diff --git a/build.gradle b/build.gradle
index a5de0a8..a6094ea 100644
--- a/build.gradle
+++ b/build.gradle
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ sourceCompatibility = 1.8
 
 group = 'edu.mit.lib'
 archivesBaseName = 'bagit'
-version = '0.8'
+version = '0.9'
 description = 'Compact Java BagIt library'
 
 ext {
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ ext {
 }
 
 dependencies {
-    compile group: 'org.apache.commons', name: 'commons-compress', version: '1.13'
+    compile group: 'org.apache.commons', name: 'commons-compress', version: '1.15'
     testCompile group: 'junit', name: 'junit', version: '4.11'
 }
 
diff --git a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bag.java b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bag.java
index 084b623..9424aec 100644
--- a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bag.java
+++ b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bag.java
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 import java.io.BufferedReader;
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.nio.charset.Charset;
 import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
 import java.nio.file.DirectoryStream;
 import java.nio.file.Files;
@@ -16,10 +17,12 @@
 import java.security.DigestInputStream;
 import java.security.MessageDigest;
 import java.security.NoSuchAlgorithmException;
+import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.HashMap;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicBoolean;
 
 /**
  * Bag represents a rudimentary bag conformant to LC Bagit spec - version 0.97.
@@ -40,10 +43,9 @@
 
 public class Bag {
     // coding constants
-    static final String ENCODING = "UTF-8";
     static final String CS_ALGO = "MD5";
     static final String BAGIT_VSN = "0.97";
-    static final String LIB_VSN = "0.8";
+    static final String LIB_VSN = "0.9";
     static final String DFLT_FMT = "zip";
     static final String TGZIP_FMT = "tgz";
     static final String SPACER = "  ";
@@ -90,6 +92,12 @@ public String getName() {
     // directory root of bag
     private final Path baseDir;
 
+    // Checksum algorithm used in manifests
+    private final String csAlgorithm;
+
+    // Character encoding declared for tag files
+    private final Charset tagEncoding;
+
     // allow serialization, etc of bag
     private final boolean sealed;
 
