TCPA basics for call affiliates: what you can and can't do
The TCPA (Telephone Consumer Protection Act) is the US federal law that controls how businesses may call and text consumers. If you run outbound calls, live transfers, SMS or callbacks for a Marketcall offer, it applies to you, and breaking it is expensive.
This guide covers the rules that matter most for pay-per-call affiliates, shows what valid consent looks like, and goes through real-life examples of what is and isn't allowed.
A TCPA violation means an account ban, even the first time. This is part of our Sanctions. On top of that, consumers can sue you directly, and advertisers can refuse every call that came from non-compliant traffic.
This is a practical summary, not legal advice. Some offers have stricter rules than the law, so always check the offer page. If you're unsure whether your traffic is compliant, ask your affiliate manager before you launch, or speak to a TCPA lawyer.
Does the TCPA apply to my traffic?
The TCPA is mainly about calls and texts that you start. When a consumer sees your ad and dials the number themselves, the TCPA is not the main risk. The moment you or your call center reach out to the consumer, it applies in full.
Inbound calls from ads. Search, social, display, YouTube, GMB: the consumer sees your number and calls it. You still need approved creatives and honest ads, but you aren't placing the call.
Callbacks and live transfers. A consumer fills in a form and your agent calls them back, then transfers the call to the offer. You need consent captured on that form.
Texts, autodialers, robocalls, AI voices and ringless voicemail. All of these count as calls under the TCPA and need prior express written consent before the first message.
The core rules
States can be stricter. Several states have their own "mini-TCPA" laws. Florida, for example, allows sales calls only from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and no more than 3 calls in 24 hours on the same subject. If you call into a state with its own rules, follow the stricter one.
What valid consent looks like
Consent is valid only if the consumer clearly agreed, in writing, to be called or texted by a named company at the phone number they gave you. A signature can be electronic, so a checkbox or a button click counts as long as the wording next to it is clear.
These are the most common ways consent goes wrong:
| ✅ Good | ❌ Bad |
|---|---|
| One or a few sellers named right next to the button | "You agree to be contacted by our marketing partners" with a link to a list of hundreds of companies |
| Consent text above the submit button, in normal size | Consent hidden in the Terms of Service or in tiny grey text |
| Separate, unticked checkbox, or button text that clearly says what you're agreeing to | A pre-ticked checkbox |
| Consent collected on your own landing page for this offer | An old or purchased lead list where you can't prove who agreed to what |
| Phone number typed in by the consumer | A number appended or "enriched" from another source |
About "one-to-one consent". In 2023 the FCC adopted a rule that would have required consent to name just one seller per form. A federal court struck it down in January 2025, so it is not in force. Many advertisers still accept only one-to-one consent, though, so check the offer before you build a form that lists several sellers.
Keep proof of every consent
If a consumer complains, you need to show exactly what they agreed to and when. Store these for every lead, for at least 4 years, which is how long consumers have to bring a TCPA claim:
A third-party certificate is the strongest proof because it records the session independently. See What is Jornaya Lead ID or Trusted Form ID?
Examples: allowed or not?
A consumer clicks your Google ad and calls the number. They started the call, so there is no outbound call for the TCPA to cover. Your ad still has to be approved and match the offer.
A consumer fills in your form at 2 p.m. with clear consent naming the seller. Your agent calls 10 minutes later and transfers the call. You have written consent, you're calling within hours, and you can prove it.
You buy an aged lead list and call it with an AI voice bot. Those consumers never agreed to calls from you or this seller, and the FCC treats AI-generated voices as "artificial voice", which needs written consent.
You text a lead at 9:30 p.m. in their time zone. Texts count as calls, and 9:30 p.m. is outside the 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. window, even if it's only 6:30 p.m. where you are.
A consumer says "stop calling me", but your dialer calls them again next week. The opt-out applies right away, whatever system you use.
A consumer already had a billable call through you, and you call them again to get a second one. This breaks our promotion guidelines, even if you have consent.
Your form says "I agree to be contacted by Acme and its partners". "Partners" doesn't name anyone. Consent is valid only for the companies that are clearly named.
Your call center shows a random local number as caller ID that doesn't belong to you. That's spoofing. The caller ID must be a real number the consumer can call back.
What's at stake
The numbers add up fast. Calling 1,000 consumers without valid consent can mean $500,000 or more in damages, and there's no upper limit.
Not sure your setup is compliant? Send your landing page and consent text to your affiliate manager before you start. For social and live-transfer traffic we also ask for your call center location, an example of the data you use and the opt-in URL. Checking first is much cheaper than a refused campaign.
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