Advance Ship Notice (EDI 856 / ASN)
An electronic packing list sent to the buyer before a shipment arrives.
Also known as: ASN, 856, EDI 856
What is Advance Ship Notice (EDI 856 / ASN)?
The Advance Ship Notice (EDI 856, or ASN) tells a buyer exactly what is in a shipment before it arrives, using a hierarchical structure that describes the shipment, order, pack, and item levels and ties to the physical GS1-128 carton labels. ASNs are among the most chargeback-prone documents in retail: late, missing, or inaccurate 856s are a leading cause of retailer penalties. A compliant ASN lets the receiving DC scan cartons in rather than count them by hand.
How Endless handles it
Endless builds carton-accurate 856s tied to GS1-128 (SSCC) labels straight from pick/pack data, which is the single biggest lever for cutting ASN-related chargebacks.
The EDI chargeback nightmare: the $50k mistake that kills margins→
Frequently asked
Why do ASNs cause so many chargebacks?
ASNs must be transmitted before the shipment arrives and must exactly match the physical cartons and their GS1-128 labels. Any mismatch, lateness, or missing ASN breaks the retailer’s receiving scan process, so retailers penalize it heavily.
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