@@ -100,9 +108,11 @@ public String getName() {
      * Constructor - creates a new bag from a Loader
      *
      */
-    Bag(Path baseDir, boolean sealed) {
+    Bag(Path baseDir, boolean sealed) throws IOException {
         this.baseDir = baseDir;
         this.sealed = sealed;
+        this.csAlgorithm = csAlgorithm(baseDir);
+        this.tagEncoding = tagEncoding(baseDir);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -139,7 +149,17 @@ public String bagName() {
      * @throws IOException if default algorithm unknown
      */
     public String csAlgorithm() throws IOException {
-        return csAlgorithm(baseDir);
+        return csAlgorithm;
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Returns the character encoding declared for tag files.
+     *
+     * @return declared character set encoding
+     * @throws IOException if encoding missing or unknown
+     */
+    public Charset tagEncoding() throws IOException {
+        return tagEncoding;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -149,18 +169,29 @@ public String csAlgorithm() throws IOException {
      * @throws IOException if unable to read bag contents
      */
     public boolean isComplete() throws IOException {
+        return completeStatus() == 0;
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Returns completeness status code.
+     *
+     * @return status code for completeness: 0 is complete, negative is error code
+     * @throws IOException if unable to read bag contents
+     */
+    public int completeStatus() throws IOException {
         // no fetch.txt?
-        if (Files.exists(bagFile(REF_FILE))) return false;
-        // mandatory files present?
-        if (! (Files.exists(bagFile(DECL_FILE)) &&
-               Files.isDirectory(bagFile(DATA_DIR)))) return false;
+        if (Files.exists(bagFile(REF_FILE))) return -1;
+        // mandatory files present and correct?
+        if (! Files.exists(bagFile(DECL_FILE))) return -2;
+        if (! Charset.isSupported(tagEncoding.name())) return -3;
+        if (! Files.isDirectory(bagFile(DATA_DIR))) return -4;
         // payload files map?
         Map<String, String> payloads = payloadManifest();
         // # payload files and # manifest entries must agree
-        if (fileCount(bagFile(DATA_DIR)) != payloads.size()) return false;
+        if (fileCount(bagFile(DATA_DIR)) != payloads.size()) return -5;
         // files themselves must match also
         for (String path : payloads.keySet()) {
-            if (path.startsWith(DATA_DIR) && Files.notExists(bagFile(path))) return false;
+            if (path.startsWith(DATA_DIR) && Files.notExists(bagFile(path))) return -6;
         }
         // same drill for tag files
         Map<String, String> tags = tagManifest();
@@ -178,12 +209,12 @@ public boolean isComplete() throws IOException {
                 else tagCount++;
             }
         }
-        if (tagCount != tags.size()) return false;
+        if (tagCount != tags.size()) return -7;
         // files themselves must match also
         for (String path : tags.keySet()) {
-            if (Files.notExists(bagFile(path))) return false;
+            if (Files.notExists(bagFile(path))) return -8;
         }
-        return true;
+        return 0;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -202,19 +233,31 @@ public boolean isSealed() {
      * @throws IOException if unable to read bag contents
      */
     public boolean isValid() throws IOException {
-        if (! isComplete()) return false;
+        return validationStatus() == 0;
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Returns validation status code
+     *
+     * @return 0 if bag validates, else a negative number
+     * @throws IOException if unable to read bag contents
+     */
+    public int validationStatus() throws IOException {
+        int status = completeStatus();
+        if (status != 0) return status;
         // recompute all checksums and compare against manifest values
         Map<String, String> payloads = payloadManifest();
         for (String relPath : payloads.keySet()) {
-            String cutPath = relPath.substring(DATA_PATH.length());
-            if (! validateFile(payloadStream(cutPath), payloads.get(relPath), csAlgorithm())) return false;
+            int offset = relPath.startsWith("./") ? 2 : 0;
+            String cutPath = relPath.substring(DATA_PATH.length() + offset);
+            if (! validateFile(payloadStream(cutPath), payloads.get(relPath), csAlgorithm)) return -9;
         }
         // same for tag files
         Map<String, String> tags = tagManifest();
         for (String relPath : tags.keySet()) {
-            if (! validateFile(tagStream(relPath), tags.get(relPath), csAlgorithm())) return false;
+            if (! validateFile(tagStream(relPath), tags.get(relPath), csAlgorithm)) return -10;
         }
-        return true;
+        return 0;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -266,7 +309,7 @@ public InputStream payloadStream(String relPath) throws IOException {
      * @throws IOException if unable to read refs data
      */
     public Map<String, String> payloadRefs() throws IOException {
-        return payloadRefs(bagFile(REF_FILE));
+        return payloadRefs(bagFile(REF_FILE), tagEncoding);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -347,7 +390,7 @@ public List<String> property(String relPath, String name) throws IOException {
         if (mdSet == null) {
             synchronized (mdCache) {
                 mdSet = new HashMap<>();
-                try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(bagFile(relPath), StandardCharsets.UTF_8)) {
+                try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(bagFile(relPath), tagEncoding)) {
                     String propName = null;
                     StringBuilder valSb = new StringBuilder();
                     String line;
@@ -382,7 +425,7 @@ public List<String> property(String relPath, String name) throws IOException {
      * @throws IOException if unable to read manifest
      */
     public Map<String, String> payloadManifest() throws IOException {
-        String sfx = csAlgorithm().toLowerCase() + ".txt";
+        String sfx = csAlgoName(csAlgorithm) + ".txt";
         return manifest(MANIF_FILE + sfx);
     }
 
@@ -394,7 +437,7 @@ public Map<String, String> payloadManifest() throws IOException {
      * @throws IOException if unable to read tag manifest
      */
     public Map<String, String> tagManifest() throws IOException {
-        String sfx = csAlgorithm().toLowerCase() + ".txt";
+        String sfx = csAlgoName(csAlgorithm) + ".txt";
         return manifest(TAGMANIF_FILE + sfx);
     }
 
@@ -409,10 +452,10 @@ public Map<String, String> tagManifest() throws IOException {
      */
     public Map<String, String> manifest(String relPath) throws IOException {
         Map<String, String> mfMap = new HashMap<>();
-        try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(bagFile(relPath), StandardCharsets.UTF_8)) {
+        try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(bagFile(relPath), tagEncoding)) {
             String line;
             while((line = reader.readLine()) != null) {
-                String[] parts = line.split(" ");
+                String[] parts = line.split("\\s+", 2);
                 mfMap.put(parts[1], parts[0]);
             }
         }
@@ -454,15 +497,15 @@ private Path bagFile(String name) {
         return baseDir.resolve(name);
     }
 
