New anti-cold calling rules in France: what to do if you receive an unwanted call after August 11
When businesses contact you, how to recognise illegal calls, and where to report them
Published
People in France should receive less unwanted marketing calls from August 11 as a new law comes into force regarding telephone canvassing.
While up until now companies were generally allowed to contact consumers by phone unless they had registered their number for Bloctel (France's opt-out service), the reverse will now apply.
This means that businesses will need to obtain a consumer’s clear prior consent before making commercial calls (opt-in system).
When can companies call you?
After August 11, a company will only be able to make a marketing call if the consumer has given then explicit consent in advance or if they already have a contract with the company and the call concerns related products or services (such as an offer linked to your existing subscription or a proposal to improve the service you already receive).
Consent must be active and informed. A company must be able to prove that you agreed to be contacted and it must explain who the company is, why it wants to contact you, what type or service is involved and how long the consent remains valid.
It should be noted that consent cannot be obtained simply by calling someone unexpectedly and asking permission during the same unsolicited call.
Examples of valid consent include ticking a consent box when buying a product or service in a shop, signing an online form where telephone marketing permission is clearly requested, agreeing during a recorded conversation during a home visit.
Additionally, the validity of the consent is for a maximum one year and consumers can withdraw their agreement at any time.
However, calls offering newspaper, magazine, or periodical subscriptions remain permitted.
Some sectors already have stricter restrictions which will continue to apply. This concerns telephone marketing linked to areas such as energy renovation work, adapting homes for elderly or disabled people, and certain CPF-related offers which are already prohibited since 2025.
Calling hours and frequency rules
Even when a company is legally allowed to contact someone, it must respect strict limits.
Commercial calls are only permitted:
Monday to Friday
from 10:00 to 13:00
from 14:00 to 20:00
Calls are not allowed on Saturdays, Sundays, or public holidays unless the consumer has specifically requested contact at another agreed time.
There is also a limit in the number of times a company can call the same consumer per month (4 times).
What happens if a company ignores the rules?
Businesses that break the new regulations face significant penalties.
Illegal calls can result in fines of up to:
€75,000 per call for an individual professional
In more serious cases, particularly where there is abuse of vulnerable consumers or deceptive practices, criminal penalties may apply, including higher fines and possible prison sentences.
Companies must also keep proof of consent and be able to provide it if requested.
Will this stop all unwanted calls?
Although the reform should significantly reduce calls from legitimate businesses, it will not completely eliminate nuisance calls and scams.
One continuing challenge is calls made from outside France.
Foreign-based operators, including those outside the European Union, may be harder for French authorities to identify and stop. Some scammers use foreign numbers, fake caller IDs, or technologies that hide their real location.
The new rules apply to companies targeting people in France, even if those companies are based abroad. However, enforcement can be more difficult when the caller is outside French jurisdiction but according to French authorities, not impossible as they can still investigate companies that target French consumers. This is why consumers should report illegal activity to help identify offenders.
What should you do if you receive an illegal sales call?
If you receive a marketing call that you did not agree to receive, you can:
Report it through SignalConso, the French government’s consumer reporting platform
Keep evidence, including the phone number, date, time, and details of the conversation
Ask the company to delete your personal data and stop contacting you
Refuse any offer immediately if you suspect the call is suspicious
If the caller pressures you, asks for personal information, requests payment details, or claims you must act urgently, it is safer to end the call and contact the organisation directly using an official number.
