# OpenAI API 403: Forbidden or Model Access Denied

TL;DR: OpenAI API 403 is an authorization failure. Authentication may be valid, but the requested model or action is not allowed for that account or project.

Target query: OpenAI API 403 forbidden
Likely fault area: your key or account
Run diagnosis: https://llmping.app/#diagnose

## What this error means

OpenAI API 403 means the key is recognized but the account, project, model, region, or policy does not allow the requested operation.

## Is it code, key, rate limit, or server-side?

Category: permission
Likely fault area: your key or account

## Immediate checklist

- Check whether the model name is available to the project tied to the key.
- Verify organization/project routing if your account has multiple projects.
- Look for policy, region, or safety restriction messages in the response body.
- Try the same key against /v1/models to separate key validity from model access.

## cURL test command

```bash
curl https://api.openai.com/v1/models \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $OPENAI_API_KEY"
```

## Common fixes

- Use a model that appears in the model list returned for your key.
- Move the key to the correct project or update the project configured in your app.
- Do not retry a persistent 403 as if it were a transient outage.
- If policy text appears, adjust the input or route the request for manual review.

## Related errors

- https://llmping.app/errors/openai/401/
- https://llmping.app/errors/openai/429/
- https://llmping.app/status/openai/