- The one-to-one rule was struck down in January 2025 and taken out of the FCC's rules in August 2025.
- For numbers on the Do Not Call registry, the rules still ask for a signed agreement to be contacted by that seller. Get consent that names you.
- From 25 November 2026, a stop sent in reply to a marketing call or text ends all marketing from that caller. You have ten business days to act on it.
- Courts now read the TCPA for themselves and disagree, including on whether texts count as calls. Build for the strictest reading where your leads live.
- Keep the exact wording, page, time and number for every lead for at least four years.
The short answer
Consent has to be given to you, for the calls and texts you actually make, and you have to be able to prove it. The one-to-one rule is gone, but the Do Not Call rules still ask for agreement to be contacted by a named seller. Every lead you buy should carry that proof.
What changed since 2023
The consent rules have moved more in the last two years than in the decade before. Some changes made life easier for lead buyers. None of them removed the need for real consent that you can prove.
- 2023FCC adopts one-to-one consentConsent would have had to name one seller at a time, for calls related to the page the person was on.
- 24 Jan 2025Court strikes it downThe Eleventh Circuit vacated the rule in Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC. It never took effect.
- 20 Jun 2025Courts stop deferring to the FCCIn McLaughlin v. McKesson the Supreme Court held that courts aren't bound by the FCC's reading of the TCPA.
- 29 Aug 2025Rule removedThe FCC took the one-to-one wording out of its rules, going back to the older definition of written consent.
- 14 Jul 2026Texts and Do Not CallThe Seventh Circuit held texts aren't calls for private Do Not Call claims, in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.
- 25 Nov 2026New stop rules startCallers may set how people opt out, and a stop to marketing ends all marketing from that caller.
What written consent means today
For marketing calls and texts made with an autodialer or an artificial or prerecorded voice, the FCC requires prior express written consent: a signed agreement with the seller. What it must include is below.
Two details buyers miss: the FCC treats AI-generated voices as artificial voices (February 2024), and since 2021 the Supreme Court's Duguid ruling has narrowed what counts as an autodialer.
- Needs prior express written consent
- A signed agreement; an e-signature counts
- Must authorize the seller and include the number
- Must say agreeing isn't a condition of purchase
- Applies whatever dialing technology you use
- Needs a signed, written agreement with the seller
- Must say the person agrees to be contacted by this seller
- Without it, scrub against a registry copy no more than 31 days old
One-to-one is gone. Is a long partner list fine now?
No, and the reason sits in the rules that survived. To call a number on the national Do Not Call registry for telemarketing, you need a signed, written agreement saying the person "agrees to be contacted by this seller".
A list of hundreds of partners behind a link is a weak way to show that. And since McLaughlin, the same consent can win in one court and lose in another.
- "...and our marketing partners", with a link to hundreds of names
- Your firm's name nowhere next to the button
- Doesn't say calls and texts may use an autodialer or an AI or prerecorded voice
- No record of the wording the person saw
- Names your company, next to the button
- Says how you'll contact them, including AI or prerecorded voice if you use it
- Says agreeing isn't a condition of buying anything
- Signed (an e-signature counts), with the number, the wording, the page and the time kept
Do texts count as calls?
For the autodialer and prerecorded-voice rules, courts treat texts as calls. For private Do Not Call claims they've split: in July 2026 the Seventh Circuit held texts aren't calls, a ruling that binds federal courts in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin only.
Other courts disagree, and the FCC's rule still applies Do Not Call to texts sent to mobile numbers. Florida's law covers text solicitations too.
Stop means stop: the revocation rules
People can withdraw consent at any time, and the FCC has spelled out how. The rules change on 25 November 2026, so here is the position on both sides of that date. Either way, you have ten business days to act.
The FCC is still consulting on whether callers must offer one simple way to stop every robocall. Expect a further order.
- Any reasonable way of saying stop counts
- Stop, quit, end, revoke, opt out, cancel or unsubscribe always count
- You can't make people use one method
- Honor it within ten business days
- You may name the opt-out method: a key press, a stop word, or a website or number
- You must show that method on the call or in the text
- A stop in reply to marketing ends all marketing from you
- Still ten business days; your own Do Not Call list keeps a request for five years
What we've seen
Before we price a market, we read the sellers' pages. On US pages the consent link often opens a "marketing partners" list of hundreds of names: exactly what the Do Not Call wording struggles with.
In the UK, our pages for a single business name only that business, and our lead system can let a person pick the one firm that gets their lead. One-to-one is a setting, not a rebuild.
State laws add their own rules
State telemarketing laws apply where the person lives, not where you are. Two examples show how far they can go.
