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Spotlight PEPPOL BIS Billing 3.0 The EU e-invoicing mandate is here — France Sept 2026, Belgium Jan 2026, Germany 2025.

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X12 361 — Carrier Interchange Agreement (Rail)

The 361 documents the interchange agreement between two North American rail carriers: transfer terms, equipment exchanged, mileage and car-hire conditions.

Purpose

The 361 is used on the North American Class I network (BNSF, Union Pacific, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Canadian National, CPKC) to formalise wagon interchange at junction points: who pays car hire, who owns mileage allocation, inspection conditions at interchange.

It sits within the AAR (Association of American Railroads) reference, which maintains the Car Hire Accounting Manual and the Interline Settlement System. Acknowledged by 997, it is typically preceded by a 420 (Car Handling Information) or 404 (Rail Carrier Shipment Information).

Envelope structure

The 361 travels within the three X12 envelope levels (ISA/IEA, GS/GE with functional group CI, and ST/SE). Didactic example in release 004010:

x12 example-361.x12 
ISA*00*          *00*          *ZZ*BNSF          *ZZ*UP             *260514*1830*U*00401*000000361*0*P*>~
GS*CI*BNSF*UP*20260514*1830*1*X*004010~
ST*361*0001~
B5*CI*INTC-2026-0042~
N1*OR*BNSF RAILWAY*26*BNSF~
N1*DA*UNION PACIFIC*26*UP~
R4*X*UN*USDAL*DALLAS INTERCHANGE*US~
DTM*002*20260514~
LX*1~
N7*BNSF*7780019*A402~
REF*EQ*BOXCAR-50FT~
SE*9*0001~
GE*1*1~
IEA*1*000000361~

Common segments

  • Header — ST, B5 (Beginning Segment for Rail Carrier Specific Forwarding Information).
  • Parties — N1*OR (Originating Carrier), N1*DA (Destination Carrier), N1*JC (Junction Carrier if transit).
  • Place and date — R4*X (Interchange Point), DTM*002 (expected interchange date).
  • Equipment — repeated LX loop: N7 (wagon number, ISO size-type), REF*EQ (equipment type).
  • Summary — SE.

Common pitfalls

  • AAR car initials: a wagon is identified by its AAR owner initials (BNSF, UP, NS) plus number; without initials, car-hire cannot be allocated.
  • Trackage rights: if the movement passes over a third operator (trackage rights), an N1*JC is required; without it, the AAR manual refuses car-hire reconciliation.
  • FRA inspection: the interchange triggers an FRA (Federal Railroad Administration) inspection; the 361 does not carry the result — it is in an 859 (Freight Invoice) or a separate non-EDI report.

Documentation

The code 361 and the name Carrier Interchange Agreement (Rail) are public and listed on x12.org/products/transaction-sets. The complete structure of loops, qualifiers and code lists is distributed by DISA via the proprietary Implementation Guides (TR3). ediverse.io covers only public concepts, the envelope and didactic examples.