What is the FDCPA?

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. §1692 and the sections that follow, governs third-party debt collectors (FDCPA text; 15 U.S.C. §1692a). The CFPB's Regulation F, 12 CFR part 1006, implements the Act. The Bureau issued the rule on October 30, 2020, it was published on November 30, 2020 at 85 FR 76734, and it took effect on November 30, 2021 (Regulation F final rule). Officers and employees of a creditor who collect debts in the creditor's name are excluded from the definition of "debt collector" (15 U.S.C. §1692a, §1692a(6)). The operating limits collectors read every week are calling hours, a 7-in-7 call presumption, a validation notice, and a bar on suits and threats of suit on time-barred debt (12 CFR 1006.6; 12 CFR 1006.14; 12 CFR 1006.34; 12 CFR 1006.26).

It does not answer the bona fide error defense, the cease-communication rule, or which violation is most common. Those lines are left for a quotation of the statute or the CFPB report.

Who the FDCPA applies to

The Act applies to a debt collector as §1692a defines that term, and Regulation F uses the same idea at 12 CFR 1006.2 (15 U.S.C. §1692a; 12 CFR 1006.2). A third-party debt collector and a collection agency collecting debts for another are the usual cases. The definition is in the statute. This page uses the exclusion the next section states and does not paraphrase the rest of §1692a(6).

Does it apply to original creditors?

Generally no. Officers and employees of a creditor collecting debts in the creditor's name are excluded from "debt collector" (15 U.S.C. §1692a, §1692a(6)). The statute also contains exceptions to that exclusion, including a creditor that collects under another name. Those exception lines are in §1692a (15 U.S.C. §1692a). This page does not restate them beyond pointing at the section, because the outline leaves the exception text for a quotation. A creditor that is unsure which side of the line it is on should read §1692a(6) itself.

Commercial debt

Whether the FDCPA applies to commercial debt depends on the statute's definition of "debt" in 15 U.S.C. §1692a(5) (15 U.S.C. §1692a). This page does not paraphrase that definition. Read the quoted word "debt" in the govinfo text before treating a commercial invoice as covered or excluded. Commercial debt collection is a separate operating topic from consumer third-party collection.

Regulation F: what changed in 2021

Regulation F is the CFPB rule that implements the FDCPA. The dates are part of the citation: issued October 30, 2020, published November 30, 2020 in the Federal Register at 85 FR 76734, effective November 30, 2021 (Regulation F final rule). Before that effective date, collectors worked from the statute and older staff guidance. After it, the call-frequency presumption, the validation-notice safe harbor, and the time-barred-debt bar are in the Code of Federal Regulations. The short definition is Regulation F compliance.

Communication rules

Communication, harassment, and unfair conduct are the words the Act uses for how a collector behaves. Regulation F puts numbers on two of those ideas: when a call is presumed inconvenient, and how many calls are presumed to be too many. False or misleading representations and unfair practices remain in the statute and in the CFPB's examples, cited below, without a homemade list.

Calling hours

A debt collector call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. local time at the consumer's location is presumed to be inconvenient (12 CFR 1006.6, 12 CFR 1006.6(b)(1)(i)). The TCPA guide explains why that presumption is not the same sentence as the FCC's telemarketing clock, even though both use 8 a.m. and 9 p.m.

Call frequency: 7 calls in 7 days

Regulation F presumes a violation if a debt collector places more than seven telephone calls to a person within seven consecutive days about a particular debt, or within seven days after having a telephone conversation with that person about the debt (12 CFR 1006.14, 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)). The presumption is about a particular debt. It is the rule collectors call 7-in-7.

Email and text opt-out notice

Electronic mail and text messages used for debt collection have an opt-out notice requirement at 12 CFR 1006.6(d)(4) (12 CFR 1006.6). The notice is how a consumer stops further electronic attempts. It sits next to the TCPA consent question, and it does not replace it.

Limited-content messages

Regulation F defines a limited-content message at 12 CFR 1006.2(j) (12 CFR 1006.2). The elements of that definition are in the regulation. This page names the section and does not invent a script.

Validation notice (Model Form B-1)

A debt validation notice tells the consumer what the debt is and what the consumer can do about it. Regulation F's validation-information rule, including the Model Form B-1 safe harbor, is at 12 CFR 1006.34 (12 CFR 1006.34). Using the model form as the regulation describes is the safe harbor. The glossary entry is the consumer debt validation notice. This page does not reprint the form's fields.

Harassment, false statements, and unfair practices

The FDCPA prohibits harassment or abuse, false or misleading representations, and unfair practices. The CFPB's Ask CFPB page on unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices by a debt collector collects examples of that conduct (CFPB Ask CFPB #1401). Read those examples from the CFPB rather than from a paraphrase here. A cease-communication demand and the bona fide error defense are also in the statute. This page does not state either rule, because each one is marked for a quotation of the section before it is published.

