KYC Policy

As part of the STIR/SHAKEN call authentication initiative, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is strengthening “Know Your Customer” (KYC) rules for voice service providers to combat illegal spam and robocalling.

Stopping illegal calls is the FCC’s top consumer protection priority and believes that originating voice service providers are in the best position to prevent scammers and other bad actors from placing illegal calls on telecommunications networks.

The proposed rules include new measures for providers to verify customer identities– including but not limited to business name, address, numbers, contact details of owners and authorized personnel, government issued IDs, EIN/Tax IDs, and a brief explanation of outbound calling criteria.

Key Aspects of the 2026 FCC KYC Proposal:

The primary goal is to prevent scammers from initiating illegal calls by tightening onboarding and customer vetting.

• Verification:  New & returning customers are subject to stricter verification including submitting business tax ID/EIN, Business License and government-issued IDs.
• Originating Providers:  The FCC believes originating service providers are in the best position to stop fraud/spam calls before entering the network.
• Accountability:  The FCC is holding providers accountable for poor customer due diligence, which can result in substantial fines and even network termination. Financial penalties would be based on the volume of illegal calls originating from a carrier’s network.
• Foreign Services: Foreign services would be added to the FCC’s “covered list” and blocked from operating in the U.S.

These proposals follow a unanimous adoption of a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) on April 30, 2026, aiming to close existing gaps in telecom consumer protection.  

Updated May 8, 2026