3GPP Scout / Reference / EMM causes / Cause #101 in EMM and ESM

TS 24.301EMM causeESM cause

Cause #101 in EMM and ESM: Message not compatible with the protocol state

TS 24.301 V20.1.0Clauses 9.9.3.9 and 9.9.4.42 valuesChecked 2026-10-15

Covers

TS 24.301 words these values in parallel, so they share this page. Each has its own section with the spec text and a plain explanation.

EMM cause #101: Message not compatible with the protocol state

Clause 9.9.3.9Value 101 (bits 0110 0101)

In plain words

This cause means the message is incompatible with the protocol state.

Our summary of the spec text quoted below.

Name in the cause table

Message not compatible with the protocol state

Source: 3GPP TS 24.301 V20.1.0, clause 9.9.3.9, table 9.9.3.9.1. © 3GPP Organizational Partners (ARIB, ATIS, CCSA, ETSI, TSDSI, TTA, TTC). Official text: 24301-k10.zip in the 3GPP archive.

When it is used

See 3GPP TS 24.008 [13], annex H, clause H.6.6.

Source: 3GPP TS 24.301 V20.1.0, clause A.5. © 3GPP Organizational Partners (ARIB, ATIS, CCSA, ETSI, TSDSI, TTA, TTC). Official text: 24301-k10.zip in the 3GPP archive.

ESM cause #101: Message not compatible with the protocol state

Clause 9.9.4.4Value 101 (bits 0110 0101)

In plain words

This cause indicates that a message incompatible with the protocol state has been received.

Our summary of the spec text quoted below.

Name in the cause table

Message not compatible with the protocol state

Source: 3GPP TS 24.301 V20.1.0, clause 9.9.4.4, table 9.9.4.4.1. © 3GPP Organizational Partners (ARIB, ATIS, CCSA, ETSI, TSDSI, TTA, TTC). Official text: 24301-k10.zip in the 3GPP archive.

When it is used

This ESM cause indicates that a message has been received which is incompatible with the protocol state.

Source: 3GPP TS 24.301 V20.1.0, clause B.2. © 3GPP Organizational Partners (ARIB, ATIS, CCSA, ETSI, TSDSI, TTA, TTC). Official text: 24301-k10.zip in the 3GPP archive.

Same causes in 5GS (TS 24.501)

TS 24.501 defines the corresponding causes for 5GS. Their pages quote the 5GS wording.

How this page was made

3GPP Scout built this page from TS 24.301 V20.1.0 as indexed on 2026-10-15. The quotes are copied from the spec, and code checks each one against the stored text and the 3GPP archive file before publishing. The plain-words lines were written by an AI model (GPT-6 Sol) and checked against the quotes by a second AI model from another company (Claude Opus 5.5). The official 3GPP text governs.