Time-barred debt and debt sales

Time-barred debt is a debt on which the statute of limitations to sue has expired. Regulation F addresses both the lawsuit and the sale.

No suits or threats of suit on time-barred debt

A debt collector must not bring or threaten to bring a legal action on a time-barred debt (12 CFR 1006.26, 12 CFR 1006.26(b)). The time-barred debt definition is the short version. The one-year limit for a consumer to sue the collector, which is a different clock, is in the liability section below.

Debts that cannot be sold or placed

Regulation F restricts the sale, transfer, or placement of certain debts at 12 CFR 1006.30(b) (12 CFR 1006.30). The categories are in that subsection. This page cites the section and does not add a category the regulation does not list.

Who enforces the FDCPA and what violations cost

Enforcement is split. Civil liability is a private lawsuit with a short filing deadline. Complaint volume is a separate, dated count from the CFPB's annual report.

FTC enforcement and CFPB rule-writing

Administrative enforcement, including the Federal Trade Commission's enforcement role and the CFPB's authority to write rules, is addressed in 15 U.S.C. §1692l (15 U.S.C. §1692l). Regulation F is the rule the Bureau wrote under that structure (Regulation F final rule).

Civil liability

A debt collector who fails to comply may be liable for actual damages and, in an individual action, additional damages up to $1,000 (15 U.S.C. §1692k). Class actions are also provided for in §1692k (15 U.S.C. §1692k). A consumer's suit must be brought within one year under §1692k(d) (15 U.S.C. §1692k). That one-year limit is the FDCPA statute of limitations for the consumer's case against the collector. It is not the time-barred-debt rule in Regulation F.

Complaint volume in 2024

The CFPB received about 207,800 debt-collection complaints in 2024, which was 7 percent of all complaints the Bureau received that year. The figure is in the FDCPA annual report published November 21, 2025, covering 2024 (CFPB FDCPA annual report (November 21, 2025)). This page does not rank a "most common violation" from that report. That ranking is left for a quotation of the report's categories.

FDCPA compliance checklist for agencies

  1. Confirm the account is being collected by a debt collector under §1692a, and do not assume an original creditor's own employees are covered when they collect in the creditor's name (15 U.S.C. §1692a).
  2. Treat calls before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. local time as presumed inconvenient (12 CFR 1006.6).
  3. Stay inside the 7-in-7 presumption: not more than seven calls in seven days about a debt, and not within seven days after a conversation about that debt (12 CFR 1006.14).
  4. Include the email and text opt-out notice in 12 CFR 1006.6(d)(4) when those channels are used (12 CFR 1006.6).
  5. Send the validation information, using Model Form B-1 where the safe harbor applies (12 CFR 1006.34).
  6. Do not bring or threaten a lawsuit on time-barred debt (12 CFR 1006.26).
  7. Do not sell or place a debt that 12 CFR 1006.30(b) bars (12 CFR 1006.30).
  8. Keep the one-year civil-liability clock and the $1,000 additional-damages cap in view when a dispute becomes a lawsuit (15 U.S.C. §1692k).

The operating framework that sits next to this checklist is the recovery operations doctrine. Re-aging a credit-reporting date is a different statute; see the re-aging note and the FCRA guide. The compliance and consumer rights hub collects the rest of the indexed research. Calling rules that come from the TCPA rather than Regulation F are in the TCPA guide.

FAQ

Does the FDCPA apply to original creditors?

Generally no. Officers and employees of a creditor collecting in the creditor's name are excluded from "debt collector" (15 U.S.C. §1692a, §1692a(6)). The statute's exceptions, including collection under another name, are in the same section and should be read there (15 U.S.C. §1692a).

What hours can a debt collector call?

Calls before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. local time are presumed inconvenient (12 CFR 1006.6, 12 CFR 1006.6(b)(1)(i)).

How many times can a collector call in a week?

Regulation F presumes a violation above seven calls in seven days about a particular debt, or within seven days after a telephone conversation about that debt (12 CFR 1006.14, 12 CFR 1006.14(b)(2)).

Can a collector sue on time-barred debt?

No. Regulation F bars bringing or threatening a legal action on time-barred debt (12 CFR 1006.26, 12 CFR 1006.26(b)).

What happens if a collector violates the FDCPA?

Actual damages plus, in an individual action, additional damages up to $1,000. Class actions are provided for. The suit must be brought within one year (15 U.S.C. §1692k).

Sources

Accessed October 26, 2026. Statute pages are USCODE-2023 on govinfo. Regulation F was issued October 30, 2020, published November 30, 2020 at 85 FR 76734, and effective November 30, 2021. The complaint count is from the CFPB report published November 21, 2025, covering 2024.

Related guides

FCRA, TCPA, credit cycle, calculating receivables, write-off entries, the ARM industry.

Jeffery Hartman introduces qualified buyers and sellers of charged-off and non-performing debt portfolios. He does not buy debt, act as a broker, or negotiate for either side.