-    private boolean validateFile(InputStream is, String expectedChecksum, String csAlg) throws IOException {
-        byte[] buf = new byte[2048];
-        int num = 0;
+    private static boolean validateFile(InputStream is, String expectedChecksum, String csAlg) throws IOException {
         if (is == null) {
             throw new IOException("no input");
         }
+        byte[] buf = new byte[2048];
+        int num = 0;
         // wrap stream in digest stream
         try (DigestInputStream dis =
-            new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlg))) {
+            new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgoCode(csAlg)))) {
             while (num != -1) {
                 num = dis.read(buf);
             }
@@ -472,13 +515,13 @@ private boolean validateFile(InputStream is, String expectedChecksum, String csA
         }
     }
 
-    static Map<String, String> payloadRefs(Path refFile) throws IOException {
+    static Map<String, String> payloadRefs(Path refFile, Charset encoding) throws IOException {
         Map<String, String> refMap = new HashMap<>();
         if (Files.exists(refFile)) {
-            try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(refFile, StandardCharsets.UTF_8)) {
+            try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(refFile, encoding)) {
                 String line;
                 while((line = reader.readLine()) != null) {
-                    String[] parts = line.split(" ");
+                    String[] parts = line.split("\\s+");
                     refMap.put(parts[2], parts[0]);
                 }
             }
@@ -499,6 +542,45 @@ static String csAlgorithm(Path base) throws IOException {
         return null;
     }
 
+    static Charset tagEncoding(Path base) throws IOException {
+        try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(base.resolve(DECL_FILE), StandardCharsets.UTF_8)) {
+            // second line has encoding
+            reader.readLine();
+            String line = reader.readLine();
+            if (line != null) {
+                String[] parts = line.split(":");
+                return Charset.forName(parts[1].trim());
+            }
+        }
+        return Charset.defaultCharset();
+    }
+
+    static String csAlgoName(String csAlgol) {
+        return csAlgol.toLowerCase().replace("-","");
+    }
+
+    static String csAlgoCode(String csAlgol) {
+        String csa = csAlgol.toUpperCase();
+        if (csa.startsWith("SHA") && csa.indexOf("-") == -1) {
+            return "SHA-" + csa.substring(3);
+        } else {
+            return csa;
+        }
+    }
+
+    static byte[] filterBytes(String data, Charset encoding, AtomicBoolean bomOut) {
+        byte[] dbytes = data.getBytes(encoding);
+        if (bomOut.compareAndSet(false, true)) {
+            return dbytes;
+        } else if (encoding.equals(StandardCharsets.UTF_16) ||
+                   encoding.equals(StandardCharsets.UTF_16BE) ||
+                   encoding.equals(StandardCharsets.UTF_16LE)) {
+            return Arrays.copyOfRange(dbytes, 2, dbytes.length);
+        } else {
+            return dbytes;
+        }
+    }
+
     private static final char[] HEX_CHARS = "0123456789abcdef".toCharArray();
     static String toHex(byte[] data) {
         if ((data == null) || (data.length == 0)) {
diff --git a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bagger.java b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bagger.java
index 02aa118..4ec3aeb 100644
--- a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bagger.java
+++ b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Bagger.java
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
 
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.net.URL;
+import java.nio.charset.Charset;
 import java.nio.file.Path;
 import java.nio.file.Paths;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
@@ -33,6 +34,7 @@ public class Bagger {
     private String archFmt = "directory";
     private boolean noTime = false;
     private String csAlg = "MD5";
+    private Charset tagEnc = Charset.defaultCharset();
     private final List<String> optFlags = new ArrayList<>();
     private int verbosityLevel;
 
