Does email consent expire?

Under GDPR, explicit consent does not have a fixed expiration date, but it must remain informed and unambiguous. For CASL, implied consent typically lasts 2 years after a purchase or 6 months after an inquiry. CAN-SPAM doesn't require prior consent, but mandates an opt-out mechanism.

What is the difference between explicit and implied consent?

Explicit consent requires an affirmative action from the subscriber, such as checking a box. Implied consent is inferred from an existing business relationship or interaction, with specific time limits depending on the jurisdiction.

What consent records should I keep?

You should maintain records of when and how consent was obtained, including the date, time, method (e.g., website form), the specific language used, and the subscriber's IP address. This is crucial for demonstrating compliance.

What happens if I don't honor unsubscribe requests quickly?

Failing to honor opt-out requests promptly can lead to significant legal penalties, damage to your sender reputation, and increased spam complaints, which can result in your emails being blocked by mailbox providers or your domain being added to a blacklist.

How do different international laws impact my consent rules?

For email marketing, the strictest laws usually apply. If you target recipients in different regions (e.g., US, EU, Canada), it's generally best practice to adhere to the most stringent requirements, such as GDPR's explicit consent, to ensure broad compliance.

How long does email consent last, and what are the rules? - Compliance - Email deliverability - Knowledge base

Email consent is a foundational element of effective and ethical email marketing. It dictates whether you have permission to send messages to someone and, crucially, for how long that permission remains valid. Navigating the complexities of email consent, especially across different regions and evolving legal frameworks, can be challenging. Understanding the various types of consent and their associated rules is essential to ensure your campaigns are not only compliant but also well-received by your audience.

Ignoring consent rules can lead to significant penalties, damage to your sender reputation, and ultimately, poor email deliverability. This means your messages could end up in spam folders or be outright blocked. Building and maintaining a healthy email list starts with a clear understanding of what constitutes valid consent and how long it lasts in various legal jurisdictions.

Email marketing laws vary significantly around the world, making it imperative to understand the regulations relevant to your audience. The three most prominent regulations are the CAN-SPAM Act in the United States, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe, and Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL).

The CAN-SPAM Act, unlike other major laws, does not require prior opt-in consent before sending commercial emails. Instead, it focuses on providing recipients with a clear opt-out mechanism and mandates accurate header information, a physical address, and clear identification of the message as an advertisement. While it doesn't require explicit consent, building your list through ethical means is still crucial for deliverability.

In stark contrast, the GDPR in Europe demands explicit, informed, and unambiguous consent for email marketing. This means users must actively opt-in, for example, by checking a box, and you must clearly state what they are consenting to. Implied consent is generally not sufficient under GDPR. Managing consent across regions can be complex, often requiring the highest standard of consent to be applied globally.

Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) also requires explicit consent for commercial electronic messages, similar to GDPR. However, CASL recognizes a concept of implied consent in certain circumstances, such as an existing business relationship (e.g., a purchase within the last two years) or an inquiry (within the last six months). These timeframes are crucial when relying on implied consent under CASL. Failure to comply with these laws can lead to severe penalties and reputational damage, potentially resulting in your domain being placed on a blacklist (or blocklist).

Regulation	Consent Type	Duration	Opt-Out Requirements
CAN-SPAM Act (US)	No prior consent required, opt-out basis.	Indefinite, until unsubscribe request is made.	Clear, conspicuous unsubscribe mechanism. Must honor within 10 business days.
GDPR (Europe)	Explicit, informed, unambiguous consent required.	Consent remains valid until withdrawn, but needs re-engagement.	Easy to withdraw consent at any time. Must be as easy as giving consent.
CASL (Canada)	Explicit consent preferred. Implied consent allowed in specific cases.	Explicit: No expiry. Implied: 2 years (business relationship), 6 months (inquiry).	Clear unsubscribe mechanism. Must honor within 10 business days.

The duration of email consent largely depends on the type of consent obtained and the jurisdiction. For explicit consent, particularly under GDPR, consent itself doesn't expire. However, it's not indefinite. You must be able to demonstrate that the consent is still freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous. This implies a need for periodic re-engagement and clear records of when and how consent was obtained. If a subscriber hasn't engaged with your emails for an extended period, it's wise to consider re-permission campaigns or sunsetting inactive subscribers.

For implied consent, particularly under CASL, specific time limits apply. If a customer has made a purchase, their implied consent to receive marketing emails generally lasts for two years from the date of the last transaction. For those who have made an inquiry, but not a purchase, the implied consent period is typically six months from the date of the inquiry. After these periods, you must obtain express consent to continue sending them commercial electronic messages. More on this can be found regarding implied consent after a content download.

