On April 7, 2025, the FCC delayed a critical part of its Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) rules. Section 64.1200(a)(10), initially set to take effect on April 11, 2025, now has a revised deadline of April 11, 2026.
The New Consent Revocation Requirement
The consent revocation rules were part of the February 2024 TCPA Consent Order, which revamped regulations around robocalls and robotexts. Section 64.1200(a)(10) mandates businesses to honor any reasonable method a consumer uses to revoke consent—i.e., replying “stop,” “end,” or “unsubscribe”—and halt all future communications from the sender, with limited exceptions. The FCC’s goal? Simplifying the opt-out process for consumers and requiring that businesses handle revocation requests consistently, even across unrelated topics. However, for businesses, this can present a logistical nightmare, as it may require an overhaul of communication systems.
Why the Delay?
The FCC granted the delay after hearing from industries like banking and healthcare, which pointed out the logistical challenges of updating communication systems to process revocation requests across multiple departments or vendors. The Commission agreed that businesses needed more time to make these changes without causing undue strain.
What Does This Mean for Your Business?
This one-year extension gives businesses more time to align their systems with the new rules. However, other parts of the TCPA Consent Order, like honoring revocation requests within a set timeframe, are still in play. Businesses should use this time to assess their systems, automated processes, and ensure coordination with vendors to avoid scrambling when the deadline arrives.
Take Action Now
Given that these changes could be time-consuming and require significant efforts, now is the time to start planning and executing the changes.