Regulatory Templates - Gate 2: Technical Validation

Overview

This sub-skill executes Gate 2 of the regulatory template workflow: validating uncertain mappings from Gate 1 and confirming all field specifications through testing.

Parent skill: regulatory-templates

Prerequisites:

• Gate 1 PASSED

• Context object with Gate 1 results

Output: Validated mappings with test results and validation rules

Foundational Principle

Validation is the checkpoint that prevents incorrect mappings from reaching production.

Gate 2 is the quality gate between analysis (Gate 1) and implementation (Gate 3):

• All uncertainties resolved: Gate 1 analysis ≠ Gate 2 validation. MEDIUM/LOW uncertainties often hide critical issues

• 100% mandatory validation: 95% = 5% of mandatory data could be wrong in BACEN submission

• 90% test pass rate: Test data reveals transformation bugs, data type mismatches, edge cases

• Confirmed mappings: Prevents Gate 3 from generating templates based on assumptions

• Validation rules defined: Gate 3 needs explicit validation logic for template generation

Skipping validation in Gate 2 means:

• Gate 1 assumptions become Gate 3 implementation (no verification layer)

• Uncertainties propagate to production (BACEN submission failures)

• Low-confidence mappings generate incorrect templates (compliance violations)

• No test data validation = edge cases break in production

Gate 2 is not redundant - it's the firewall between analysis and implementation.

When to Use

Called by: regulatory-templates skill after Gate 1 passes

Purpose: Resolve uncertainties, validate field mappings, test transformations, define validation rules

NO EXCEPTIONS - Validation Requirements Are Mandatory

Gate 2 validation requirements have ZERO exceptions. This is the quality firewall before template generation.

Common Pressures You Must Resist

Pressure Your Thought Reality

Pragmatism "Critical uncertainties only, skip MEDIUM/LOW" PASS criteria: ALL uncertainties resolved. MEDIUM/LOW cascade to mandatory failures

Efficiency "88% test pass rate is excellent" Threshold is >90%. 12% failure = edge cases that break in production

Complexity "Validation dashboard is redundant" Mandatory validation = 100% required. Dashboard catches missing validations

Confidence "Mappings look correct, skip testing" Visual inspection ≠ test validation. Test data reveals hidden bugs

Authority "95% mandatory validation is outstanding" 100% is non-negotiable. 5% gap = 5% of mandatory data wrong in BACEN

Frustration "Use workarounds for rejected fields" FAIL criteria: Cannot find alternatives. Workarounds bypass validation

Validation Requirements (Non-Negotiable)

All Uncertainties Resolved:

• ✅ REQUIRED: Resolve ALL Gate 1 uncertainties (CRITICAL + MEDIUM + LOW)

• ❌ FORBIDDEN: "Fix critical only", "Skip low-priority items"

• Why: MEDIUM/LOW uncertainties often reveal systemic issues, cascade to mandatory failures

Test Data Validation:

• ✅ REQUIRED: Test pass rate >90%

• ❌ FORBIDDEN: "88% is close enough", "Skip testing, looks correct"

• Why: Test data reveals transformation bugs, data type mismatches, edge cases

Mandatory Field Validation:

• ✅ REQUIRED: 100% mandatory fields validated

• ❌ FORBIDDEN: "95% is outstanding", "Edge cases don't matter"

• Why: Each 1% gap = potential BACEN submission failure on mandatory data

Alternative Mappings:

• ✅ REQUIRED: Find alternatives for ALL rejected fields

• ❌ FORBIDDEN: "Use workarounds", "Keep original with patches"

• Why: Rejected mappings fail validation for a reason - workarounds bypass the firewall

The Bottom Line

Partial validation = no validation.

Gate 2 exists to catch what Gate 1 missed. Lowering thresholds or skipping validation defeats the purpose. Every PASS criterion exists because production incidents occurred without it.

If you're tempted to skip ANY validation, ask yourself: Am I willing to defend this shortcut during a BACEN audit?

Rationalization Table - Know the Excuses

Every rationalization below has been used to justify skipping validation. ALL are invalid.