@@ -51,6 +53,7 @@ public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException, IllegalAccessExceptio
                 case "-n": bagger.noTime = Boolean.valueOf(args[i+1]); break;
                 case "-a": bagger.archFmt = args[i+1]; break;
                 case "-c": bagger.csAlg = args[i+1]; break;
+                case "-e": bagger.tagEnc = Charset.forName(args[i+1]); break;
                 case "-o": bagger.optFlags.add(args[i+1]); break;
                 case "-v": bagger.verbosityLevel = Integer.parseInt(args[i+1]); break;
                 default: System.out.println("Unknown option: '" + args[i] + "'"); usage();
@@ -85,6 +88,7 @@ public static void usage() {
             "-a    <archive format> - e.g. 'zip', 'tgz', (default: loose directory)\n" +
             "-n    <noTime> - 'true' or 'false'\n" +
             "-c    <checksum algorithm> - default: 'MD5'\n" +
+            "-e    <tag file encoding> - default: 'UTF-8'\n" +
             "-o    <optimization flag>\n" +
             "-v    <level> - output level to console (default: 0 = no output)");
         System.out.println(
@@ -96,7 +100,7 @@ public static void usage() {
     private Bagger() {}
 
     private void fill(Path baseDir) throws IOException {
-        Filler filler = new Filler(baseDir, csAlg);
+        Filler filler = new Filler(baseDir, csAlg, tagEnc);
         if (optFlags.contains("nag")) {
             filler.noAutoGen();
         }
@@ -164,19 +168,21 @@ private void plug(Path bagPath) throws IOException {
     }
 
     private void complete(Path bagPath) throws IOException {
-        boolean complete = new Loader(bagPath).load().isComplete();
+        int status = new Loader(bagPath).load().completeStatus();
+        boolean complete = status == 0;
         if (verbosityLevel > 0) {
            message(bagPath.getFileName().toString(), complete, "complete");
         }
-        System.exit(complete ? 0 : -1);
+        System.exit(status);
     }
 
     private void validate(Path bagPath) throws IOException {
-        boolean valid = new Loader(bagPath).load().isValid();
+        int status = new Loader(bagPath).load().validationStatus();
+        boolean valid = status == 0;
         if (verbosityLevel > 0) {
             message(bagPath.getFileName().toString(), valid, "valid");
         }
-        System.exit(valid ? 0 : -1);
+        System.exit(status);
     }
 
     private void message(String name, boolean ok, String value) {
diff --git a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Filler.java b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Filler.java
index 04498b7..c173df8 100644
--- a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Filler.java
+++ b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Filler.java
@@ -10,6 +10,8 @@
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.io.InputStream;
 import java.io.OutputStream;
+import java.nio.charset.Charset;
+import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
 import java.nio.file.DirectoryStream;
 import java.nio.file.Files;
 import java.nio.file.Path;
@@ -27,6 +29,7 @@
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.Set;
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicBoolean;
 import java.util.zip.ZipEntry;
 import java.util.zip.ZipOutputStream;
 
@@ -55,6 +58,8 @@ public class Filler {
     private Path base;
     // checksum algorithm
     private String csAlg;
+    // Charset encoding for tag files
+    private Charset tagEncoding;
     // automatic metadata generation set
     private Set<MetadataName> autogenNames;
     // total payload size
@@ -101,44 +106,60 @@ public enum EolRule {
     /**
      * Returns a new Filler (bag builder) instance using
      * temporary directory to hold bag, default checksum
-     * algorithm (MD5), and system-defined line separator
+     * algorithm (MD5), default tag encoding (UTF-8),
+     * and system-defined line separator
      *
      * @throws IOException if error creating bag
      */
     public Filler() throws IOException {
-        this(null, null, SYSTEM);
+        this(null, null, null, SYSTEM);
     }
 
     /**
      * Returns a new Filler (bag builder) instance using passed
      * directory to hold bag, default checksum algorithm (MD5),
-     * and system-defined line separator
+     * default tag encoding (UTF-8), and system-defined line separator
      *
      * @param base the base directory in which to construct the bag
      * @throws IOException if error creating bag
      */
     public Filler(Path base) throws IOException {
-        this(base, null, SYSTEM);
+        this(base, null, null, SYSTEM);
     }
 
     /**
      * Returns a new filler (bag builder) instances using passed directory
-     * and checksum algorithm, and system-defined line separator
+     * and checksum algorithm, default tag encoding (UTF-8),
+     * and system-defined line separator
      *
      * @param base directory for bag - if null, create temporary directory
      * @param csAlgorithm checksum algorithm string - if null use default
      * @throws IOException if error creating bag
      */
     public Filler(Path base, String csAlgorithm) throws IOException {
-        this(base, csAlgorithm, SYSTEM);
+        this(base, csAlgorithm, null, SYSTEM);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Returns a new filler (bag builder) instances using passed directory
+     * checksum algorithm, and tag encoding, and system-defined line separator
+     *
+     * @param base directory for bag - if null, create temporary directory
+     * @param csAlgorithm checksum algorithm string - if null use default
+     * @param encoding tag encoding  - if null use default
+     * @throws IOException if error creating bag
+     */
+    public Filler(Path base, String csAlgorithm, Charset encoding) throws IOException {
+        this(base, csAlgorithm, encoding, SYSTEM);
     }
 
