diff --git a/litellm/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/transformation.py b/litellm/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/transformation.py
index c47fa3944c1..4dea3e80cfe 100644
--- a/litellm/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/transformation.py
+++ b/litellm/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/transformation.py
@@ -114,6 +114,18 @@ def without_refused_reasoning_effort(model: str, params: Mapping[str, object]) -
     return _without_params(params, frozenset(("reasoning_effort",)))
 
 
+def non_string_reasoning_effort(params: Mapping[str, object]) -> frozenset[str]:
+    """``reasoning_effort`` when the request sends it as anything but a string (an int, a list, an object).
+
+    AWS's Chat Completions endpoint answers such a value with a 400 where Converse silently dropped it, so the
+    native config refuses it before the call, or drops it under ``drop_params`` so AWS applies its default effort.
+    """
+    effort: Final = params.get("reasoning_effort")
+    if effort is None or isinstance(effort, str):
+        return frozenset()
+    return frozenset(("reasoning_effort",))
+
+
 def _held_close_tag_prefix(text: str) -> int:
     return next(
         (
@@ -355,7 +367,17 @@ class AmazonBedrockRuntimeChatCompletionsConfig(OpenAILikeChatConfig):
             drop_params=drop_params,
             replace_max_completion_tokens_with_max_tokens=replace_max_completion_tokens_with_max_tokens,
         )
+        malformed_effort: Final = non_string_reasoning_effort(non_default_params)
         refused_while_reasoning: Final = chat_completions_params_refused_while_reasoning(model, non_default_params)
+        if malformed_effort and not (litellm.drop_params or drop_params):
+            raise litellm.utils.UnsupportedParamsError(
+                message=(
+                    f"{model} takes reasoning_effort as a string on Bedrock's Chat Completions endpoint, not "
+                    f"{type(non_default_params['reasoning_effort']).__name__}. Send one of its named efforts, or "
+                    "set `litellm.drop_params = True` to drop it"
+                ),
+                status_code=400,
+            )
         if refused_while_reasoning and not (litellm.drop_params or drop_params):
             raise litellm.utils.UnsupportedParamsError(
                 message=(
@@ -367,7 +389,8 @@ class AmazonBedrockRuntimeChatCompletionsConfig(OpenAILikeChatConfig):
             )
         return dict(  # mutable-ok: get_optional_params keeps filling this dict
             without_refused_reasoning_effort(
-                model, with_max_completion_tokens(_without_params(mapped, refused_while_reasoning))
+                model,
+                with_max_completion_tokens(_without_params(mapped, refused_while_reasoning | malformed_effort)),
             )
         )
 
diff --git a/tests/integration/providers/test_bedrock_runtime_chat_completions_sad_wire.py b/tests/integration/providers/test_bedrock_runtime_chat_completions_sad_wire.py
index a96fe884c59..357d0ea4d0c 100644
--- a/tests/integration/providers/test_bedrock_runtime_chat_completions_sad_wire.py
+++ b/tests/integration/providers/test_bedrock_runtime_chat_completions_sad_wire.py
@@ -304,17 +304,9 @@ def test_bad_key_on_the_long_version_model_is_refused_before_any_route(gateway:
         assert [marker_of(request) for request in received] == [control_marker], _routes(received)
 
 
-@pytest.mark.parametrize(
-    "effort",
-    [
-        pytest.param(7, id="int"),
-        pytest.param(["high"], id="list"),
-        pytest.param("", id="empty"),
-        pytest.param("x" * 5120, id="five_kb"),
-    ],
-)
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("effort", [pytest.param("", id="empty"), pytest.param("x" * 5120, id="five_kb")])
 def test_invalid_reasoning_effort_reaches_the_peer_and_its_400_reaches_the_caller(
-    gateway: Gateway, effort: JsonValue
+    gateway: Gateway, effort: str
 ) -> None:
     marker: Final = uuid.uuid4().hex
     with wire_server(respond) as wire, gateway.scenario() as scenario:
@@ -328,6 +320,36 @@ def test_invalid_reasoning_effort_reaches_the_peer_and_its_400_reaches_the_calle
         _assert_row(_call_id(response), model, "failure")
 
