AI Calls and the Do Not Call Registry

The National Do Not Call Registry restricts telephone solicitations to registered numbers, and it applies whether the caller is a person or an AI agent. But for AI calls the registry is the second hurdle, not the first: because AI voices count as artificial voices under the TCPA, AI marketing calls already need prior express written consent. Valid written consent generally covers both requirements.

Here's how the registry, your own do-not-call list and consent fit together. General information only; not legal advice.

Three separate rules

Rule	What it covers	Who enforces
National Do Not Call Registry	Telephone solicitations to registered residential and wireless numbers	FTC (TSR) and FCC (TCPA)
Internal (company-specific) do-not-call list	Anyone who asked your business not to call	FTC and FCC
Artificial-voice consent	Calls using an artificial or prerecorded voice, including AI voices	FCC (TCPA)

A call can pass one and fail another. An AI call to a customer who isn't on the registry still fails if they never consented to artificial-voice calls. A call to someone with consent fails if they later told you to stop.

When the registry matters for AI calls

The registry rules apply to telephone solicitations: calls encouraging the purchase of goods, services or property. They don't apply to purely informational calls, such as appointment confirmations or "your order is ready."

For AI telemarketing calls:

1. You need prior express written consent that covers artificial-voice calls (TCPA).
2. That signed written agreement also generally satisfies the registry's exception for calls made with the person's written permission.

So in practice, AI sales calls should only go to people who gave written consent. If you have it, the registry status matters less; if you don't, the AI call shouldn't happen at all.

Where established business relationships fit

The registry rules have an exemption for an "established business relationship" (EBR): generally up to 18 months after a purchase or transaction, or three months after an inquiry. That exemption lets a live person make sales calls to a customer on the registry.

It doesn't help with AI calls. The EBR exemption for artificial-voice calls to residential lines was removed in 2012. Don't use "they're a customer" as a reason to send AI marketing calls.

The internal do-not-call list

Any business making telemarketing calls must keep its own do-not-call list and honor requests made to it:

• If someone says "don't call me again," add them, whether they're on the national registry or not.
• Honor the request within a reasonable time. Current FCC rules set the maximum at 10 business days.
• Have a written policy and train anyone (or any system) making calls on it.

For AI agents, the most common way people make this request is on the call itself. Your agent's instructions need to accept it plainly and end the call. See handling opt-outs on AI calls and texts.

Scrubbing: the safe harbor process

The TSR and TCPA offer a "safe harbor" if a call to a registered number happens by mistake, provided you have a proper process. The key elements:

• Written do-not-call procedures.
• Training for anyone who places or schedules calls.
• A registry subscription for the area codes you call (the first five area codes are free).
• Scrubbing your call list against the registry at least every 31 days.
• Recording and honoring internal do-not-call requests.
• Proof that the mistaken call was an error, not a pattern.

Small businesses often skip the registry subscription because they "only call customers." If any of your AI calls are promotional, subscribe and scrub.

Business numbers

The national registry is aimed at consumers, and calls to business lines are generally outside its protection. But many small business owners use their cell phone for work, and AI-voice consent rules apply to calls to cell numbers no matter who answers. Treat any number you can't confirm as a business landline like a consumer number.

A simple workflow for small teams

1. Before any AI calling campaign, export the list of numbers.
2. Remove anyone on your internal do-not-call or opt-out list.
3. Confirm each remaining number has consent matching the call's purpose.
4. For marketing calls, check against the national registry if any consent is questionable, and drop those numbers.
5. Place calls inside the allowed hours. See AI calling hours rules.
6. After the campaign, add every "don't call" response to your internal list.

Scenarios

Situation	Registry issue?	AI call allowed?
Customer booked an appointment; AI calls to confirm it	No, informational	Yes, with prior express consent
Past customer on the registry; AI calls with a spring promotion; no written consent	Yes	No
Lead signed a web form with artificial-voice marketing consent; number is on the registry	Covered by written permission	Yes, if consent is current and not revoked
Customer told a staff member last month "don't call me"	Internal list	No
Number on the registry, customer bought from you two months ago, live staff call with an offer	EBR exemption may apply	Live call possibly; AI call no
Small business landline, AI call about a B2B service	Registry generally doesn't cover businesses	Only with consent for artificial-voice calls if it's a cell or uncertain

The pattern: for AI calls, start with consent. Registry and internal-list checks come after.

Record keeping for do-not-call compliance

Keep a simple log that shows your process works:

• The date of each registry download and which area codes it covered.
• The date each call list was scrubbed.
• Every internal do-not-call request: number, date, channel, and date honored.
• Training records for staff who schedule AI calls.

If you're ever asked about a call to a registered number, this log is what shows the call was an exception rather than a practice.

Common misunderstandings

"The registry only covers landlines." Wireless numbers can be registered too.

"Registrations expire after five years." They used to. Registrations no longer expire unless the number is disconnected and reassigned or the person removes it.

"Nonprofit exemption covers us." Tax-exempt nonprofits calling on their own behalf are exempt from registry rules, but not from artificial-voice consent rules.

"AI calls are just like live calls." For the registry, close enough. For consent, no: AI calls are treated like prerecorded calls.

How Callata helps

Callata keeps an opt-out list for each account. Anyone who texts STOP, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END, QUIT, STOPALL, REVOKE or OPTOUT to your number is added automatically, and Callata blocks outbound AI calls to numbers on that list. Before each outbound AI call, the person starting it confirms they have consent and states the purpose. Callata doesn't check the National Do Not Call Registry for you; scrub marketing lists yourself.

Callata Office is $99 per month for up to five users, with extra users at $20 each and AI agents billed at $0.25 per minute from prepaid packs. Get Callata.