Regulation F call frequency limits for debt collection

See also

Sources

1. 1
   The CFPB's May 12, 2025 guidance withdrawal (90 FR 20084) withdrew three Regulation F advisory opinions, on medical debt (2024), time-barred debt (2023) and pay-to-pay fees (2022), along with several debt collection bulletins and a circular.

   Interpretive Rules, Policy Statements, and Advisory Opinions; Withdrawal, 90 FR 20084 · Section III, Advisory Opinions and Other Guidance lists · Checked 2026-10-14
2. 2
   The May 12, 2025 CFPB guidance withdrawal notice does not list the Debt Collection Rule FAQs or any guidance on call frequency or 12 CFR 1006.14, and it withdraws guidance documents rather than amending regulation text.

   Interpretive Rules, Policy Statements, and Advisory Opinions; Withdrawal, 90 FR 20084 · Section III list of withdrawn guidance (absence of entry) · Checked 2026-10-14
3. 3
   The official interpretation treats telephone call logs as evidence relevant to the 1006.14(b)(1) repeated-calls prohibition, so a collector that keeps call logs must retain them, though it need not create logs solely to prove compliance.

   § 1006.100 Record retention (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I commentary to 1006.100(a) · Checked 2026-10-14
4. 4
   A call counts as connected, and therefore toward the frequencies, if it is answered (even if it then drops), rings without being answered, or reaches voicemail, even if no message is left.

   § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(3)(ii)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
5. 5
   A consumer's direct prior consent to additional calls is valid for at most seven consecutive days even if the consumer agrees to a longer period, and it ends earlier if the consumer revokes it or the collector has a telephone conversation with the consumer about the debt.

   § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(3)(i)-2 · Checked 2026-10-14
6. 6
   Prior consent for additional calls never permits communications otherwise barred by 12 CFR 1006.6(b) or by a 1006.14(h) request not to use a medium.

   § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(3)(i)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
7. 7
   Communications that do not count toward the call frequencies, such as emails and texts, can still violate the general harassment prohibition in 1006.14(a) through their cumulative effect with calls.

   § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(a)-2 · Checked 2026-10-14
8. 8
   As of 2026-10-14, the CFPB's Regulation F version list shows the April 19, 2023 version as the current regulation, with earlier versions dated November 30, 2021, May 3, 2021 and December 16, 2011.

   Regulation F: all versions · version list · Checked 2026-10-14
9. 9
   For the seven-consecutive-day periods, the first day is the day of the call, the day of the telephone conversation, or the day consent is received; for example, after an August 13 conversation no collector call before August 20 keeps the presumption of compliance.

   § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comments 14(b)(2)(i)-1 and 14(b)(2)(ii)-1 (August examples) · Checked 2026-10-14
10. 10
    Regulation F applies to debt collectors as defined in 12 CFR 1006.2(i): persons whose business has the principal purpose of collecting debts or who regularly collect debts owed to another. A creditor's officers and employees collecting in the creditor's name are excluded.

    § 1006.2 Definitions (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.2(i)(1) and (i)(2)(i) · Checked 2026-10-14
11. 11
    Dialer retry or recall settings that redial an unanswered number within minutes, or concentrate seven attempts into one day, can keep the attempt count within seven-in-seven and still create facts that rebut the presumption of compliance.inferred

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(2)(i)-2.i (applied to dialer configuration by inference) · Checked 2026-10-14
12. 12
    For the inconvenient-time rule, an electronic communication such as a text or email occurs when the debt collector sends it, not when the consumer receives or views it.

