---
title: "Broadcast emergency alerts"
method: POST
path: "/broadcast"
---

# Broadcast emergency alerts

`POST /broadcast`

## Request

- Base URL: `https://api.emergency-alerts.service.gov.uk/v2`
- URL: `https://api.emergency-alerts.service.gov.uk/v2/broadcast`
- Auth: HTTP bearer

## Request body `application/cap+xml`

- Alert
  - `identifier` string, required
  - `sender` string, required
  - `sent` string, \d\d\d\d-\d\d-\d\dT\d\d:\d\d:\d\d[-,+]\d\d:\d\d, required
  - `status` 'Actual' | 'Exercise' | 'System' | 'Test' | 'Draft', required
  - `msgType` 'Alert' | 'Update' | 'Cancel' | 'Ack' | 'Error', required
  - `scope` 'Public' | 'Restricted' | 'Private', required
  - `references` string: Required when cancelling an alert - provide extra comma-separated data points, such as \'sender\', \'sent\' timestamp or alert content (\'description\'), to ensure that the alert to be cancelled is uniquely identified (see \'Cancel Alert\' example)
  - `info` Info
    - `language` string
    - `category` 'Geo' | 'Met' | 'Safety' | 'Security' | 'Rescue' | 'Fire' | 'Health' | 'Env' | 'Transport' | 'Infra' | 'CBRNE' | 'Other', required
    - `event` string, required: The text denoting the type of the subject event of the alert message
    - `urgency` 'Immediate' | 'Expected' | 'Future' | 'Past' | 'Unknown', required
    - `severity` 'Extreme' | 'Severe' | 'Moderate' | 'Minor' | 'Unknown', required
    - `certainty` 'Observed' | 'Likely' | 'Possible' | 'Unlikely' | 'Unknown', required
    - `expires` string, \d\d\d\d-\d\d-\d\dT\d\d:\d\d:\d\d[-,+]\d\d:\d\d
    - `senderName` string
    - `description` string: Alert message content
    - `instruction` string
    - `area` Area
      - `areaDesc` string, required
      - `polygon` string: A string of Latitude-Longitude pairs
      - `geocode` GeoCode
        - `valueName` string
        - `value` string

## Response `201`

CREATED

- BroadcastResponse
  - `approved_at` string, nullable
  - `approved_by_id` string, nullable
  - `areas` ResponseAreas
    - `names` string[]
    - `simple_polygons` array[]
      - array[]
        - number[]
  - `cancelled_at` string, nullable
  - `cap_event` string
  - `content` string
  - `created_at` string
  - `duration` string, nullable
  - `finishes_at` string, nullable
  - `id` string
  - `reference` string
  - `service_id` string
  - `starts_at` string, nullable
  - `status` string
  - `updated_at` string, nullable

## Other responses

- `403`: FORBIDDEN

## Changes

- **2026-07-01** `58af30dd1fe9`: 8 breaking, 11 warning, 1 info
  - added `#/components/schemas/Info` to the `info` request property `allOf` list
  - the response property `approved_at` became nullable for the status `201`
  - the response property `approved_by_id` became nullable for the status `201`
  - the response property `cancelled_at` became nullable for the status `201`
  - …16 more

[Operation history](https://skmtc.dev/government-digital-service/apis/emergency-alerts-service/changes/broadcast/post.md)

---

[API](https://skmtc.dev/government-digital-service/apis/emergency-alerts-service.md) - [All operations](https://skmtc.dev/government-digital-service/apis/emergency-alerts-service/llms.txt) - [OpenAPI document](https://skmtc.dev/government-digital-service/apis/emergency-alerts-service/revisions/58af30dd1fe9?raw)