Excuse Why It's Wrong Correct Response

"Critical uncertainties only, MEDIUM/LOW can wait" ALL uncertainties = all 8. MEDIUM cascade to mandatory failures Resolve ALL uncertainties

"88% is excellent, 2% gap is edge cases"

90% threshold exists for production edge cases Fix to reach >90%

"Validation dashboard is redundant with Gate 1" Gate 1 = mapping, Gate 2 = validation. Different purposes Run dashboard, ensure 100%

"Mappings look correct, testing is busywork" Visual inspection missed bugs testing would catch Run test data validation

"95% is outstanding, 5% isn't worth 2 hours" 100% is binary requirement. 95% ≠ 100% Fix to reach 100%

"Rejected fields can use workarounds" Workarounds bypass validation layer Find valid alternatives

"Gate 2 rarely finds issues after 50 templates" Experience doesn't exempt from validation Run full validation

"Following spirit not letter" Validation thresholds ARE the spirit Meet all thresholds

"Being pragmatic vs dogmatic" Thresholds prevent regulatory incidents Rigor is pragmatism

"Fix in next sprint if issues arise" Regulatory submissions are final, can't patch Fix now before Gate 3

If You Find Yourself Making These Excuses

STOP. You are rationalizing.

The validation exists to prevent these exact thoughts from allowing errors into production. If validation seems "redundant," that's evidence it's working - catching what analysis missed.

Gate 2 Process

Check for Template-Specific Validation Rules

Check for template-specific sub-skill at skills/regulatory-{template}/SKILL.md containing:

• Validation rules (VR001, VR002...), business rules (BR001, BR002...)

• Format rules, test data with expected outputs

Agent Dispatch with Gate 1 Context

Dispatch: Task(subagent_type: "ring:finops-analyzer")

CRITICAL: ⚠️ DO NOT MAKE MCP API CALLS - use Gate 1 context ONLY

Prompt structure:

Section Content

Context Full Gate 1 context (field mappings, uncertainties)

Uncertain Mappings For each: field_code, current_mapping, doubt, confidence, action_needed

Validation Tasks

1. Use Gate 1 mapping 2. Validate transformations 3. Check business logic 4. Confirm data types 5. Mark CONFIRMED/REJECTED

Output Per field: code, resolution, alternative (if rejected), test_result

Output: Field resolutions + validation rules + cross-field logic + test data

Validation Process

⚠️ All validation uses Gate 1 context ONLY - no MCP API calls.

1. Field Validation

Per uncertain field: field_code, original_doubt, validation_steps (5), resolution (confirmed/rejected), transformation, test_data (input/expected/actual/status)

2. Validation Rules Definition

Rule Type Example Formula

field_format CNPJ 8 digits length(field_001) == 8

cross_field CPF/CNPJ check length(field_001) IN (11, 14)

date_range Within period field_020 >= period_start AND field_020 <= period_end

3. Test Results Documentation

Per test: field, test_name, input, transformation, output, expected, passed (true/false)

Example: Field 001 CNPJ extraction: "12345678000190" → slice:':8' → "12345678" ✓

Capture Gate 2 Response

Merge with Gate 1: validated_mappings[] , validation_rules[] , all_uncertainties_resolved , test_summary (total/passed/failed/success_rate)

Red Flags - STOP Immediately

If you catch yourself thinking ANY of these, STOP and re-read the NO EXCEPTIONS section:

Partial Resolution

• "Resolve critical only, skip MEDIUM/LOW"

• "Fix most uncertainties, good enough"

• "ALL is unrealistic, most is pragmatic"

Threshold Degradation

• "88% is close to 90%"

• "95% mandatory validation is outstanding"

• "Close enough to pass"

• "The gap isn't material"

Skip Validation Steps

• "Validation dashboard is redundant"

• "Mappings look correct visually"

• "Testing is busywork"

• "We'll catch issues in Gate 3"

Workaround Thinking

• "Use workarounds for rejected fields"

• "Patch it in Gate 3"

• "Fix in next sprint"

• "This is an edge case"

Justification Language

• "Being pragmatic"

• "Following spirit not letter"

• "Outstanding is good enough"

• "Rarely finds issues anyway"

• "Experience says this is fine"

If You See These Red Flags

• Acknowledge the rationalization ("I'm trying to skip LOW uncertainties")

• Read the NO EXCEPTIONS section (understand why ALL means ALL)

• Read the Rationalization Table (see your exact excuse refuted)

• Meet the threshold completely (100%, >90%, ALL)

Validation thresholds are binary gates, not aspirational goals.

