SMS Country regulations and restrictions

United States

Available countries

All SMS messaging in the United States of America is governed by the CTIA – The Wireless Association. Strict rules are in place to regulate USA messaging, and it is important to work closely with your sales advisor to ensure your program complies with the latest regulations. Many of these regulations also affect Puerto Rico.

Short codes are ideal for marketing messages, any form of bulk messaging, or messages containing URLs as the throughput (messages able to be sent per second) is very high. The regulations for US short codes will be provided to you once your application is approved. You can also view can be viewed in the CTIA Short Code Monitoring Handbook. Clickatell recommends using short codes for important and high-volume messaging.

Long numbers (also known as 10-Digit Long Codes or 10DLCs) are typically used for sending person-to-person communication like appointment reminders, alerts, and announcements. As of 2023, there are much stricter registration requirements in place overseen by The Campaign Registry (TCR), including a mandatory campaign vetting process. The main prerequisite is that end-users must willingly and visibly opt-in to receive text messages. More information is available here.

The restrictions below only apply to long numbers.

Our expert advisors are up to date with the latest US messaging regulations and can guide you as you set up and maintain your program. Please click here to get started.

Restriction Description
DND exists No
Time restrictions No
International vs local split No
Local traffic N/A
International traffic N/A
General content restrictions
  • SHAFT (Sex, Hate, Alcohol, Firearms, and Tobacco) content.
  • Phishing messages that appear to come from reputable companies and trick consumers into revealing personal information.
  • Depictions or endorsements of violence, hate speech, or otherwise engaging in threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, libelous, deceptive, or fraudulent behavior.
  • Pornographic and/or adult entertainment content.
  • High-risk content that typically generates a high amount of end-user complaints, such as:
    • Debt restructuring/refinancing offers
    • Debt relief offers
    • Payday loan offers
    • Home loan offers
    • Insurance quotes
    • Earn-money-from-home job offers
    • Gambling/betting-related content
  • Public URL shorteners (e.g., bit.ly, tinyurl.com and many others) have an extremely high probability of being blocked.
    • Full URLs and proprietary URL shorteners have a better chance of success
  • Recipients need to consent to receive marketing communication in writing (i.e., email or other) before you start sending marketing messages to them.
  • The symbol for Euro (€) is not supported.
Here are some best practices for staying compliant and preventing messages from being suspended or blocked.
Content registration required No
Opt-out instructions required Yes
  • Each marketing SMS must contain an opt-out option.
Sender ID regulations
  • All messages must either be sent and delivered with a US short code or long code.
  • The message limits are described here. Exceeding this limit could result in your messages being marked as spam and not being delivered.
Sender ID registration offered by Clickatell Not supported
Sender ID documentation required N/A
Country supports MNP Yes

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