     /**
      * Returns a new filler (bag builder) instances using passed directory,
-     * checksum algorithm, and line separator for text files.
+     * checksum algorithm, tag encoding, and line separator for text files.
      *
      * @param base directory for bag - if null, create temporary directory
      * @param csAlgorithm checksum algorithm string - if null use default
+     * @param encoding character encoding to use for tag files - if null use default
      * @param eolRule line termination rule to use for generated text files. Values are:
      *            SYSTEM - use system-defined line termination
      *            COUNTER_SYSTEM - if on Windows, use Unix EOL, else reverse
@@ -147,7 +168,7 @@ public Filler(Path base, String csAlgorithm) throws IOException {
      *
      * @throws IOException if error creating bag
      */
-    public Filler(Path base, String csAlgorithm, EolRule eolRule) throws IOException {
+    public Filler(Path base, String csAlgorithm, Charset encoding, EolRule eolRule) throws IOException {
         if (base != null) {
             this.base = base;
         } else {
@@ -155,14 +176,15 @@ public Filler(Path base, String csAlgorithm, EolRule eolRule) throws IOException
             transientBag = true;
         }
         csAlg = (csAlgorithm != null) ? csAlgorithm : CS_ALGO;
+        tagEncoding = (encoding != null) ? encoding : StandardCharsets.UTF_8;
         Path dirPath = bagFile(DATA_DIR);
         if (Files.notExists(dirPath)) {
             Files.createDirectories(dirPath);
         }
         // prepare manifest writers
-        String sfx = csAlg.toLowerCase() + ".txt";
-        tagWriter = new FlatWriter(bagFile(TAGMANIF_FILE + sfx), null, null, false);
-        manWriter = new FlatWriter(bagFile(MANIF_FILE + sfx), null, tagWriter, true);
+        String sfx = csAlgoName(csAlg) + ".txt";
+        tagWriter = new FlatWriter(bagFile(TAGMANIF_FILE + sfx), null, null, false, tagEncoding);
+        manWriter = new FlatWriter(bagFile(MANIF_FILE + sfx), null, tagWriter, true, tagEncoding);
         writers = new HashMap<>();
         streams = new HashMap<>();
         // set up default auto-generated metadata
@@ -213,9 +235,9 @@ private void buildBag() throws IOException {
         // close the manifest file
         manWriter.close();
         // write out bagit declaration file
-        FlatWriter fwriter = new FlatWriter(bagFile(DECL_FILE), null, tagWriter, false);
+        FlatWriter fwriter = new FlatWriter(bagFile(DECL_FILE), null, tagWriter, false, StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
         fwriter.writeLine("BagIt-Version: " + BAGIT_VSN);
-        fwriter.writeLine("Tag-File-Character-Encoding: " + ENCODING);
+        fwriter.writeLine("Tag-File-Character-Encoding: " + tagEncoding.name());
         fwriter.close();
         // close tag manifest file of previous tag files
         tagWriter.close();
@@ -295,7 +317,7 @@ private void commitPayload(Path payloadFile, String relPath, InputStream is) thr
       }
       // wrap stream in digest stream
       try (DigestInputStream dis =
-          new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlg))) {
+          new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgoCode(csAlg)))) {
           payloadSize += Files.copy(dis, payloadFile);
           payloadCount++;
           // record checksum
@@ -378,7 +400,7 @@ public Filler tag(String relPath, InputStream is) throws IOException {
         }
         // wrap stream in digest stream
         try (DigestInputStream dis =
-             new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlg))) {
+             new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgoCode(csAlg)))) {
             Files.copy(dis, tagFile(relPath));
             // record checksum
             tagWriter.writeLine(toHex(dis.getMessageDigest().digest()) + " " + relPath);
@@ -473,7 +495,7 @@ private Path bagFile(String name) {
     private synchronized FlatWriter getWriter(String name) throws IOException {
         FlatWriter writer = writers.get(name);
         if (writer == null) {
-            writer = new FlatWriter(bagFile(name), null, tagWriter, false);
+            writer = new FlatWriter(bagFile(name), null, tagWriter, false, tagEncoding);
             writers.put(name, writer);
         }
         return writer;
@@ -492,10 +514,13 @@ class FlatWriter extends BagOutputStream {
 
         private final List<String> lines = new ArrayList<>();
         private final boolean record;
+        private final Charset encoding;
+        private final AtomicBoolean bomOut = new AtomicBoolean();
 
