# Backwards Compatibility

Source: https://docs.gocardless.com/docs/api-reference/backwards-compatibility

# Backwards Compatibility

> **Info:**
> GoCardless may add new fields to API responses at any time. Make sure your integration handles
>   unknown fields gracefully — for example, by ignoring properties you do not recognise rather than
>   treating them as errors.

The following changes are considered backwards compatible and may be made at any time without advance notice:

- Adding new API endpoints
- Adding new properties to responses from existing endpoints
- Reordering properties returned from existing endpoints
- Adding optional request parameters to existing endpoints
- Altering the format or length of IDs (strings will never exceed 255 characters)
- Altering `message` attributes returned by validation failures or other errors
- The number of and duration between retries for failed webhooks
- The behaviour of Scenario Simulators
- Sending webhooks for new event types

Any changes that are not backwards compatible will be released as a new API version and communicated in advance.

## What's next

  
#### [Changelog](/docs/api-reference/changelog)

Review the full history of changes to the GoCardless API.

  
#### [Making Requests](/docs/api-reference/making-requests)

Learn how to authenticate and structure API requests.