TCPA Statute of Limitations

How the Statute of Limitations Applies to Each Robocall and Text

The TCPA counts violations individually. Section 227(b)(3) awards damages “for each such violation,” and Section 227(c)(5) uses the same language for Do Not Call claims. Because each call is a separate violation, each one starts its own clock on the day it happened.

The result is a rolling window. If a company has been calling you for years, the most recent calls are usually still actionable, while the oldest may have aged out. Waiting does not end the case altogether. It gradually removes your oldest calls from the claim.

Exact cutoff dates depend on how the court where you file counts days, weekends, and holidays. A lawyer can confirm which of your calls are still timely.

Do Not Call Registry Claims: The Call-Count Rule vs. the Filing Deadline

These two rules often get confused. Section 227(c)(5) only lets you sue if you received more than one violating call from the same company within a set period. That requirement is part of what you must prove. It is not your filing deadline.

So a Do Not Call claim raises two separate timing questions:

• Did you receive enough violating calls from the same company close enough together?
• Are those calls still within the limitations period?

Calls from many years ago may satisfy the first test and still fail the second. Recent calls can satisfy both.

TCPA Class Actions and American Pipe Tolling

If someone else filed a class action that covers your calls, your own deadline may have been paused while that case was pending. This rule comes from a case which held that filing a class action suspends the limitations period for members of the proposed class.

Two important limits apply:

• You must fit the class definition. A class of people who received prerecorded calls on cell phones may not be covered by a landline Do Not Call claim.
• Tolling does not revive class actions. In a 2018 case, the Supreme Court held that once class certification is denied, a class member cannot initiate a new class action after the limitations period has run. Tolling can protect an individual claim, not a fresh class case.

If you received a settlement notice, read the class definition and release carefully. A settlement covering your calls will typically release those claims unless you opt out on time. Our guide to TCPA class actions explains opting out versus staying in.

State Robocall and Telemarketing Law Deadlines

Many states have their own robocall and telemarketing laws, and those claims follow state deadlines rather than the federal catch-all. The Worsham court made this point about Maryland’s own telephone statutes, even where state law incorporates TCPA violations.

State deadlines vary, and some states add steps you must take before suing. Florida’s Telephone Solicitation Act, for example, requires a person receiving unwanted marketing texts to reply “STOP” and wait a set period before suing over continued texts (Fla. Stat. 501.059(10)(c)). Check the rules for your state on our state autodialer and telemarketing law pages.

Other Federal Robocall Enforcement Deadlines

You may see other deadlines cited that do not control your private lawsuit:

• FCC fines. Section 227(b)(4)(E) limits how long the FCC has to act against violators. The window is longer when the FCC issues a notice of intentional violation.
• Caller ID spoofing. Section 227(e)(5)(A)(iv) sets the FCC’s deadline to pursue spoofing penalties.
• Telemarketing Sales Rule. The FTC’s rule falls under a different statute. Private suits under 15 U.S.C. § 6104 run from the date you discover the violation and require a substantial amount of actual damages per person. Most consumers never meet that threshold, which is why the TCPA is the usual tool.

What Does Not Pause the TCPA Statute of Limitations

Filing a complaint with the FCC or FTC, or registering on the National Do Not Call Registry, does not stop the clock. These steps are worth taking, and the records can help prove your case, but they are not lawsuits. The same goes for a caller’s promise to “take you off the list.” If calls continue, each new call creates a new claim, while older ones continue to age.

Why You Should Act Before the Legal Deadline

The legal window may seem generous, but evidence often disappears much faster. Carriers keep call records for limited periods. Screenshots are lost when you switch phones. Voicemails get deleted. Spoofed numbers get reassigned, and the lead generators behind campaigns may shut down or rebrand.

The strongest cases are built while calls are still coming in. Start a written record now with our call and text evidence log, and save every voicemail and text as you receive it.

Steps to Take If Your Oldest Robocalls Are Aging Out

1. List every call and text by date, oldest first, and flag any that are close to the limitations cutoff.
2. Check whether a class action already covers the caller. Search the company name with “TCPA settlement” or “class action.” A pending case may have paused your deadline.
3. Estimate the value of your timely calls with the TCPA case value calculator, counting only calls still within the window.
4. If older calls are close to expiring, talk to a lawyer soon rather than later. Our step-by-step guide on how to sue a telemarketer outlines what the filing process involves.

If your calls are recent, you likely have time. Use it to gather proof, not to wait.

TCPA Statute of Limitations FAQ

What is the statute of limitations for a TCPA lawsuit?

The TCPA has no deadline of its own, so courts generally apply the federal catch-all period in 28 U.S.C. 1658(a). Some older state court decisions used shorter state deadlines, but the Supreme Court’s ruling that TCPA claims arise under federal law supports applying the federal period.

Does every robocall or text have its own filing deadline?

Yes. The statute awards damages for each violation, so each call or text is a separate claim that starts its own clock on the day you received it. Older calls drop out over time, while newer calls remain actionable.

Can I still sue if the robocalls started years ago and have not stopped?

Usually, yes, for the more recent calls. The earliest calls may be time-barred, but ongoing calls continue to create new claims. Keep records of the recent ones.

Does filing a complaint with the FCC or FTC extend my TCPA deadline?

No. A government complaint is not a lawsuit and does not pause the limitations period. It can still be useful evidence of when you objected to the calls.

What if a TCPA class action was already filed over the same calls?

Under American Pipe tolling, the deadline for members of the proposed class is paused while the class action is pending. You must fit the class definition, and the pause does not allow a new class action after the period has run.