-        private FlatWriter(Path file, String brPath, FlatWriter tailWriter, boolean record) throws IOException {
+        private FlatWriter(Path file, String brPath, FlatWriter tailWriter, boolean record, Charset encoding) throws IOException {
             super(file, brPath, tailWriter, false);
             this.record = record;
+            this.encoding = encoding;
         }
 
         public void writeProperty(String key, String value) throws IOException {
@@ -504,7 +529,7 @@ public void writeProperty(String key, String value) throws IOException {
             while (offset < prop.length()) {
                 int end = Math.min(prop.length() - offset, 80);
                 if (offset > 0) {
-                    write(SPACER.getBytes(ENCODING));
+                    write(filterBytes(SPACER, encoding, bomOut));
                 }
                 writeLine(prop.substring(offset, offset + end));
                 offset += end;
@@ -515,8 +540,7 @@ public void writeLine(String line) throws IOException {
             if (record) {
               lines.add(line);
             }
-            byte[] bytes = (line + lineSeparator).getBytes(ENCODING);
-            write(bytes);
+            write(filterBytes(line + lineSeparator, encoding, bomOut));
         }
 
         public List<String> getLines() {
@@ -537,7 +561,7 @@ class BagOutputStream extends OutputStream {
         private BagOutputStream(Path file, String relPath, FlatWriter tailWriter, boolean isPayload) throws IOException {
             try {
                 out = Files.newOutputStream(file);
-                dout = new DigestOutputStream(out, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlg));
+                dout = new DigestOutputStream(out, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgoCode(csAlg)));
                 this.relPath = (relPath != null) ? relPath : file.getFileName().toString();
                 this.tailWriter = tailWriter;
                 this.isPayload = isPayload;
diff --git a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Loader.java b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Loader.java
index 4565ea3..768462d 100644
--- a/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Loader.java
+++ b/src/main/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/Loader.java
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.io.InputStream;
 import java.io.OutputStream;
-import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
+import java.nio.charset.Charset;
 import java.nio.file.Files;
 import java.nio.file.OpenOption;
 import java.nio.file.Path;
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@
 import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentMap;
 import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap;
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicBoolean;
 import java.util.Scanner;
 import java.util.zip.ZipEntry;
 import java.util.zip.ZipInputStream;
@@ -147,48 +148,50 @@ private void finish() throws IOException {
         // if manWriter is non-null, some payload files were fetched.
         if (manWriter != null) {
             manWriter.close();
+            Charset encoding = tagEncoding(base);
+            AtomicBoolean bomOut = new AtomicBoolean();
             // Update fetch.txt - remove if all holes plugged, else filter
             Path refFile = bagFile(REF_FILE);
             if (payloadRefMap.size() > 0) {
                 // now reconstruct fetch.txt filtering out those resolved
                 try (OutputStream refOut = Files.newOutputStream(refFile)) {
-                    for (String refline : bufferFile(refFile)) {
-                        String[] parts = refline.split(" ");
-                        if (payloadRefMap.containsKey(parts[2])) {
-                            refOut.write(refline.getBytes(ENCODING));
+                    for (String refline : bufferFile(refFile, encoding)) {
+                        String[] parts = refline.split("\\s+");
+                        if (payloadRefMap.containsKey(parts[2].trim())) {
+                            refOut.write(filterBytes(refline, encoding, bomOut));
                         }
                     }
                 }
             }
             // update tagmanifest with new manifest checksum, fetch stuff
-            String sfx = csAlgorithm() + ".txt";
+            String sfx = csAlgoName(csAlgorithm()) + ".txt";
             Path tagManFile = bagFile(TAGMANIF_FILE + sfx);
-            List<String> tmLines = bufferFile(tagManFile);
             // now recompute manifest checksum
             String manCS = checksum(bagFile(MANIF_FILE + sfx), csAlgorithm());
             // likewise fetch.txt if it's still around
             String fetchCS = Files.exists(refFile) ? checksum(bagFile(MANIF_FILE + sfx), csAlgorithm()) : null;
             // recreate tagmanifest with new checksums
+            bomOut.set(false);
             try (OutputStream tagManOut = Files.newOutputStream(tagManFile)) {
-                for (String tline : tmLines) {
-                    String[] parts = tline.split(" ");
+                for (String tline : bufferFile(tagManFile, encoding)) {
+                    String[] parts = tline.split("\\s+");
                     if (parts[1].startsWith(MANIF_FILE)) {
-                        tagManOut.write((manCS + " " + MANIF_FILE + sfx + lineSeparator).getBytes(ENCODING));
+                        tagManOut.write(filterBytes(manCS + " " + MANIF_FILE + sfx + lineSeparator, encoding, bomOut));
                     } else if (parts[1].startsWith(REF_FILE)) {
                         if (fetchCS != null) {
-                            tagManOut.write((fetchCS + " " + REF_FILE + sfx + lineSeparator).getBytes(ENCODING));
+                            tagManOut.write(filterBytes(fetchCS + " " + REF_FILE + sfx + lineSeparator, encoding, bomOut));
                         }
                     } else {
-                        tagManOut.write(tline.getBytes(ENCODING));
+                        tagManOut.write(filterBytes(tline, encoding,bomOut));
                     }
                 }
             }
         }
     }
 
