---
title: "554 Email Error for Email Delivery Failures"
description: "A 554 email error is sometimes thought of as a catch-all of email errors. It is generally used when there is a generic delivery failure that another email error code doesn't directly define a..."
url: https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/email/email-error-554/
date: 2012-10-30
modified: 2023-12-22
author: "InMotion Hosting Contributor"
categories: ["Email"]
type: post
lang: en
---

# 554 Email Error for Email Delivery Failures

A **554 email error** is sometimes thought of as a catch-all of email errors. It is generally used when there is a generic delivery failure that another email error code doesn't directly define a problem for.

Some mail servers also use a **554 error **even if there is a specific error code that defines what went wrong already.

You should receive a bounce-back message from the server with a variation of **email error 554** in the subject, and the body should contain your original message that you attempted to deliver.

## Example bounce-back message

Return-path: <>
Envelope-to: **sender@example.com**
Delivery-date: Sat, 13 Oct 2012 04:40:30 -0700
Received: from mailnull by biz32.inmotionhosting.com with local (Exim 4.77)
id 1TN050-0007it-Dw
for **sender@example.com**; Sat, 13 Oct 2012 04:40:30 -0700
X-Failed-Recipients: **recipient@RemoteDomain.com**
Auto-Submitted: auto-replied
From: Mail Delivery System <mailer-daemon@biz32.inmotionhosting.com>
To: **sender@example.com**
Subject: [Mail delivery failed: returning message to sender](/support/email/mail-delivery-failed-returning-message-to-sender/)
Message-Id: <e1tn050-0007it-dw@biz32.inmotionhosting.com>
Date: Sat, 13 Oct 2012 04:40:30 -0700</e1tn050-0007it-dw@biz32.inmotionhosting.com></mailer-daemon@biz32.inmotionhosting.com>
This message was created automatically by mail delivery software.
A message that you sent could not be delivered to one or more of its
recipients. This is a permanent error. The following address(es) failed:

**recipient@RemoteDomain.com**
SMTP error from remote mail server after RCPT TO:<**recipient@remotedomain.com**>:
host mail.RemoteDomain.com [123.123.123.123]: 554 Invalid recipient

------ This is a copy of the message, including all the headers. ------
Return-path: <**sender@example.com**>
Received: from Admin by biz32.inmotionhosting.com with local (Exim 4.77)
(envelope-from <**sender@example.com**>)
id 1TN04y-0007iG-6d
for **recipient@RemoteDomain.com**; Sat, 13 Oct 2012 04:40:28 -0700
To: Recipient <**recipient@remotedomain.com**>
X-Autorespond: Comments
MIME-Version: 1.0
X-Loop: Recipient group <**recipient@remotedomain.com**>
Precedence: auto_reply
X-Precedence: auto_reply
From: "sender" <**sender@example.com**>
Subject: Auto Reply: Out of Office
Date: Sat, 13 Oct 2012 04:40:28 -0700

## Common variations of the 554 email error

- **554 5.7.0** Message Size Violation
- **554 5.7.1** Message blocked due to spam content in the message
- **554 5.7.1** Message blocked due to spam content in the message.
- **554 5.7.1** <sender@example.com>: Relay access denied</sender@example.com>
- **554 5.7.9** Message not accepted for policy reasons.
- **554** RLY:B1
- **554** delivery error: dd This user doesn't have a ymail.com account
- **554** Denied (Mode: normal)
- **554** Invalid recipient
- **554** Malformed mail denied!
- **554** Message is not RFC compliant; missing "Date" header
- **554** Message not allowed - Email not accepted for policy reasons. Please visit https://postmaster.yahoo.com/errors/postmaster-27.html [120]
- **554** Message permanently rejected
- **554** Message refused
- **554** no valid recipients, bye
- **554** rejected due to spam content
- **554** rejected due to virus
- **554** <sender@example.com>: Relay access denied</sender@example.com>
- **554** Sorry, no mailbox here by that name.
- **554** Spam detected
- **554** Spam violation, the content of your e-mail contains illegal characters, re-sent after examination
- **554** Transaction Failed Spam Message not queued.554 Virus found, message permanently rejected (#5.3.0)

## Resolving a 554 email error bounceback

Because errors in the 554 series don't always bounceback for a common reason, they could be either a hard or soft bounce. To better understand soft and hard bounces, and general email bounceback errors you can read [why does email bounce, bounceback, or error?](/support/email/email-bounce-bounceback-error/)

In our example bounce-back error above the reason the message has failed is because an auto-reply was trying to be sent to an account that didn't exist. So the **RemoteDomain.com** mail server responded back with a **554 Invalid recipient** error.