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New feature Discord Severity: low

Discord API adds message forwarding

Announced15 Jul 2024
EffectiveNot stated
PlatformDiscord

What changed

On July 15, 2024 Discord said it was slowly rolling out message forwarding to users. Callers create a message with message_reference.type set to FORWARD and the API generates a message_snapshot, a minimal and immutable copy of the original. Discord applied stricter rate limits based on the number of forwards sent by the user and total attachment size. No end date for the rollout was given. Since April 14, 2026, apps must be able to read a message's content to forward it.

What it means

Apps can forward an existing message into another channel as a snapshot, with stricter rate limits than normal sends.

Who is affected

Bots that cross-post or share messages between Discord channels and servers.

What to do

Optional. Send a message_reference with type FORWARD (1) and the source channel_id and message_id; read message_snapshots on received forwards.

What this means for you

Forwarding means sharing a message from one channel into another, showing where it came from. Discord added this in 2024, and apps can do it too. The forwarded copy is frozen: if someone edits the original later, the copy stays the same.

The details

  • Create: send a message with message_reference.type = FORWARD (1); channel_id is required for forwards. When forwarding, only message_reference is required in the body.
  • Result: message_snapshots holds a minimal message object (content, embeds, attachments and more); only one snapshot is supported. Snapshots are immutable and do not follow edits to the original.
  • Restrictions: FORWARD can only be used for basic messages. The HAS_SNAPSHOT message flag (1 << 14) marks forwards.
  • Rate limits: stricter limits based on the number of forwards sent by the user and the total attachment size. The changelog gives no numbers.
  • Changes since the preview: snapshots no longer include a guild field; forwards have the distinct FORWARD reference type.
  • Later: forwarding requires message content access since April 14, 2026 (our entry).

What to do next

  • Business owners: Nothing.
  • Marketers and agencies: Forwarding an announcement between your own Discord channels keeps the original source visible.
  • Developers: Use FORWARD references for cross-channel shares, handle 429s with backoff, and read content from message_snapshots on forwarded messages.

Primary sources

Checked against the source 7 Nov 2026

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