 
+NON_STRING_EFFORTS: Final = (pytest.param(7, id="int"), pytest.param(["high"], id="list"))
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("effort", NON_STRING_EFFORTS)
+def test_non_string_reasoning_effort_is_refused_before_any_wire_request(gateway: Gateway, effort: JsonValue) -> None:
+    marker: Final = uuid.uuid4().hex
+    with wire_server(respond) as wire, gateway.scenario() as scenario:
+        model: Final = _deployment(scenario, wire)
+        response: Final = _chat(gateway, model, marker, reasoning_effort=effort)
+        assert response.status_code == 400, response.text
+        message: Final = _error_message(response)
+        assert message.startswith("litellm.UnsupportedParamsError"), response.text
+        assert "reasoning_effort as a string" in message and "drop_params" in message, response.text
+        _assert_row(_call_id(response), model, "failure")
+        assert _routes(wire.drain()) == []
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("effort", NON_STRING_EFFORTS)
+def test_drop_params_deployment_drops_a_non_string_reasoning_effort(gateway: Gateway, effort: JsonValue) -> None:
+    marker: Final = uuid.uuid4().hex
+    with wire_server(respond) as wire, gateway.scenario() as scenario:
+        model: Final = _deployment(scenario, wire, drop_params=True)
+        response: Final = _chat(gateway, model, marker, reasoning_effort=effort)
+        assert _content(response) == answer(marker), response.text
+        request: Final = _only_request(wire, marker)
+        assert target_of(request) == NATIVE_TARGET, request.body
+        assert "reasoning_effort" not in _body(request), request.body
+        _assert_row(string_value(_payload(response)["id"]), model, "success")
+
+
 def test_duplicated_reasoning_effort_key_lets_the_last_value_win(gateway: Gateway) -> None:
     marker: Final = uuid.uuid4().hex
     with wire_server(respond) as wire, gateway.scenario() as scenario:
diff --git a/tests/unit/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/test_bedrock_chat_completions_transformation.py b/tests/unit/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/test_bedrock_chat_completions_transformation.py
index 06fff49d500..16ae1114402 100644
--- a/tests/unit/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/test_bedrock_chat_completions_transformation.py
+++ b/tests/unit/llms/bedrock/chat/chat_completions/test_bedrock_chat_completions_transformation.py
@@ -668,16 +668,35 @@ def test_map_openai_params_keeps_reasoning_effort_low_for_grok():
 
 
 @pytest.mark.parametrize("model", ["us.xai.grok-4.6", "global.openai.gpt-5.6-sol"])
-@pytest.mark.parametrize("reasoning_effort", [["low"], {"effort": "low"}, 5])
-def test_map_openai_params_forwards_a_malformed_reasoning_effort_for_aws_to_refuse(model, reasoning_effort):
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("reasoning_effort", [["low"], {"effort": "low"}, 5], ids=["list", "object", "int"])
+def test_map_openai_params_refuses_a_non_string_reasoning_effort_without_drop_params(model, reasoning_effort):
     cfg = AmazonBedrockRuntimeChatCompletionsConfig()
-    mapped = cfg.map_openai_params(
+    with pytest.raises(litellm.UnsupportedParamsError, match="drop_params") as refused:
+        cfg.map_openai_params(
+            non_default_params={"reasoning_effort": reasoning_effort, "max_tokens": 64},
+            optional_params={},
+            model=model,
+            drop_params=False,
+        )
+    assert refused.value.status_code == 400
+    assert type(reasoning_effort).__name__ in str(refused.value)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("model", ["us.xai.grok-4.6", "global.openai.gpt-5.6-sol"])
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("reasoning_effort", [["low"], {"effort": "low"}, 5], ids=["list", "object", "int"])
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("drop_params_via", ["request", "litellm.drop_params"])
+def test_map_openai_params_drops_a_non_string_reasoning_effort_under_drop_params(
+    monkeypatch, model, reasoning_effort, drop_params_via
+):
+    monkeypatch.setattr(litellm, "drop_params", drop_params_via == "litellm.drop_params")
+    mapped = AmazonBedrockRuntimeChatCompletionsConfig().map_openai_params(
         non_default_params={"reasoning_effort": reasoning_effort, "max_tokens": 64},
         optional_params={},
         model=model,
-        drop_params=False,
+        drop_params=drop_params_via == "request",
     )
-    assert mapped["reasoning_effort"] == reasoning_effort
+    assert "reasoning_effort" not in mapped
+    assert mapped["max_completion_tokens"] == 64
 
 
 def test_map_openai_params_keeps_reasoning_effort_none_for_gpt56():
@@ -752,6 +771,28 @@ def test_refused_params_are_dropped_or_refused_before_reaching_aws(local_cost_ma
     assert param.keys().isdisjoint(json.loads(requests[0].content))
 
 
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("reasoning_effort", [3, ["high"]], ids=["int", "list"])
+def test_non_string_reasoning_effort_is_refused_or_dropped_before_reaching_aws(
+    local_cost_map, fake_aws_env, reasoning_effort
+):
+    requests, client = _recording_client(json=_chat_completion_json("ok", "global.openai.gpt-5.6-sol"))
+    request = {
+        "model": "bedrock/global.openai.gpt-5.6-sol",
+        "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "hello"}],
+        "reasoning_effort": reasoning_effort,
+        "client": client,
+    }
+    with pytest.raises(litellm.UnsupportedParamsError, match="reasoning_effort") as refused:
+        litellm.completion(**request)
+    assert refused.value.status_code == 400
+    assert requests == []
+
+    litellm.completion(**request, drop_params=True)
+
+    assert str(requests[0].url).endswith("/openai/v1/chat/completions")
+    assert "reasoning_effort" not in json.loads(requests[0].content)
+
+
 GPT_PARAMS_TIED_TO_REASONING_OFF = {
     "temperature": 0.2,
     "top_p": 0.9,