Texas Telemarketing Registration and Texting Rules

Texas regulates commercial texting differently than most states, and the difference catches national senders off guard. While states like Florida built their laws around consent requirements, the centerpiece of Texas law is registration: many businesses that make telephone solicitations into Texas, including by text message, must register with the state and post security before sending a single message. Skipping that step is not a paperwork foot fault. It exposes the sender to state enforcement, deceptive trade practices liability, and a separate Texas statute that lets individual recipients sue.

Here is the core rule in one sentence: under Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 302, a seller must obtain a registration certificate from the Texas Secretary of State before making telephone solicitations from Texas or to purchasers located in Texas, unless a statutory exemption applies, and Texas courts and regulators treat text messages as telephone solicitations for this purpose.

What Chapter 302 Requires

Chapter 302, the Texas Telemarketing Disclosure and Privacy Act's registration component, is administered by the Texas Secretary of State. The essentials:

• Who is covered. A "seller" who makes, or engages others (salespersons) to make, telephone solicitations to purchasers in Texas or from a location in Texas. A "telephone solicitation" is a call or other telephone communication initiated to induce a person to purchase, rent, claim, or receive an item. Senate Bill 140, effective September 1, 2025, amended that definition to expressly include the transmission of a text or graphic message or an image, so SMS and MMS marketing now falls inside Chapter 302 by statute rather than by interpretation.
• Registration. The seller must file a registration statement with the Secretary of State and obtain a registration certificate before doing business. Registration is per business location, must be renewed annually, and the filing includes detailed disclosures about the business, its principals, its salespersons, and the goods or services being offered.
• Fee and security. The statute requires a filing fee of $200 for each business location and the posting of security in the amount of $10,000, in the form of a bond, an irrevocable letter of credit, or a certificate of deposit. The security exists so that injured consumers and the state have something to recover against.
• Ongoing duties. Registrants must keep the filed information current and disclose material changes.

The registration model means the compliance question comes before the campaign. Consent, content, and quiet hours still matter under federal law and other statutes, but in Texas the first question is simpler: are you registered, or are you exempt?

How Text Messages Fall Under "Telephone Solicitation"

Senders once argued that Chapter 302 was a "telemarketing call" law that did not reach SMS. Senate Bill 140 settled the question: effective September 1, 2025, the definition of "telephone solicitation" expressly covers the transmission of a text or graphic message or an image intended to induce a purchase, rental, or claim. The operating assumption for any promotional texting program that touches Texas numbers is that Chapter 302 applies unless an exemption fits. One important development narrows the practical burden. In a November 2025 settlement of litigation over SB 140's application to text messaging, the state agreed that genuinely consent-based marketing texts are exempt from Chapter 302's registration, bonding, and quarterly reporting requirements. That position reflects enforcement intent rather than binding precedent for courts or non-parties, and it does not reach cold prospecting texts, which remain subject to the full registration regime. Opt-in senders also remain subject to Chapter 304 (Texas no-call), Chapter 305 (caller identification), the Texas DTPA, and the federal TCPA.

Note the reach in both directions: the law covers solicitations made from Texas as well as solicitations made to purchasers located in Texas. An out-of-state company texting Texas consumers is inside the statute's scope, and a Texas-based company texting other states still needs to register for its Texas operations.

Who Is Exempt

Chapter 302 contains a long list of statutory exemptions. The categories below are the ones that matter most often; the statute's own language controls, and several exemptions have detailed conditions:

Two warnings about this table. First, exemptions are construed against the party claiming them, so "we are probably an established retailer" is not a compliance position, it is a litigation position. Second, being exempt from registration does not exempt anyone from the TCPA, the federal do-not-call rules, or Texas's other telemarketing provisions. Texas is one of many states layering additional rules on top of federal law, a trend we explain in what a mini-TCPA is.

Enforcement and the Private Right of Action

Chapter 302 has real consequences on several fronts:

1. State enforcement. Violations can draw civil penalties, and knowingly operating without registration can rise to criminal liability under the chapter.
2. DTPA tie-in. A violation of Chapter 302 is actionable as a deceptive trade practice under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act, which brings its own remedies, including the possibility of multiplied damages for knowing conduct.
3. Chapter 305 private lawsuits. Separately, Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 305 gives individuals a private right of action against senders who violate 47 U.S.C. 227 (the federal TCPA) or its regulations. A successful plaintiff can recover the greater of actual damages or $500 per violation, and a court may treble the award for knowing or intentional violations. Because Chapter 305 piggybacks on federal violations, a single unlawful text campaign into Texas can generate parallel federal TCPA claims and Texas statutory claims.

Stack those layers and the exposure math becomes serious quickly, which is the same dynamic that has made Florida a texting litigation hotspot under its FTSA, as we detail in our guide to Florida FTSA text messaging rules.

A Compliance Checklist for Texting Into Texas

• Determine coverage first. If your texts induce purchases and reach Texas numbers, assume Chapter 302 applies until you confirm an exemption in the statute's text, ideally with counsel.
• Register before sending. File with the Texas Secretary of State, pay the per-location fee, post the required security, and calendar the annual renewal.
• Keep federal compliance in place. Prior express written consent for marketing texts, quiet hours (8 am to 9 pm under 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1)), immediate STOP processing, and do-not-call scrubbing all still apply.
• Honor Texas's no-call framework. Texas maintains its own no-call list provisions in addition to the national registry.
• Identify yourself honestly. Deceptive sender identity or misleading offers convert a registration problem into a DTPA problem.
• Document consent and opt-outs. Chapter 305 claims ride on TCPA violations, so the records that defend a federal claim defend the Texas claim too.
• Reassess when your business changes. New locations, new product lines, or losing exemption status (for example, going private or changing retail footprint) can change your registration duties.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Requirements vary by jurisdiction and change over time, so confirm your own obligations with qualified counsel or the relevant regulator.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to register in Texas just to send marketing text messages?

It depends on how the messages are sent. Since Senate Bill 140 took effect on September 1, 2025, marketing texts are telephone solicitations under Chapter 302, so cold outreach to Texas purchasers requires registration with the Texas Secretary of State, the per-location filing fee, and the security posting. Under a November 2025 settlement, the state treats genuinely consent-based marketing texts as exempt from the registration, bonding, and quarterly reporting requirements. That is an enforcement position rather than binding precedent, so opt-in programs should still document consent carefully and confirm their footing with counsel.

Does Chapter 302 apply to companies located outside Texas?

Yes. The chapter reaches solicitations made to purchasers located in Texas as well as solicitations made from Texas. An out-of-state sender texting Texas consumers cannot avoid the statute by pointing to its home state.

What is the penalty for texting without registering in Texas?

Unregistered solicitation can trigger state civil penalties and, for knowing violations, criminal liability under Chapter 302, and each violation is independently actionable as a deceptive trade practice under the Texas DTPA. If the same campaign also violates the federal TCPA, recipients can sue under Texas Chapter 305 for the greater of actual damages or $500 per violation, with trebling available for knowing or intentional conduct.

Are nonprofits exempt from Texas telemarketing registration?

Organizations exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) are among the statutory exemptions when soliciting for their own purposes. Nonprofits should still maintain TCPA-grade consent and opt-out practices, since the federal texting rules and carrier standards apply regardless of registration status.

Is there a Texas quiet hours rule for texts?

Texas telemarketing law includes calling-hour restrictions for solicitations, and the federal window of 8 am to 9 pm recipient local time under 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1) applies in all states. The conservative national practice is an 8 am to 8 pm recipient local time window, which also satisfies the strictest common state rules.

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