-    private List<String> bufferFile(Path file) throws IOException {
+    private List<String> bufferFile(Path file, Charset encoding) throws IOException {
         List<String> lines = new ArrayList<>();
-        try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(file, StandardCharsets.UTF_8)) {
+        try (BufferedReader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(file, encoding)) {
             String line;
             while ((line = reader.readLine()) != null) {
                 lines.add(line + lineSeparator);
@@ -208,7 +211,7 @@ public Map<String, String> payloadRefs() throws IOException {
         Path refFile = bagFile(REF_FILE);
         if (payloadRefMap.isEmpty() && Files.exists(refFile)) {
             // load initial data
-            payloadRefMap.putAll(Bag.payloadRefs(refFile));
+            payloadRefMap.putAll(Bag.payloadRefs(refFile, tagEncoding(base)));
         }
         return payloadRefMap;
     }
@@ -229,7 +232,7 @@ public void resolveRef(String relPath, InputStream is) throws IOException {
             throw new IllegalStateException("Payload file already exists at: " + relPath);
         }
         // wrap stream in digest stream
-        try (DigestInputStream dis = new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgorithm()))) {
+        try (DigestInputStream dis = new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgoCode(csAlg)))) {
             Files.copy(dis, bagFile(relPath));
             // record checksum
             manifestWriter().writeLine(toHex(dis.getMessageDigest().digest()) + " " + relPath);
@@ -247,24 +250,28 @@ private Path bagFile(String name) {
     // lazy initialization of manifest writer
     private synchronized LoaderWriter manifestWriter() throws IOException {
         if (manWriter == null) {
-            Path manif = bagFile(MANIF_FILE + csAlgorithm().toLowerCase() + ".txt");
+            Path manif = bagFile(MANIF_FILE + csAlgoName(csAlgorithm()) + ".txt");
             // set line separator for writer to match existing file encoding
             try (Scanner sc = new Scanner(manif)) {
                 lineSeparator = (sc.findWithinHorizon("\r\n", 500) != null) ? "\r\n" : "\n";
             }
-            manWriter = new LoaderWriter(manif);
+            manWriter = new LoaderWriter(manif, tagEncoding(base));
         }
         return manWriter;
     }
 
     class LoaderWriter extends LoaderOutputStream {
 
-        private LoaderWriter(Path file) throws IOException {
+        private final Charset encoding;
+        private final AtomicBoolean bomOut = new AtomicBoolean();
+
+        private LoaderWriter(Path file, Charset encoding) throws IOException {
             super(file);
+            this.encoding = encoding;
         }
 
         public void writeLine(String line) throws IOException {
-            write((line + lineSeparator).getBytes(ENCODING));
+            write(filterBytes(line + lineSeparator, encoding, bomOut));
         }
     }
 