- Florida: consent means a signed written agreement that clearly authorizes the caller. Damages are $500 per violation, up to three times that if willful. For texts, the person must reply STOP first, and you have 15 days to stop before they can sue.
- California, for legal leads: a firm may not accept referrals from a service the State Bar hasn't certified. Since SB 37 took effect on 1 January 2026, anyone can sue for $5,000 to $100,000 per violation.
- Every state you buy in: check calling hours, registration and any state Do Not Call list.
- Calls 8am to 9pm, the person's local time
- $500 per unlawful call or text, up to $1,500 if willful or knowing
- Honor a stop within ten business days
- Calls 8am to 8pm, no more than three a day on the same subject
- $500 per violation, up to three times that if willful
- For texts, the person must reply STOP first; you have 15 days before they can sue
What we'd do before dialing a new supplier's leads
This is the checklist we'd run on any new supplier.
- 1Read the live form yourself
Fill it in on your phone. Look at the consent line next to the button, not a policy page behind a link.
- 2Get named
Ask for wording that names your firm, or lets the person pick you. It answers the Do Not Call question and the old one-to-one question at once.
- 3Get the record with every lead
The exact wording and page version, date and time, the phone number, and a certificate or session replay from an independent service if the supplier uses one.
- 4Scrub before the first call
Check the national registry (a copy no more than 31 days old), your own stop list, state lists, and a list of known serial TCPA plaintiffs.
- 5Run one stop list everywhere
A stop by text, call or email reaches every campaign, dialer and person within ten business days. From 25 November, show the opt-out method you choose in every call and text.
- 6Call inside the hours
8 a.m. to 9 p.m. federally, tighter in some states, always in the person's local time.
- 7Put it in the contract
Who warrants the consent, who pays if it fails, and that the supplier keeps the records for at least four years.
AI prompts to check your own set-up
Copy these into ChatGPT or Claude and fill in the brackets with your own details. They help you find gaps fast and prepare better questions for your lawyer. They aren't legal advice.
Check my consent language line by linePaste a supplier's or your own consent line; get the gaps and questions for your lawyer.
You are reviewing consent language on a US lead generation form against the TCPA (47 U.S.C. 227) and the FCC's rules (47 CFR 64.1200). This isn't legal advice: flag anything I should take to a telemarketing lawyer, and remember courts now read the TCPA for themselves and disagree.
The exact wording next to the submit button: [paste]. The button text: [paste]. Any linked partner list: [describe, with how many names]. Who will contact the person: [our firm name]. How: [manual dialing, autodialer, AI voice, prerecorded voice, texts]. The states our leads live in: [list].
Check each line and tell me, in a table (line, issue, risk high/medium/low, suggested rewrite):
1. Does it name us as the seller, so it answers the Do Not Call question ("agrees to be contacted by this seller")?
2. Does it meet prior express written consent: a signed agreement (e-signature counts), authorizes us, includes the number, says agreeing isn't a condition of purchase?
3. Does it cover every way we'll contact them, including AI or prerecorded voice and texts?
4. Is it clear and next to the button, not behind a link?
5. What record should come with every lead (wording, page version, date and time, number)?
Then write a cleaner version and a list of questions for my lawyer, including any state rules for my states you aren't sure of. Never say it's definitely compliant.Build my lead-vendor consent checklistA pass-or-fail checklist and questionnaire for any new supplier.
You are helping a US business that buys leads set up a consent checklist for every new lead vendor. This isn't legal advice; flag anything to confirm with a telemarketing lawyer. We buy [type of lead] in [states] and contact people by [calls, texts, AI or prerecorded voice]. Produce a checklist with pass or fail criteria under these headings: 1. The live form: the consent line, whether it names us or lets the person pick us. 2. The record with every lead: exact wording and page version, date and time, phone number, and a certificate or session replay from an independent service if they use one. 3. Records kept for at least four years. 4. Scrubbing before the first call: the national registry (a copy no more than 31 days old), our own stop list, state lists, and known serial TCPA plaintiffs. 5. Stop requests: how they pass a stop to us, and how fast. 6. Their own suppliers, if they buy from others. 7. The contract: who warrants the consent, who pays if it fails, record keeping. Then turn it into a questionnaire I can email the vendor, with the red flags to watch for in their answers (for example, a partner list of hundreds of names).
Get ready for the 25 November stop rulesOpt-out wording, a process and a staff script for the new revocation rules.
