--- title: New Reference Type Deletion Error Message for Metafield Definitions - Shopify developer changelog description: Shopify’s developer changelog documents all changes to Shopify’s platform. Find the latest news and learn about new platform opportunities. source_url: html: https://shopify.dev/changelog/new-reference-type-deletion-error-message-for-metafield-definitions md: https://shopify.dev/changelog/new-reference-type-deletion-error-message-for-metafield-definitions.md --- [Back to Developer changelog](https://shopify.dev/changelog) July 21, 2022 Tags: * API * 2022-10 # New Reference Type Deletion Error Message for Metafield Definitions As of the API version 2022-10, upon deleting a reference type metafield definition with delete\_all\_associated\_metafields argument set to false, REFERENCE\_TYPE\_DELETION\_ERROR will be returned with the following error message: *"Deleting a reference type metafield definition requires deletion of its associated metafields."*