At the time of the call, you must be able to prove an established business relationship from the account record. It is not a permanent label on a contact. The definition uses two windows measured backward from the time you dial.1 A purchase or transaction qualifies for 18 months immediately preceding the call.2 An inquiry or application qualifies for 3 months immediately preceding the call.3 A repeat purchase restarts the transaction window.4 A company-specific do-not-call request ends the EBR immediately.5
What the exemption covers
First decide whether the planned contact is a telephone solicitation that needs an exemption. This keeps the relationship test focused on the call's purpose.
FCC regulations prohibit telephone solicitations to residential subscribers whose numbers are registered on the National Do-Not-Call Registry.6 A telephone solicitation is the initiation of a call or message to encourage the purchase, rental, or investment in property, goods, or services.7 A call that fits that definition is excluded when the person gave prior express invitation or permission, the call rests on an established business relationship, or the caller has a personal relationship with that person.8
Run the list through these checks
Start with the call you plan to make, then work backward through the account record. Move on only when each answer is clear.
| Stage | What you are trying to learn | Example question |
|---|---|---|
| Call purpose | Whether the planned contact is a telephone solicitation | Will this call encourage a purchase, rental, or investment? |
| Relationship | Whether the person and the caller have a qualifying business relationship | What did this person do with our company, and when? |
| Qualifying event | Whether the record shows a purchase, transaction, inquiry, or application | Which account event supports the call? |
| Timing | Whether that event still sits inside the applicable window | What date should I measure backward from? |
| Suppression | Whether the person has asked this company to stop calling | Has this person requested no further calls from us? |
| Remaining rules | Which national, state, consent, and calling-time rules still apply | What rule remains after the EBR check? |
Prove the relationship before you dial
Use the account history to prove the connection before dialing. The record must connect the person to the same company making the call.
The EBR test requires voluntary two-way communication based on a purchase or transaction with the caller, or on an inquiry about the caller's products or services.9 Pull the event from the account record and identify the company attached to it. Record the event type, the date, the person reached, and the number you plan to call. If the record shows only a shared list, an old brand, or an affiliated company, pause the call and send the relationship for review.
In a DNC dispute, the defendant argued that its calls fell within the rule's exceptions.10 The court left that issue for the jury to decide.11 A contact may look familiar in a sales system even when the relationship is hard to prove outside it.
Measure the right window
After you identify the event, measure backward from the planned call. Review the transaction and inquiry paths separately.
A purchase or transaction with the company supports the EBR for the period immediately preceding the call covered by the transaction window.2 An inquiry or application about the company's products or services supports the shorter inquiry window.3 When the account has more than one event, use the most recent qualifying event. A repeat purchase restarts the transaction window.4
Write the event date beside the planned call record before dialing. If the event type is unclear, do not choose the longer window by default. Resolve whether the record shows a transaction or an inquiry first.
Check suppression separately
Check the company's own do-not-call record separately from the EBR. Search for a request tied to the company making the call, and stop the call path when one appears.
A company-specific do-not-call request terminates the EBR immediately, regardless of whether a time window remains open.5 A company must honor a person's request not to receive calls even when an established business relationship exists.12 Keep that request attached to the person and company, so a later purchase does not reopen the calling path.
Keep EBR inside its lane
An EBR result is one part of the calling decision. Complete the review before treating the number as callable.
The EBR exemption applies to the national do-not-call rules. It does not replace consent or extend calling hours.13 If the relationship record fails, check whether a separate permission route supports the contact. That permission must be shown by a signed written agreement stating that the consumer agrees to be contacted and identifying the telephone number that may be called.14 Keep that permission record separate from the EBR record.
State rules can add their own conditions. Pennsylvania lists calls to a person with whom the seller or telemarketer had an established business relationship during the preceding 12 months as an exception.15 Oregon describes an established business relationship through a previous transaction or series of transactions within the 18 months preceding the call.16 Apply the relevant state review after the federal relationship check. Do not use one state's formulation as a universal rule.
What not to do
- Do not keep calling because a person bought recently if that person asked the company not to call. The request controls even when an EBR exists.12
- Do not carry another company's customer history into your EBR decision without review. A ruling addressed whether exemptions to the National Do-Not-Call prohibition can be transferred.17
- Do not treat the EBR result as permission to ignore consent requirements or calling-time restrictions.13
- Do not let a state-specific EBR period replace the state rule that applies to the call.15