgement category charges when the 855 is late or missing, with receipt reported to be required within two days of the purchase order.
No 855 transmitted, or one sent outside the reported two-day window. Manual order review and a trading-partner setup that never enabled the 855 are the common causes.
Among the more winnable Ulta categories, because it turns on a transmission record rather than a judgment. A timestamped 855 with a matching 997 usually settles it.
- 1 EDI 855 transmission log with timestamp
- 2 Functional acknowledgement (EDI 997) confirming receipt
- 3 VAN or AS2 records for the transmission
- 4 Purchase order (EDI 850) receipt timestamp, establishing when the clock started
Acknowledge automatically on receipt. This category penalises a manual step, so removing the step removes the category.
Ulta’s fill rate category charges for shipping less than the revised order quantity, measured after any adjustment window has closed.
Shipping short against the revised purchase order. Inventory that was committed elsewhere between order and pick, and late adjustments that never reached Ulta, both land here.
Hard to contest once the revised quantity was accepted. The recoverable cases are adjustments Ulta acknowledged and then scored against anyway.
- 1 Revised purchase order with quantities as accepted
- 2 Available-to-promise records at the time the order was confirmed
- 3 Any accepted quantity adjustment, with its timestamp
- 4 ASN (EDI 856) showing what shipped
Fill rate responds to order promising rather than picking. Confirming against real available inventory, and using the adjustment window when it is not there, is what moves this number.
Ulta’s inbound delivery category charges for arriving outside the agreed receipt window at the distribution centre.
Delivery early or late against the appointment. Carrier delays, appointments the DC moved, and loads tendered too late to make the window all produce the charge.
Winnable where the appointment moved on Ulta’s side or the carrier was routed by Ulta. A load tendered late is a valid charge.
- 1 Appointment records, including any Ulta-side reschedule
- 2 Carrier pickup and delivery timestamps
- 3 Proof of delivery with the actual arrival time
- 4 Routing instructions for the lane
Late arrivals usually start as late pick completion. Knowing which orders are at risk of missing their window, while there is still time to expedite, is cheaper than the fine.
Ulta’s labeling category charges per infraction when carton or pallet labels are missing required content, carry wrong data, or fail to scan at the dock.
Label content that does not match the ASN, an unscannable SSCC, or a label placed over a seam, barcode, or shipping label. Reported placement rules exclude covering product IDs, UPCs, and hazmat markings.
Winnable with load-out photography showing compliant labels. Scanning failures caused by print quality are usually valid, and recur until the printer is fixed.
- 1 Label specimens or dock photographs from load-out
- 2 SSCC values as transmitted on the ASN, matched to the cartons
- 3 3PL labeling records for the shipment
- 4 Ulta routing and packaging guide requirements for the lane
Labels and the ASN have to come from one record. When the SSCC on the carton is the SSCC in the 856, the scan either works or reveals a print problem rather than a data problem.
How Endless cuts Ulta Beauty deductions
Ulta scores the agreement between your ASN, your shipment, and your invoice, which is precisely what falls apart when those documents come from different systems. Endless generates all three from one order record, and EndlessEDI builds carton-level 856s against scanned SSCC labels with pre-ship validation. Brands on Endless report a 90% drop in retailer EDI chargebacks.
Frequently asked questions
Does Ulta Beauty use numbered chargeback codes?
It is reported not to. Ulta scores suppliers against six compliance categories and charges against the category rather than printing a numbered reason code per claim. Published lists of numbered Ulta codes are worth checking against your own remittances before relying on them.
How long do I have to dispute an Ulta chargeback?
Reported at 60 days from notification before the chargeback is applied, which is the window to contest it. Shortages are the exception and run much shorter: a Purchase Order Audit is reported to be required within 30 days of the Remittance Advice Form, so shortage claims expire first.
What is an Ulta PO Audit?
The route for contesting a shortage. Rather than disputing the deduction directly, you request an audit of the purchase order against what Ulta received, inside the reported 30-day window from the Remittance Advice Form.
How much does Ulta charge per violation?
Ulta does not publish a fee schedule; it is in the Supply Chain Guide behind the Supplier Portal. Reported structure is a flat fee for most categories, with shipping accuracy and fill rate charged against non-compliant units or cost of goods instead.
Deduction programs and dispute windows change and vary by vendor agreement. Figures marked “reported” come from third-party supplier resources, not a retailer’s published fee schedule — confirm against your current routing guide and supplier agreement before you file. See the full retail chargeback code index.
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