    § 1006.6 Communications in connection with debt collection (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 6(b)(1)(i)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
13. 13
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(3)(ii), calls that do not connect to the dialed number, such as a busy signal or a not-in-service indication, do not count toward the call frequencies.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(3)(ii); Supplement I comment 14(b)(3)(ii)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
14. 14
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(3)(i), calls placed with the person's prior consent given directly to the debt collector, within seven consecutive days of that consent, do not count toward the call frequencies.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(3)(i) · Checked 2026-10-14
15. 15
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(3)(iii), calls placed to the persons listed in 1006.6(d)(1)(ii) through (vi), namely the consumer's attorney, a consumer reporting agency where permitted, the creditor, the creditor's attorney and the collector's attorney, do not count toward the call frequencies.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(3)(iii), cross-referencing 1006.6(d)(1)(ii)-(vi) · Checked 2026-10-14
16. 16
    FDCPA section 806(5), 15 U.S.C. 1692d(5), lists causing a telephone to ring or engaging a person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse or harass any person at the called number as harassing conduct by a debt collector.

    15 U.S.C. 1692d - Harassment or abuse (United States Code, 2023 Edition) · 15 U.S.C. 1692d, paragraph (5) · Checked 2026-10-14
17. 17
    The Regulation F final rule containing the call-frequency provisions is 85 FR 76734 (November 30, 2020), RIN 3170-AA41, docket CFPB-2019-0022.

    Debt Collection Practices (Regulation F), Final rule; official interpretation, 85 FR 76734 · Federal Register header and agency/action block · Checked 2026-10-14
18. 18
    The Regulation F final rule that added the call-frequency presumptions was published in the Federal Register on November 30, 2020 and took effect on November 30, 2021.

    Debt Collection Practices (Regulation F), Final rule; official interpretation, 85 FR 76734 · DATES section, 85 FR 76734 · Checked 2026-10-14
19. 19
    A first-party creditor's contact center collecting its own debts in its own name is generally outside the Regulation F call-frequency presumptions, though other federal or State laws may still limit its calls.inferred

    § 1006.2 Definitions (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.2(i)(1) and (i)(2)(i) (applied by inference) · Checked 2026-10-14
20. 20
    Staying within the call-frequency presumption addresses only call frequency; other aspects of a call, such as an obscene voicemail, can still violate 1006.14(a) and (d).

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comments 14(b)(1)-1 and 14(b)(1)-2 · Checked 2026-10-14
21. 21
    12 CFR 1006.14(a) prohibits a debt collector from engaging in any conduct the natural consequence of which is to harass, oppress or abuse any person in connection with the collection of a debt.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(a) · Checked 2026-10-14
22. 22
    Genesys announced on 2026-01-19, for a release planned 2026-02-02, that Genesys Cloud attempt controls would add limits by phone type, recall scheduling up to 30 days after the initial call, and attempt-control reset periods of up to 30 days.

    Genesys Cloud – Attempt control enhancements · Attempt control enhancements announcement body · Checked 2026-10-14
23. 23
    Genesys Cloud attempt controls restrict the number of calling attempts to a contact record or phone number per day or in total, and take effect when an attempt controls entry is assigned to a contact list.

    How to limit contact attempts · How to limit contact attempts, introduction and procedure · Checked 2026-10-14
24. 24
    Genesys Cloud's outbound limits page states that total max attempts for contacts and numbers cannot exceed 100, that an organization can have at most 1,000 attempt control entities, and that recalls can be scheduled for no more than eight hours and no less than five minutes.

    Outbound campaign limits · Outbound campaign limits, Attempt controls section · Checked 2026-10-14
25. 25
    If no attempt controls entry is selected for a Genesys Cloud contact list, there is no limit on attempts to contact each record, and Genesys warns this may not meet regional compliance rules.

    How to limit contact attempts · How to limit contact attempts, note on attempt controls selection · Checked 2026-10-14
26. 26
    Because Genesys Cloud attempt controls count per contact record or phone number rather than per person and per particular debt, enforcing the Regulation F presumptions in Genesys Cloud depends on how the contact list maps records to debts and people. Calls from other campaigns or lists, and inbound conversations, are not reflected automatically.inferred

    How to limit contact attempts · How to limit contact attempts (compared with 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(4) and Presumptions FAQ Q4) · Checked 2026-10-14
27. 27
    A call the consumer places to the debt collector is not a call placed by the collector and does not count toward the seven-in-seven prong, but a resulting conversation about the debt starts the seven-day post-conversation prong.

