diff --git a/CHANGELOG_LATEST.md b/CHANGELOG_LATEST.md
index 9a9d71384..e6c8c277a 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG_LATEST.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG_LATEST.md
@@ -60,6 +60,7 @@ This release is based on the latest Espressif/Arduino core version 3. It brings
 - Guru Meditation (cache error) on HybridCompile builds when the EMS or console UART ISR ran from flash during a SPI flash read (WiFi power-down, mDNS, NVS). The UART ISR and ringbuf ISR helpers are now in IRAM
 - compile errors against Arduino 3.3.12 from Tasmota/Arduino headers named `console.h`, `network.h` and `httpClient.h`. Those EMS-ESP headers are now `emsesp_console.h`, `emsesp_network.h` and `emsesp_http_client.h`
 - HTTP OTA from WSL/mDNS stalled on IPv6 and used tiny write chunks. Uploads now resolve IPv4 and stream in 64 KB blocks (`scripts/upload.py`, `scripts/upload_cli.py`)
+- a rejected upload (an invalid MD5 file, an unsupported file type) got no HTTP response: the connection was closed before the 406 was written, so `curl` reported "Empty reply from server". The 406 is now sent once the upload has been received
 
 ## Changed
 
diff --git a/src/ESP32React/UploadFileService.cpp b/src/ESP32React/UploadFileService.cpp
index 72ca26059..863ba76d7 100644
--- a/src/ESP32React/UploadFileService.cpp
+++ b/src/ESP32React/UploadFileService.cpp
@@ -252,16 +252,8 @@ void UploadFileService::handleError(AsyncWebServerRequest * request, int code) {
     emsesp::EMSESP::system_.uart_init(); // re-enable UART
     _ota.abort();
 
-    // 406: the client sent a file we won't accept. Close now so the browser fails fast.
-    // Other codes wait for uploadComplete() to send, so we don't destroy the request mid-stream.
-    if (code == 406) {
-        request->send(request->beginResponse(code));
-        _response_sent = true;
-        request->client()->close();
-        _is_firmware   = false;
-        _is_filesystem = false;
-        _is_recovery   = false;
-    }
+    // uploadComplete() sends the error code. The web server only writes a response once the whole body has
+    // arrived, so closing the connection here to fail fast would lose the response.
 
     // if we aborted a filesystem upload, remount LittleFS so the device keeps working
     if (_is_filesystem) {