INVALID_OR_NULL_FOR_RESTRICTED_PICKLIST salesforce

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

The picklist is restricted, so only its defined values are accepted, and your value is not among them (or is null where null is not allowed). Pull the valid values with describe, including record-type scoping, and map your source values to them before writing.

Error

[ {
  "message" : "bad value for restricted picklist field: Enterprise",
  "errorCode" : "INVALID_OR_NULL_FOR_RESTRICTED_PICKLIST",
  "fields" : [ "Type" ]
} ]

Steps

1. Describe the field and read its picklistValues, noting which are active. Expected: the exact allowed list.
2. Check record-type scoping: a value valid for one record type can be invalid for another. Expected: you confirm the value against the record's actual record type.
3. Build a mapping table from your source values to the allowed values (for example, source "Enterprise" maps to picklist "Enterprise Corp"). Expected: every source value has a target.
4. For values with no sensible target, decide: add the value to the picklist (admin) or map to a default like "Other". Expected: an explicit policy, not silent drops.
5. Apply the mapping in the pipeline before the API call. Expected: zero picklist rejections.

When to use

• Writes fail with INVALIDORNULLFORRESTRICTED_PICKLIST.
• A migration or enrichment load fails on picklist fields.
• The same value works for one record type but fails for another.

When not to use

• Unrestricted picklists (those accept anything; the error would be different).
• STRINGTOOLONG (length, not membership).

Tool compatibility

• Salesforce REST, SOAP, and Bulk APIs; describe calls for picklist metadata.
• Data Loader and agent mapping layers.

Variant phrasings

bad value for restricted picklist field

The long form; the message quotes the rejected value.

null for restricted picklist

Null is not an allowed value here; supply a real value or make the field optional.

Why it happens

Restricted picklists enforce a closed vocabulary at the database level. Source systems with free-text fields (industry, type, source) constantly invent values outside that vocabulary.

Edge cases

• Inactive picklist values reject on write even though they display on old records; reactivate or remap.
• The API uses the API name of the value, which can differ from the label in multilingual orgs.
• Default values do not apply when you explicitly pass null; omit the field instead.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstx1WawkVMM0WpYcw2No7RQ

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstx1WawkVMM0WpYcw2No7RQ

Thread query: "INVALIDORNULLFORRESTRICTED_PICKLIST" salesforce

TL;DR: The picklist is restricted, so only its defined values are accepted, and your value is not among them (or is null where null is not allowed). Pull the valid values with describe, including record-type scoping, and map your source values to them before writing.

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Read the live picklist values from the field's describe result before writing, and map the agent's intended value to an existing entry. Never hardcode picklist strings. If the value is legitimate but missing, have it added in setup first, then retry the write.

salesforce INVALID_OR_NULL_FOR_RESTRICTED_PICKLIST when agent sets lead source to a value that doesn't exist

Steps

1. Describe the LeadSource field (or the failing field) and pull the current list of allowed values. Expected: you have the exact valid entries, including casing.
2. Map the agent's intended value to the closest valid entry; if nothing matches, fail loudly instead of guessing. Expected: writes use only values from the live list.
3. Keep the value map in config and refresh it on a schedule so retired or renamed values do not rot. Expected: a renamed picklist value is picked up at the next refresh, not at the next failure.
4. If the business genuinely needs a new value, get it added in setup, then retry. Expected: the write succeeds once the value exists in the org.

Use this when

• lead source writes fail with INVALIDORNULLFORRESTRICTED_PICKLIST
• the agent sets a picklist value that worked last month but fails now
• casing or spacing differences between the agent's value and the org's value

Not for this skill when

• unrestricted picklists - those accept anything, so the error cannot occur there
• plain text fields - no value list to violate
• values hidden by record-type scoping - that needs the record type fixed, not the value

Variant phrasings

restricted picklist value does not exist

Same root cause: the value is not in the org's defined set.

lead source rejected on write

Same fix: describe first, map to a live value.

invalid picklist value from the agent

Same fix: never hardcode; read the allowed list.

Why it happens

Restricted picklists reject anything not in their defined value set, and the check is exact - casing and spacing included. The agent either invented a plausible value, carried one over from a different org, or kept using one that an admin renamed or retired. The API validates at write time, so the failure surfaces far from where the bad value was chosen.

Edge cases

• Record types can scope which values are available - describe the field in the context of the record type being written.
• API names and labels can differ - write the API name, not the display label.
• Dependent picklists add a second axis - validate the controlling field's value too.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_iTGYcYdCLmbgps8deV6Q8w

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_iTGYcYdCLmbgps8deV6Q8w

Thread query: salesforce INVALIDORNULLFORRESTRICTED_PICKLIST when agent sets lead source to a value that doesn't exist

TL;DR: Read the live picklist values from the field's describe result before writing, and map the agent's intended value to an existing entry. Never hardcode picklist strings. If the value is legitimate but missing, have it added in setup first, then retry the write.

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Close's lead search takes a query string with its own syntax, and a 400 means the syntax is wrong: unbalanced quotes, an unknown field, or a malformed operator. The UI search box is forgiving; the API is not. Build the query incrementally, testing each clause, until the 400 clears.

The query

close.io lead search api 400

Use this when

• Close lead search API calls return 400
• A search works in the UI but fails through the API
• Previously working searches start failing

Not for

• Close authentication errors
• Lead creation or update errors
• Close API rate limits

Steps

1. Start with the simplest query

Search with a single bare term and confirm a 200. Then add clauses one at a time. The clause that introduces the 400 is the broken one. Debugging a ten-clause query all at once is hopeless.

Expected output: a minimal query returning 200.

2. Check field names and operators

The API's searchable fields and operators are documented; the UI accepts shortcuts the API doesn't. Verify each field name and operator against the docs. A renamed custom field breaks searches silently into 400s.

Expected output: every field and operator confirmed in the API docs.

3. Fix quoting and escaping

Multi-word values need quotes, and quotes inside values need escaping. URL-encode the whole query parameter. Unencoded special characters arrive mangled and parse as garbage.

Expected output: the query arriving at Close exactly as constructed.

4. Compare against the UI's actual query

Build the search in the Close UI, then inspect what the UI sends (or replicate it clause by clause). The UI's translation of your intent is the reference implementation.

Expected output: API results matching the UI search results.

Variant phrasings

close api search leads bad request

Step 1's incremental build finds the bad clause fast.

close.io query syntax error

Step 2's field and operator check.

Why it happens

Search syntaxes are mini-languages, and Close's UI hides the language behind a friendly box. API users have to speak it directly, and the 400 is the parser complaining. The incremental build in step 1 works because parsers fail on the first bad term; binary-searching clauses finds it.

Edge cases

• Custom field names in search need their exact API names, not display labels.
• Very broad queries can time out instead of 400ing. Paginate and narrow.
• Search indexes lag writes slightly. A lead created seconds ago may not match yet.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_tFNCNPAaiwjeFWF9lBapCQ

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_tFNCNPAaiwjeFWF9lBapCQ

Thread query: close.io lead search api 400

TL;DR: Close's lead search takes a query string with its own syntax, and a 400 means the syntax is wrong: unbalanced quotes, an unknown field, or a malformed operator. The UI search box is forgiving; the API is not. Build the query incrementally, testing each clause, until the 400 clears.