generated: '2026-07-27'
method: searched
source: >-
  https://data.ferc.gov/developer/apiendpoints/,
  https://data.ferc.gov/developer/gettingstarted/dataset-retrieval/,
  collections/ferc-xbrl-submission-api.postman_collection.json,
  https://ecollection.ferc.gov/api/getTestStatus
summary: >-
  FERC ships no developer sandbox with synthetic data. What it does ship is (a) an interactive
  Swagger console on the API Endpoints page where a real key can be authorized and every operation
  executed in the browser, and (b) a genuine test-submission mode on the eForms filing API, flagged
  per request, whose results are labelled in the public submission record. There are no test keys,
  no test credentials and no fixture data — a real API key and, for filing, real FERC registration
  are required.
console:
  url: https://data.ferc.gov/developer/apiendpoints/
  type: swagger-ui
  auth: >-
    "Authorize" button; paste the 40-character API key issued to your email. Access to the executable
    console and to the generated code snippets requires completing authorization first.
  behaviour: >-
    Executing an endpoint from the console returns only the FIRST 100 ROWS. The same call made from a
    client or the browser returns the complete dataset. This is documented by FERC and is the single
    most common source of confusion with this API.
  code_snippets:
    languages: [Python, JavaScript, Java, 'curl (bash)', 'curl (cmd)']
    note: >-
      Generated per endpoint in the console after a successful execute; preconfigured with the
      correct query structure.
test_mode:
  - api: ferc:ferc-eforms-xbrl-submission-api
    mechanism: request parameter
    parameter: test
    values: ['true', 'false']
    description: >-
      Set on POST /SubmissionHistory/ExternalFiling to mark the filing as a test submission. FERC's
      own published Postman collection ships with test=true and additionalNotes "This is a test
      submission for PROD" — the test flag is applied against the PRODUCTION host, there is no
      separate test host in the published collection.
    visible_in_public_record: >-
      Yes. GET /PublicSubmissionHistory carries an isTestSubmission field ("Not Test" for live
      filings), so test submissions are distinguishable in the public record.
    source: collections/ferc-xbrl-submission-api.postman_collection.json
  - api: ferc:ferc-eforms-xbrl-submission-api
    mechanism: environment flag
    endpoint: GET https://ecollection.ferc.gov/api/getTestStatus
    description: >-
      Anonymous endpoint reporting whether the eForms environment is in test status, plus the
      submission constraints the client enforces. Observed 2026-07-27.
    observed:
      status: false
      maxAllowedXbrlName: 50
      maxAllowedFileName: 60
      maxAllowedFileSize: 52428800
      allowedFileTags: FileNameOfSystemMap,OrganizationChart
      showReleaseNotesButton: true
test_credentials:
  available: false
  note: >-
    No test API key, no sandbox key prefix, no shared demo credentials. The Open Data API key is free
    and self-serve, which is FERC's substitute for a sandbox. Filing requires a real individual FERC
    eRegistration plus Company Registration authority for a real company CID — there is no way to
    exercise the write path without being a regulated filer.
fixtures:
  - name: Blank rendered forms and sample instance files
    url: https://ecollection.ferc.gov/taxonomyHistory
    api_endpoint: GET https://ecollection.ferc.gov/api/TaxonomyHistory/SampleForm/{versionID}
    description: >-
      Per-taxonomy-version zip of blank rendered forms and sample XBRL instance files — the real
      fixture set for building and validating a filing. Anonymous; observed 462 KB for versionID 24.
  - name: XULE validation rulesets
    url: https://www.ferc.gov/vendor-files-library
    description: >-
      Validation rules coded in XULE and published as a ruleset file per form category (Form 1, 2, 6,
      60, 714). Run them locally against a candidate filing before submitting.
  - name: FERC rendering tool (Arelle plugin)
    url: https://www.ferc.gov/vendor-files-library
    description: >-
      Renders an XBRL instance as Inline XBRL HTML using FERC's form-specific template set, so a
      filing can be previewed exactly as FERC will render it.
related_test_environments:
  - name: eTariff Sandbox Electronic Test Site
    scope: eTariff filings, not the APIs profiled here
    note: >-
      FERC operates a separate sandbox for eTariff electronic filings. It is a filing test site, not
      an API sandbox, and is listed here only so it is not mistaken for one.