France to ban unsolicited telemarketing calls
Points and comments are a snapshot, not live.
France will ban unsolicited telemarketing calls starting August 11, 2026.
The law follows complaints and a joint call by 11 consumer groups. It bans calls without prior consent, which can be withdrawn anytime. Fines reach €375,000 per call for companies and €75,000 for individuals. Consumers can report violations on a government website. Exceptions exist for existing customer relationships and explicit consent. Previous opt-out lists (Bloctel) were often ignored. The ban threatens 40,000-50,000 call-center jobs in Morocco, whose sector relies on France for over 80% of revenue.
What commenters are saying
Commenters broadly welcome the ban, calling it a no-brainer due to scam risks and nuisance. Some note the previous opt-out system (Bloctel) was hacked and often ignored by scammers, so enforcement against non-compliant businesses is key. Others debate extending bans to door-to-door sales and street marketing. A few point out that GDPR already works against legitimate telemarketers, but scams require technical solutions like spoofed-call blocking, which France recently mandated. Concerns about B2B call impacts are dismissed as the law targets consumer calls.