    Debt Collection Rule FAQs · Presumptions FAQ Q2 · Checked 2026-10-14
28. 28
    Under 12 CFR 1006.6(b)(1)(i), absent knowledge to the contrary, a debt collector must assume a time before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. local time at the consumer's location is inconvenient.

    § 1006.6 Communications in connection with debt collection (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.6(b)(1)(i) · Checked 2026-10-14
29. 29
    The CFPB FAQs state that because a limited-content message is a voicemail, the call that leaves it is a connected call and counts toward the call-frequency presumptions.

    Debt Collection Rule FAQs · Excluded Calls FAQ Q4 · Checked 2026-10-14
30. 30
    Under 12 CFR 1006.2(b), leaving a limited-content message is an attempt to communicate rather than a communication, because the message conveys no information about a debt.

    § 1006.2 Definitions (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.2(b) and 1006.2(d) with its official interpretation · Checked 2026-10-14
31. 31
    A limited-content message under 12 CFR 1006.2(j) is a voicemail that must include a business name that does not indicate debt collection, a request to reply, the name of one or more natural persons to contact, and one or more telephone numbers for replying, and it may include no other content beyond listed optional items.

    § 1006.2 Definitions (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.2(j)(1) and (j)(2) · Checked 2026-10-14
32. 32
    Calls to a third party to acquire location information about the consumer are subject to the call-frequency presumptions; up to seven such calls within seven days is presumed compliant.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(2)(i)-1.iii (cross-reference to 1006.10(c)) · Checked 2026-10-14
33. 33
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(h)(1), a debt collector must not communicate or attempt to communicate through a medium the person has asked it not to use, and a person may opt out of a specific telephone number or address rather than a whole medium.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(h)(1); Supplement I comment 14(h)(1)-2 · Checked 2026-10-14
34. 34
    Calls to a telephone number the debt collector later learns is not associated with the person do not count toward that person's call-frequency presumptions.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(2)(i)-3 · Checked 2026-10-14
35. 35
    A call that discusses, or leaves a voicemail about, more than one debt counts as a call about each of those debts, and a conversation counts as a conversation about each debt discussed, even if the consumer raised it.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(4)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
36. 36
    If the collector's information indicates the consumer may be in more than one location, it complies by communicating at a time convenient in all of them; for an Eastern-area mobile number with a Pacific address the window is 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Eastern.

    § 1006.6 Communications in connection with debt collection (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 6(b)(1)(i)-2 · Checked 2026-10-14
37. 37
    The 1006.14 call-frequency text in force on 2026-10-14 has not been amended since the April 19, 2023 Regulation F version.inferred

    Regulation F: all versions · version list (no version later than 2023-04-19) · Checked 2026-10-14
38. 38
    The CFPB's Debt Collection Rule FAQs state that the rule does not impose a specific limit or cap on the number of calls; it sets call-frequency presumptions instead.

    Debt Collection Rule FAQs · Telephone Call Frequency FAQ Q1 · Checked 2026-10-14
39. 39
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(4), each of a consumer's debts in collection is a separate particular debt, except that student loan debts serviced under a single account number when the collector obtained them are treated as one particular debt.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(4); Supplement I comment 14(b)(4)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
40. 40
    The CFPB FAQs state that the call-frequency presumptions apply per person and per particular debt regardless of how many telephone numbers are associated with that person.

