New cold-calling laws in France: what if I have a foreign number?
Scam calls can dodge laws
Reader Question: We have a second home in France and use our UK mobiles with an eSIM when there. Will we be affected by the new cold call rules?
France’s new ‘anti-cold-call’ laws have been widely publicised and came into force on August 11, 2026.
It bans commercial cold-calling except under two conditions: a person has ‘opted-in’ to receive these, or has an existing relationship (through a live contract) with the company in question.
It means companies will only contact you if you hand your information over, and this includes French landlines, French mobiles, and international mobile phone numbers.
Unlike with the former Bloctel service – now made redundant under the new law – there is no database of numbers that companies are prevented from calling.
Regardless of the main number you use, companies need your prior consent to call.
The law itself is aimed at consumers based in France, and not necessarily French phone holders, although there is of course a large overlap between the two.
There is no specific mention in the law itself that states it only applies to French numbers, or that non-French numbers are excluded.
You have to hand your number over
Generally, however, those with a non-French mobile number are even less likely to be contacted under the new law than those with French numbers.
Not all companies accept non-French numbers when customers attempt to sign up for their service, limiting the number of groups authorised to make calls through the ‘existing customers’ rule.
Their own systems may also stop them from calling international numbers even if information has been handed over, or if you are located abroad at the time the call is made, it may not go through.
This being said, if you have provided a non-French number, either at the point of sale, when logging in to a website, etc, there is still a chance you may be called.
This is even less likely to apply to non-French landlines. Again, there are no rules entirely exempting French companies calling them, but it is highly unlikely a company will have permission to call this specific number.
Scam calls not stopped
The law’s limitations on preventing scam calls also apply to non-French numbers.
Firstly, despite the risk of sanctions, some scammers will simply ignore the new law and continue to call, including non-French numbers they have access to (although will likely be less inclined to call these numbers than those located in France).
It is also harder for French authorities to prevent and sanction calls from international numbers, with many scammers already using international numbers to screen calls or calling directly from abroad.
Information on what you should do if you receive a scam call, including where to report it, is available in our article here.