@@ -280,7 +287,7 @@ private LoaderOutputStream(Path file) throws IOException {
             OpenOption opt = StandardOpenOption.APPEND;
             try {
                 out = Files.newOutputStream(file, opt);
-                dout = new DigestOutputStream(out, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlg));
+                dout = new DigestOutputStream(out, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgoCode(csAlg)));
                 this.relPath = file.getFileName().toString();
                 this.tailWriter = null;
             } catch (NoSuchAlgorithmException nsae) {
@@ -347,7 +354,7 @@ private String checksum(Path file, String csAlg) throws IOException {
         int num = 0;
         // wrap stream in digest stream
         try (InputStream is = Files.newInputStream(file);
-             DigestInputStream dis = new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlg))) {
+             DigestInputStream dis = new DigestInputStream(is, MessageDigest.getInstance(csAlgoCode(csAlg)))) {
             while (num != -1) {
                 num = dis.read(buf);
             }
diff --git a/src/test/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/BagTest.java b/src/test/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/BagTest.java
index 65d3944..e194e6d 100644
--- a/src/test/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/BagTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/edu/mit/lib/bagit/BagTest.java
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@
 import java.io.InputStream;
 import java.io.OutputStream;
 import java.io.IOException;
+import java.nio.charset.Charset;
+import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
 import java.nio.file.Files;
 import java.nio.file.Path;
 import java.nio.file.attribute.BasicFileAttributes;
@@ -594,7 +596,7 @@ public void defaultEOLInTextFiles() throws IOException {
     @Test
     public void unixEOLInTextFiles() throws IOException {
         Path bagFile = tempFolder.newFolder("bag33").toPath();
-        Filler filler = new Filler(bagFile, "MD5", Filler.EolRule.UNIX);
+        Filler filler = new Filler(bagFile, "MD5", StandardCharsets.UTF_8, Filler.EolRule.UNIX);
         OutputStream plout = filler.payloadStream("first.pdf");
         for (int i = 0; i < 1000; i++) {
             plout.write("lskdflsfevmep".getBytes());
@@ -610,7 +612,7 @@ public void unixEOLInTextFiles() throws IOException {
     @Test
     public void windowsEOLInTextFiles() throws IOException {
         Path bagFile = tempFolder.newFolder("bag34").toPath();
-        Filler filler = new Filler(bagFile, "MD5", Filler.EolRule.WINDOWS);
+        Filler filler = new Filler(bagFile, "MD5", StandardCharsets.UTF_8, Filler.EolRule.WINDOWS);
         OutputStream plout = filler.payloadStream("first.pdf");
         for (int i = 0; i < 1000; i++) {
             plout.write("lskdflsfevmep".getBytes());
@@ -626,7 +628,7 @@ public void windowsEOLInTextFiles() throws IOException {
     @Test
     public void counterEOLInTextFiles() throws IOException {
         Path bagFile = tempFolder.newFolder("bag35").toPath();
-        Filler filler = new Filler(bagFile, "MD5", Filler.EolRule.COUNTER_SYSTEM);
+        Filler filler = new Filler(bagFile, "MD5", StandardCharsets.UTF_8, Filler.EolRule.COUNTER_SYSTEM);
         OutputStream plout = filler.payloadStream("first.pdf");
         for (int i = 0; i < 1000; i++) {
             plout.write("lskdflsfevmep".getBytes());
@@ -639,6 +641,23 @@ public void counterEOLInTextFiles() throws IOException {
         assertTrue(! findSeparator(info).equals(System.lineSeparator()));
     }
 
+    @Test
+    public void validAndInvalidBagUTF16() throws IOException {
+        Path bagFile = tempFolder.newFolder("bag36").toPath();
+        Filler filler = new Filler(bagFile, "MD5", StandardCharsets.UTF_16).payload("first.pdf", payload1);
+        Bag bag = new Loader(filler.toDirectory()).load();
+        Map<String, String> tman = bag.tagManifest();
+        assertTrue(tman.size() == 3);
+        assertTrue(tman.keySet().contains("bagit.txt"));
+        assertTrue(tman.keySet().contains("bag-info.txt"));
+        assertTrue(tman.keySet().contains("manifest-md5.txt"));
+        assertTrue(bag.isValid());
+        // now remove a payload file
+        Path toDel = bagFile.resolve("data/first.pdf");
+        Files.delete(toDel);
+        assertTrue(!bag.isValid());
+    }
+
     private String findSeparator(Path file) throws IOException {
         try (Scanner scanner = new Scanner(file)) {
             // it's one or the other