Skip tracing gives you the number. The law decides whether—and how—you may use it. This guide summarises the US and Canadian rules that apply to calling, texting, mailing and emailing the owners you find, and the features a skip tracing service should include to keep you compliant.
This is general information, not legal advice. TCPA litigation is a cottage industry; have counsel review your outreach procedures and consent language.
United States
National Do Not Call Registry (TSR)
- Scrub telemarketing call lists against the Registry at least every 31 days; subscribe through telemarketing.donotcall.gov (area-code based fees).
- Maintain an internal do-not-call list and honour requests immediately.
- Established-business-relationship and written-consent exemptions exist but are narrow.
- Civil penalties exceed $50,000 per violation.
TCPA (47 U.S.C. § 227)
- Prior express written consent for marketing calls/texts to mobiles using an autodialer or prerecorded/artificial voice (including AI voice).
- Calling hours 8am–9pm in the recipient's time zone.
- Revocation rule (effective April 11, 2025): honour revocation by any reasonable means within 10 business days.
- Statutory damages $500–$1,500 per call or text; private right of action; class actions common.
- Manually dialed live calls to a scrubbed list are the lowest-risk phone channel.
State "mini-TCPA" laws
Florida (FTSA), Oklahoma, Washington, Maryland, Texas and others add stricter hours, consent or registration requirements. Tag records by state and apply the strictest applicable rule.
Collections-specific rules
Third-party collectors must also follow the FDCPA and Regulation F (7-in-7 call presumption, limited-content messages, third-party contact limits). See skip tracing for debt collection.
Email and mail
CAN-SPAM permits unsolicited commercial email with accurate headers, a physical address and a working opt-out. Direct mail is unregulated by the TCPA and is the default compliant channel for traced mailing addresses.
Canada
- National DNCL (CRTC): telemarketers must subscribe and scrub; penalties up to $1,500 per violation for individuals and $15,000 for corporations.
- CASL: express or implied consent required before sending commercial electronic messages (email, SMS, DMs); identification and unsubscribe mechanisms mandatory; penalties up to $10 million per violation for organisations.
- PIPEDA and provincial privacy laws govern collection and use of personal information, including data obtained through skip tracing.
More in our Canada guide.
Compliance features to demand from your skip tracing service
| Feature | Why it matters | HomeSage.ai | BatchData | REISkip | PropStream | Skip Genie |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DNC flag in results | Suppress before dialing | Yes | Yes | Not core | Yes | 2¢ add-on |
| Phone type (mobile/landline) | TCPA risk differs by type | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Litigator scrub | Avoid serial TCPA plaintiffs | Check | Yes | Check | Check | Check |
| Confidence score | Reduce wrong-party calls | Yes | Yes | Ranked | Limited | Ranked |
| API for automated scrubbing | Scrub on every import | Yes | Yes | Limited | No | No |
Based on published features as of August 21, 2026; "Check" means confirm with the vendor for your plan.
A compliant outreach checklist
- Scrub every list
National DNC, state DNC, litigator lists and your internal opt-outs—on import and again every 31 days.
- Choose the channel by consent
No consent: manual live calls and direct mail. Consent on file: texts and auto-dialed calls.
- Respect hours and identity rules
8am–9pm local; state your name, company and purpose.
- Capture and store consent and revocations
Timestamp, channel, wording. Honour revocations within 10 business days.
- Train and audit
Script reviews, call recordings where lawful, quarterly audits.
Skip tracing with compliance built in
HomeSage.ai returns DNC flags, phone types and confidence scores in every response so your dialer can suppress risky numbers automatically.
Try HomeSage.aiAffiliate link — we may earn a commission. Promotions and pricing are set by HomeSage.ai and may change.
Frequently asked questions
Can I cold call skip-traced numbers?
Generally yes for live, manually dialed calls if you scrub against the National DNC Registry and state lists, honour internal opt-outs, identify yourself, and call between 8am and 9pm local time. Some states (e.g. Florida, Oklahoma) impose stricter rules—check state law.
Can I cold text skip-traced numbers?
Texts to mobiles using an autodialer or sent in bulk require prior express consent under the TCPA, and many platforms treat all marketing texts as requiring consent. Cold SMS is the most litigated channel—most compliance counsel advise against it.
What are TCPA penalties?
Statutory damages of $500 per violation, trebled to $1,500 for wilful violations, with no cap—class actions routinely settle for millions. DNC Registry violations carry FTC civil penalties exceeding $50,000 per call.
What changed in 2025?
The FCC's one-to-one consent rule was vacated by the Eleventh Circuit in January 2025, but the revocation rule took effect April 11, 2025: consumers can revoke consent by any reasonable means and you must honour it within 10 business days.
What applies in Canada?
CASL requires consent for commercial electronic messages (email, SMS), and the CRTC's National Do Not Call List applies to telemarketing calls with penalties up to $15,000 per violation for corporations.