    Debt Collection Rule FAQs · Presumptions FAQ Q4 · Checked 2026-10-14
41. 41
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)(i)(A), a debt collector is presumed to comply with the repeated-calls prohibition only if, among other conditions, it does not place telephone calls to a particular person about a particular debt more than seven times within seven consecutive days.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)(i)(A) · Checked 2026-10-14
42. 42
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)(i)(B), the presumption of compliance also requires that the debt collector not place a telephone call about a particular debt within seven consecutive days after having had a telephone conversation with the person about that debt.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)(i)(B) · Checked 2026-10-14
43. 43
    Under 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)(ii), a debt collector that places calls in excess of either frequency in 1006.14(b)(2)(i) is presumed to violate the repeated-calls prohibition.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)(ii); comment 14(b)(2)(ii)-1 (eight calls April 1-7 example) · Checked 2026-10-14
44. 44
    Both the presumption of compliance and the presumption of violation in 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2) are rebuttable, and the official interpretation gives non-exhaustive lists of factors that can rebut each.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)(ii); Supplement I comments 14(b)(2)(i)-2 and 14(b)(2)(ii)-2 · Checked 2026-10-14
45. 45
    Factors that can rebut the presumption of compliance include calls in rapid succession (for example two unanswered calls within five minutes), concentrated calls (for example seven calls within one day), voicemail patterns, the content of prior communications such as a request to stop, and prior conduct such as abusive language or calls at inconvenient times.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(2)(i)-2.i through -2.iv · Checked 2026-10-14
46. 46
    Factors that can rebut the presumption of violation include a call made to comply with applicable law, a call directly related to active litigation, a call responding to the consumer's request for information, and a time-sensitive call letting the consumer avoid a negative outcome outside the collector's control.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(2)(ii)-2.i through -2.iv · Checked 2026-10-14
47. 47
    Under 12 CFR 1006.100(a), a debt collector must retain records that are evidence of compliance or noncompliance with the FDCPA and Regulation F until three years after its last collection activity on the debt.

    § 1006.100 Record retention (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.100(a) · Checked 2026-10-14
48. 48
    Regulation F does not require debt collectors to record telephone calls, but a collector that does record calls must keep each recording for three years after the date of the call.

    § 1006.100 Record retention (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.100(b) · Checked 2026-10-14
49. 49
    12 CFR 1006.14(b)(1) prohibits a debt collector from placing telephone calls or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse or harass any person at the called number.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(1) · Checked 2026-10-14
50. 50
    For 1006.14(b), placing a telephone call includes conveying a ringless voicemail, so ringless voicemail drops count toward the call frequencies.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
51. 51
    A State limit on collection calls stricter than the Regulation F seven-in-seven presumption would generally remain enforceable alongside it, so dialer attempt limits may need to be set to the stricter State rule.inferred

    § 1006.104 Relation to State laws (Regulation F) · 12 CFR 1006.104 (applied by inference) · Checked 2026-10-14
52. 52
    12 CFR 1006.104 provides that Regulation F does not annul, alter or affect State debt collection laws except to the extent of inconsistency, and that a State law giving consumers greater protection is not inconsistent.

    § 1006.104 Relation to State laws (Regulation F) · 12 CFR 1006.104 · Checked 2026-10-14
53. 53
    Text messages, emails and other electronic communications do not count toward the 1006.14(b) telephone call frequencies; the repeated-calls prohibition applies only to telephone calls.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)-1 · Checked 2026-10-14
54. 54
    An unanswered call, or a conversation in which no specific debt is discussed, counts toward at least one particular debt; the commentary example of 21 unanswered calls split seven per debt across three debts in seven days is presumed compliant.

    § 1006.14 Harassing, oppressive, or abusive conduct (Regulation F) with official interpretation · Supplement I comment 14(b)(4)-1 and its examples · Checked 2026-10-14

Documents

Cite this page

WarmTransfer. (2026, October 14). Regulation F call frequency limits for debt collection. WarmTransfer. https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/reg-f-debt-collection-calls

@misc{warmtransfer-reg-f-debt-collection-calls,
  title  = {Regulation F call frequency limits for debt collection},
  author = {{WarmTransfer}},
  year   = {2026},
  url    = {https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/reg-f-debt-collection-calls},
  note   = {Verified 2026-10-14}
}