You are an operations lead preparing a US business for the FCC's revocation rules that start on 25 November 2026. This isn't legal advice; mark anything to confirm with a telemarketing lawyer. What changes, per the FCC's order (FCC 26-67): we may name the opt-out method (a key press, a stop word, or a website or number) as long as we show it on the call or in the text; a stop in reply to a marketing call or text ends all marketing from us; we still have ten business days to act; our own Do Not Call list keeps a request for five years. Our channels: [calls, texts, AI or prerecorded calls]. Our tools: [dialer, SMS tool, CRM]. Our brands and campaigns: [list]. The opt-out method we want to name: [e.g. reply STOP]. Produce: 1. The opt-out line for each text template and for the start of each call. 2. A process so a stop from any channel reaches every campaign, dialer and person within ten business days. 3. A short script for staff when someone says "stop calling me". 4. A test plan to prove it works before 25 November.
Prepare my supplier contract questionsThe consent points to raise with your lawyer before you sign.
You are helping me prepare for a meeting with my lawyer about a contract with a lead vendor. Don't write contract language; list the topics and explain each in plain English so I can discuss them. This isn't legal advice. We buy [type of lead] in [states], [exclusive or shared], about [number] a month, and contact them by [calls, texts, AI or prerecorded voice]. List the consent-related points to cover, including: who warrants that consent is valid, who pays if it fails, records kept for at least four years and how fast they hand them over, our right to check their forms, whether the consent names us, how they pass on stop requests, their own suppliers, and what happens if a complaint or claim comes in. For each point: why it matters, what a fair position looks like for a buyer, and one question to ask my lawyer.
Map my calling rules by stateA table of what to check in each state you buy leads in.
I buy leads in these states: [list]. Build me a table with one row per state and columns for: calling hours, any limit on calls per day, a state Do Not Call list, telemarketer registration, rules on texts, and the damages a person can claim. Rules: only fill a cell if you can name the statute or rule it comes from. If you're not sure, write "check" rather than guessing. Federal rules are the floor: calls 8am to 9pm in the person's local time. This isn't legal advice; I'll confirm every cell with a telemarketing lawyer in that state.
What this page is
This is general information about US rules as we read them on 9 November 2026. It is not legal advice. The rules are moving and courts disagree, so check with a lawyer who knows telemarketing in your states before you set up calling or texting.
Common questions
Is the one-to-one consent rule in force?
No. The Eleventh Circuit struck it down on 24 January 2025, before it took effect, and the FCC removed it from its rules in August 2025. Consent that names you is still the easiest kind to defend.
Do I need written consent to call a lead?
For marketing calls or texts using an autodialer or an AI or prerecorded voice, yes. For telemarketing to a number on the Do Not Call registry, you need a signed agreement to be contacted by you. State laws can add more.
Does a supplier's partner list cover me?
Only if the person could see you were included, and even then the Do Not Call exception asks for agreement to be contacted by this seller. A line that names you is far easier to defend.
How long should I keep consent records?
At least four years, the general federal time limit for claims. Some state laws differ, so ask your lawyer.
What changes on 25 November 2026?
You can name the ways people opt out, as long as you show them on the call or text. A stop sent in reply to a marketing message ends all marketing from you. The ten business day limit stays.
Sources
- 47 U.S.C. 227: Restrictions on use of telephone equipment
- 47 CFR 64.1200: Delivery restrictions (eCFR, read 9 November 2026)
- Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC, Eleventh Circuit, 24 January 2025
- FCC: Delete, Delete, Delete; conforming the written consent rule to the court's decision (Federal Register, 29 August 2025)
- McLaughlin Chiropractic Associates v. McKesson Corp., US Supreme Court docket 23-1226 (decided 20 June 2025)
- FCC: Enhancing the ability of consumers to control the robocalls, FCC 26-67 (Federal Register, 26 October 2026; effective 25 November 2026)
- Steidinger v. Blackstone Medical Services, Seventh Circuit, No. 25-2398, 14 July 2026
- FCC declaratory ruling on AI-generated voices, FCC 24-17 (released 8 February 2024)
- Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, US Supreme Court, 2021
- 28 U.S.C. 1658: Time limitations on the commencement of civil actions
- Florida Statutes 501.059: Telephone solicitation
- Florida Statutes 501.616: Unlawful acts and practices (calling hours and call limits)
- California SB 37 (2025), Chapter 645: attorneys, unlawful solicitations and advertisements (chaptered text)
- National Do Not Call Registry (FTC)
Tell us your states and what you buy. We'll walk you through how consent would work for your leads in each state, before you spend anything.
Written by Jay Rodrigues, Co-founder and CEO at Convrsion. Prices and figures come from the sources listed and were checked on 9 Nov 2026. Convrsion runs lead generation campaigns in the UK and US, so we buy, sell and follow up leads every day; this page is general information, not a quote or legal advice.