diff --git a/docs/changelog.rst b/docs/changelog.rst
index 3478b8d..1dc6586 100644
--- a/docs/changelog.rst
+++ b/docs/changelog.rst
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ Changelog
    applied. Uninstalling from the same panel removes the PAS plugin
    and the per-user JWT signing secrets.
 
+- #113 Carry an error's status instead of applying it on construction
 - #109 Add a partition operation endpoint
 - #106 Fix single-valued UID reference fields not settable through the JSON API
 - #112 Allow updating the Laboratory through the API
diff --git a/src/senaite/jsonapi/exceptions.py b/src/senaite/jsonapi/exceptions.py
index 88e62b8..a499530 100644
--- a/src/senaite/jsonapi/exceptions.py
+++ b/src/senaite/jsonapi/exceptions.py
@@ -30,6 +30,12 @@
 Backward compatibility: every typed error inherits `APIError`, so any
 code that catches `APIError` still catches all of them, and the legacy
 `api.fail(status, msg)` helper still raises a plain `APIError`.
+
+The status is carried, not applied. It reaches the response when
+plone.jsonapi.core renders the error envelope, which is the moment the
+error becomes the answer. Setting it in the constructor instead meant
+an error that was caught, and never answered with, still left its
+status on whatever the request went on to return.
 """
 
 from senaite.jsonapi import request as req
@@ -39,9 +45,6 @@ class APIError(Exception):
     """Base class for every JSON API error.
 
     Instances carry an HTTP status code and a human-facing message.
-    Instantiating one sets the response status on the current request
-    as a side effect (matches the legacy behavior that route code and
-    the error-envelope decorator both rely on).
     """
     status = 500
 
@@ -49,13 +52,12 @@ def __init__(self, message, status=None):
         if status is not None:
             self.status = status
         self.message = message
-        self._set_response_status(self.status)
 
     def _set_response_status(self, status):
         request = req.getRequest()
         # req.getRequest() may return None outside a real request
         # context (unit tests, setup handlers). Skip silently in that
-        # case so raising an APIError never crashes ancillary code.
+        # case so setting a status never crashes ancillary code.
         if request is None:
             return
         response = getattr(request, "response", None)
@@ -64,8 +66,10 @@ def _set_response_status(self, status):
         response.setStatus(status)
 
     # Legacy alias, retained so existing callers of `err.setStatus(x)`
-    # keep working.
+    # keep working. Nothing in this package calls it: the status of an
+    # error reaches the response when the envelope is rendered.
     def setStatus(self, status):
+        self.status = status
         self._set_response_status(status)
 
     def __str__(self):
diff --git a/src/senaite/jsonapi/tests/test_exceptions.py b/src/senaite/jsonapi/tests/test_exceptions.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5f4d747
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/senaite/jsonapi/tests/test_exceptions.py
@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+# -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
+#
+# This file is part of SENAITE.JSONAPI.
+#
+# SENAITE.JSONAPI is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+# it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the
+# Free Software Foundation, version 2.
+#
+# This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
+# WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+# MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General
+# Public License for more details.
+#
+# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along
+# with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc.,
+# 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301 USA.
+#
+# Copyright 2017-2026 by it's authors.
+# Some rights reserved, see README and LICENSE.
+
+"""The status a typed error carries, and when it is applied."""
+
+import unittest
+
+from senaite.jsonapi import exceptions
+
+
+class FakeResponse(object):
+    def __init__(self):
+        self.status = None
+
+    def setStatus(self, status):
+        self.status = status
+
+
+class FakeRequest(object):
+    def __init__(self):
+        self.response = FakeResponse()
+
+
+class APIErrorStatusTestCase(unittest.TestCase):
+    """An error carries its status; it does not apply it.
+
+    The status reaches the response when plone.jsonapi.core renders the
+    error envelope, which is the moment the error becomes the answer.
+    Applied in the constructor instead, an error that was caught, and
+    never answered with, left its status on whatever the request went
+    on to return: a route that catches a ForbiddenError and then
+    succeeds answered its complete result under a 403.
+    """
+
+    def setUp(self):
+        self.request = FakeRequest()
+        self._get_request = exceptions.req.getRequest
+        exceptions.req.getRequest = lambda: self.request
+
+    def tearDown(self):
+        exceptions.req.getRequest = self._get_request
+
+    def test_each_error_carries_its_own_status(self):
+        self.assertEqual(exceptions.BadRequestError("x").status, 400)
+        self.assertEqual(exceptions.UnauthorizedError("x").status, 401)
+        self.assertEqual(exceptions.ForbiddenError("x").status, 403)
+        self.assertEqual(exceptions.NotFoundError("x").status, 404)
+        self.assertEqual(exceptions.APIError("x").status, 500)
+
+    def test_an_explicit_status_wins(self):
+        self.assertEqual(exceptions.APIError("x", status=418).status, 418)
+
+    def test_constructing_one_leaves_the_response_alone(self):
+        exceptions.ForbiddenError("not for you")
+        self.assertIsNone(self.request.response.status)
+
+    def test_the_message_is_what_str_gives(self):
+        self.assertEqual(str(exceptions.NotFoundError("gone")), "gone")
+
+    # The legacy alias is the one way to apply a status by hand, kept
+    # for callers outside this package that still do.
+    def test_set_status_applies_and_records_it(self):
+        error = exceptions.APIError("x")
+        error.setStatus(409)
+        self.assertEqual(error.status, 409)
+        self.assertEqual(self.request.response.status, 409)
+
+    def test_set_status_outside_a_request_is_harmless(self):
+        exceptions.req.getRequest = lambda: None
+        exceptions.APIError("x").setStatus(409)
+
+    def test_every_typed_error_is_an_api_error(self):
+        for name in ("BadRequestError", "UnauthorizedError",
+                     "ForbiddenError", "NotFoundError"):
+            self.assertTrue(
+                issubclass(getattr(exceptions, name), exceptions.APIError))
+
+
+def test_suite():
+    suite = unittest.TestSuite()
+    suite.addTest(unittest.makeSuite(APIErrorStatusTestCase))
+    return suite