France Bans Cold-Calling, Flips to Opt-In Consent With Fines Up to €375K Per Call

Starting August 11, 2026, France prohibits unsolicited telemarketing outright, replacing its long-standing opt-out model with a strict opt-in regime. Outbound sales calls are now legal only if the recipient has given prior consent that is free, specific, informed, and revocable, or if the call concerns an existing contractual relationship. That inverts the previous approach, in which consumers had to register on a do-not-call list (Bloctel) to block solicitations that were otherwise permitted by default.

Enforcement carries real weight: individuals who place illegal calls face fines of up to €75,000 per call, and companies up to €375,000 per call. The framing is explicitly consumer-protection — regulators cite the volume of intrusive pitches and, in particular, the exposure of vulnerable people to fraudulent or scam commercial calls as the motivation for a harder rule than the opt-out schemes tried elsewhere.

The practical burden shifts onto businesses and call centers, which must now document valid consent (for example, a checked box on a form) before dialing, or rely on a pre-existing customer contract to pitch new offers. It’s a notable regulatory bet: France is wagering that a mandatory opt-in baseline will curb unwanted calls more effectively than the opt-out registries that other countries have struggled to make stick.