CFPB Debt Collection Rule (Regulation F) Takes Effect

Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Citation: 85 Fed. Reg. 76734 (Nov. 30, 2020); 86 Fed. Reg. 5766 (Jan. 19, 2021); 12 C.F.R. part 1006
Decided: November 30, 2021
Bottom line: A debt collector generally may not put a debt on your credit report until it has spoken to you or sent you a notice and waited for any undeliverable return.

Background

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) was passed in 1977, long before email and text messaging. Before 2020, Regulation F mostly covered how states could apply for exemptions from the Act. The CFPB, described in its rule as the first federal agency with authority to prescribe substantive FDCPA rules, issued two final rules in late 2020.

The first rule, published November 30, 2020, focused on communications. The second, published January 19, 2021, focused on disclosures and related protections. Both were set to take effect on November 30, 2021. In April 2021, the CFPB proposed delaying that date to January 29, 2022. On July 30, 2021, it announced that it would not delay, saying most industry commenters had stated they would be ready. The rules took effect on November 30, 2021.

What the rule does

The rules apply to “debt collectors” as the FDCPA defines them, which generally means third-party collectors and debt buyers, not original creditors collecting their own debts. Key provisions include:

Call limits. A collector is presumed to violate the FDCPA’s ban on repeated or continuous calls if it calls a person more than seven times within seven days about a debt, or within seven days after a phone conversation about it.
Email and texts. Collectors may use newer technologies, but each email or text must give a simple way to opt out, and a consumer can tell a collector not to use a particular medium.
Validation notice. Collectors must provide specified “validation information” at the start of collection, and the CFPB published a model notice.
Time-barred debt. Collectors may not sue or threaten to sue on a debt after the statute of limitations has run.
Credit reporting. The provision most important for credit reports is 12 C.F.R. § 1006.30(a). It says a debt collector “must not furnish to a consumer reporting agency” information about a debt before it either speaks to the consumer about the debt in person or by phone, or “Places a letter in the mail or sends an electronic message to the consumer about the debt and waits a reasonable period of time to receive a notice of undeliverability.” If the notice comes back undeliverable, the collector may not report until it satisfies the rule another way. A narrow exception covers check-writing history companies.

The second rule’s summary described this as requiring collectors “to take certain actions before furnishing information about a consumer’s debt to a consumer reporting agency.” The practice it targets is sometimes called “passive collection”: putting a debt on a credit report and waiting for the consumer to discover it when applying for credit.

Our take

Regulation F is a mixed result for consumers. The ban on passive credit reporting is a real improvement. Many people first learn of a collection account when a loan or apartment application is turned down; under the rule, a collector must at least try to reach them first. The ban on suing over time-barred debt also matters.

Consumer advocates criticized other parts. The call cap allows up to seven attempts per week for each debt, so a consumer with several accounts can still receive many calls. Collectors may use email and text unless the consumer opts out, rather than needing consent. And because the credit reporting rule can be satisfied by mailing a letter, some consumers may still never actually receive notice before a debt is reported.

Regulation F was adopted through notice-and-comment rulemaking. It is a binding regulation, not guidance, so it was not among the guidance documents the CFPB withdrew in May 2025.

What it means if your report is wrong

If a collection account appears on your credit report and you never heard from the collector, write down when you discovered it and ask the collector, in writing, for its validation information. Dispute any inaccurate collection account with each bureau that shows it and with the collector. Keep envelopes, emails, and call logs, because they show when and how the collector contacted you. A free case review can assess whether a collector’s reporting violated the FDCPA or FCRA, and there is no fee unless we win.

Sources

Primary

Commentary we reviewed

NCLC Digital Library — Comprehensive new FDCPA Regulation F takes effect November 30

Updated November 1, 2026. "Our take" is the firm's opinion. This page is general information, not legal advice, and later decisions may change the law.