Prior express written consent
Prior express written consent is the TCPA’s standard for marketing robocalls and texts. It is a signed written agreement in which the person clearly authorizes a named seller to contact a specific number using an autodialer or an artificial or prerecorded voice.
Also called: PEWC, express written consent, TCPA consent
The FCC’s rule (47 C.F.R. §64.1200(f)) sets out what the agreement must contain. It must bear the person’s signature, an electronic signature, a checkbox or a typed name on a web form counts under the federal E-SIGN Act, and it must disclose clearly and conspicuously that the person is agreeing to receive marketing calls or texts made with an autodialer or artificial voice, and that consent is not a condition of buying anything.
The standard is stricter than “prior express consent”, which covers informational and transactional messages (an appointment reminder, a delivery update) and can be given verbally or by simply providing a number for that purpose. A 2023 FCC rule that would have required consent to be given one seller at a time, rather than through a lead form naming many partners, was set aside by a federal appeals court in 2025, so the earlier definition stands.
Consent can be withdrawn by any reasonable means, and the burden of proving it existed falls on the caller, which is why businesses keep a record of when, where and how each consent was collected.