Severity Calibration

MUST classify validation issues using these severity levels:

Severity Definition Examples Gate Impact

CRITICAL BLOCKS Gate 2 completion OR creates compliance risk

• Mandatory field mapping rejected with no alternative- Test failure rate > 50%- Cross-field validation logic broken- Data type mismatch on mandatory field HARD BLOCK - Cannot proceed to Gate 3

HIGH REQUIRES resolution before Gate 3 OR risks submission failure

• Test pass rate 80-90% (below threshold)- MEDIUM uncertainty unresolved- Transformation validation failed- Validation rule missing for mandatory field MUST resolve before proceeding

MEDIUM SHOULD fix to improve template quality

• Test pass rate 90-95%- LOW uncertainty unresolved- Optional field transformation issues- Documentation incomplete for validation SHOULD resolve - document if deferred

LOW Minor improvements possible

• Edge case validation could be enhanced- Test coverage improvements- Documentation clarity OPTIONAL - note in report

Classification Rules:

CRITICAL = ANY of:

• Mandatory field cannot be validated (no source, no alternative)

• Test pass rate < 80%

• Cross-field validation logic fundamentally broken

• Data type cannot be transformed to required format

HIGH = ANY of:

• Test pass rate 80-90% (below >90% threshold)

• Any uncertainty unresolved (MEDIUM or LOW)

• Validation rule cannot be defined for mandatory field

• Transformation produces inconsistent results

Cannot Be Overridden

NON-NEGOTIABLE requirements (no exceptions, no user override):

Requirement Why NON-NEGOTIABLE Verification

100% Mandatory Field Validation BACEN/RFB submissions reject incomplete data All mandatory fields in validated_mappings

ALL Uncertainties Resolved Unresolved uncertainties = assumptions in production uncertainties_resolved == 100%

90% Test Pass Rate Test failures indicate production edge cases test_success_rate > 90%

Alternative for Every Rejection Rejected mapping with no alternative = broken template rejected_fields.all.have_alternative

Validation Rules Defined Gate 3 needs explicit validation logic validation_rules_count >= mandatory_fields_count

User CANNOT:

• Lower test pass rate threshold ("88% is close enough" = NO)

• Skip MEDIUM/LOW uncertainties ("fix critical only" = NO)

• Accept missing alternatives ("workaround in Gate 3" = NO)

• Proceed with <100% mandatory validation ("95% is outstanding" = NO)

• Defer validation rules ("Gate 3 will figure it out" = NO)

Your Response to Override Attempts:

"I CANNOT proceed with [request]. Gate 2 PASS criteria require [specific threshold]. This is NON-NEGOTIABLE because [regulatory/technical reason]. We MUST [required action] before proceeding to Gate 3."

Pass/Fail Criteria

PASS Criteria

• ✅ All Gate 1 uncertainties resolved (confirmed or alternatives found)

• ✅ Test data validates successfully (>90% pass rate)

• ✅ No new Critical/High issues

• ✅ All mandatory fields have confirmed mappings

• ✅ Validation rules defined for all critical fields

FAIL Criteria

• ❌ Uncertainties remain unresolved

• ❌ Test failures on mandatory fields

• ❌ Cannot find alternative mappings for rejected fields

• ❌ Data type mismatches that can't be transformed

• ❌ Mandatory fields validation < 100%

Mandatory Fields Final Validation

CRITICAL: Execute before Gate 2 completion

Per mandatory field, check:

• mapped (in gate1.field_mappings)

• confidence_ok (≥80%)

• validated (in gate2.validated_mappings)

• tested (in gate2.test_results)

• transformation_ok (works correctly)

Status: All checks PASS → field PASS; any FAIL → field FAIL

Gate 2 Pass Condition: all_mandatory_fields_valid == true required. Coverage must be 100%.

State Tracking

PASS: SKILL: regulatory-templates-gate2 | GATE: 2 | STATUS: PASSED | RESOLVED: {n} uncertainties | RULES: {n} defined | TESTS: {passed}/{total} | NEXT: → Gate 3

FAIL: SKILL: regulatory-templates-gate2 | GATE: 2 | STATUS: FAILED | UNRESOLVED: {n} | TEST_FAILURES: {n} | BLOCKERS: {description}

Technical Validation Checklist

Category Validations

Field Naming snake_case (not camelCase), check MCP API Dog naming

Data Types String (length, UTF-8), Number (precision), Date (format), Boolean, Enum

Transformations CNPJ/CPF slice, date timezone, decimal format, string trim/uppercase/padding, null defaults

Cross-Field Dependent consistency, date ranges, calculated fields, conditional logic

Common Validation Patterns

Pattern Input → Transformation → Output

CNPJ extraction "12345678000190" → slice:':8' → "12345678"

Date format "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z" → date_format:'%Y/%m' → "2025/01"

Decimal precision 1234.5678 → floatformat:2 → "1234.57"

Conditional tipoRemessa == "I" → include all; "S" → approved only

Output to Parent Skill

Return: gate2_passed , gate2_context (merged), all_uncertainties_resolved , validation_rules_count , test_success_rate , next_action (proceed_to_gate3 | fix_validations_and_retry)