Best practices for consent longevity

Regularly Audit: Periodically review your subscriber list to identify inactive contacts or those whose consent might have expired.
Re-Permission Campaigns: For aging lists or inactive segments, send a dedicated re-engagement email asking subscribers to reconfirm their interest. This helps maintain a healthy list and improve email deliverability.
Clear Opt-in: Always aim for explicit consent when possible. This provides the strongest legal basis and typically leads to more engaged subscribers.

Even with implied consent, maintaining consistent engagement is critical. If you rely on an existing business relationship but don't email them regularly, their interest (and thus, your implied consent) can wane, leading to deliverability issues. It's often recommended to seek fresh explicit consent if there's been a long period of inactivity, even if a statutory implied consent period hasn't technically expired. This proactive approach helps avoid spam complaints and being added to a blocklist (or blacklist).

Beyond the duration of consent, several rules govern how you obtain, manage, and honor it. The golden standard is express consent. This means individuals have clearly and affirmatively agreed to receive your marketing emails. This is best achieved through practices like: a clear checkbox on a form (unchecked by default), a double opt-in process (where they confirm via email), or a clear verbal agreement if applicable, with documented proof.

For effective consent management, you need a robust system to record and prove consent. This includes: the date and time of consent, the method used (e.g., website form, API), the specific language used at the time of consent, and the individual's IP address. This documentation is crucial for demonstrating compliance if ever challenged. Ensuring your systems for managing unsubscribes is also a core requirement of all major regulations.

Express consent

This is the clearest form of consent, where a subscriber actively agrees to receive emails. It's often required by stricter regulations like GDPR and CASL.

Method: Typically a checkbox, form submission, or double opt-in process where the user takes an explicit action.
Duration: Generally lasts indefinitely until the subscriber opts out. However, continuous engagement is expected to maintain its validity.
Benefit: Highest level of compliance, leads to lower spam complaints, and better engagement rates.

Implied consent

This type of consent is inferred from an existing relationship or interaction with your business. It is permitted under certain laws, such as CAN-SPAM (which doesn't require prior consent) and CASL, with specific time limits.

Method: Based on a transaction, inquiry, or existing business relationship within a defined timeframe.
Duration: Time-limited, e.g., 2 years after a purchase or 6 months after an inquiry under CASL.
Risk: Higher risk of spam complaints if not managed carefully, can impact domain reputation.

Promptly honoring opt-out requests is also non-negotiable. Most regulations, including CAN-SPAM and CASL, require you to process unsubscribe requests within 10 business days. Failure to do so can result in significant fines and severely damage your sender reputation. It's critical to ensure your unsubscribe mechanisms are easy to find and use, ideally via a single click, as highlighted by best practices for one-click unsubscribe links. Always retain records of unsubscribe requests, which is a legal requirement in many places.

The risks of non-compliance

Non-compliance with email consent laws carries substantial risks beyond just legal penalties. Sending emails without proper consent can lead to high spam complaint rates, a severely damaged sender reputation, and getting your IP addresses or domains added to major email blocklists (or blacklists). Once on a blocklist, your emails may be rejected by most inbox providers, severely hindering your ability to communicate with legitimate subscribers. Even if you aren't legally penalized, the inability to reach your audience can be a significant business impact. The consequences of non-compliance are far-reaching.

Furthermore, mailbox providers like

Google and

Yahoo have their own strict policies regarding unsolicited mail, even if it falls within the technicalities of a less stringent law like CAN-SPAM. These providers prioritize user experience, meaning they will filter or block emails that generate high complaint rates, regardless of legal technicalities. Building a list with explicit consent and maintaining it through regular engagement is the best defense against deliverability issues. This also includes understanding how ESPs and blocklists impact sender reputation.

Example: retaining consent records

It is crucial to keep detailed records of every consent obtained. This typically includes the following information:

Consent record example (JSON)json

{
  "email": "john.doe@example.com",
  "consent_type": "explicit",
  "timestamp": "2023-10-26T10:30:00Z",
  "source": "website_signup_form_v2",
  "ip_address": "192.168.1.100",
  "consent_text": "I agree to receive marketing emails from Suped.",
  "privacy_policy_version": "1.2",
  "opt_out_status": "active"
}

Maintaining these records is a key requirement for proving compliance, especially under GDPR, and can protect you in case of an audit or complaint. You should also have a clear process for handling opt-outs and their expiration.

The potential costs of non-compliance can be staggering. Under CAN-SPAM, each separate email in violation can incur penalties of up to $53,088. For GDPR, fines can reach up to €20 million or 4% of annual global turnover, whichever is higher. CASL also carries substantial penalties, up to $10 million for organizations. Beyond fines, the damage to your brand reputation and the trust of your subscribers can be irreparable, leading to a long-term decline in engagement and revenue. This underscores why proactive consent management is not just a legal obligation but a business imperative.

Views from the trenches

Best practices

Always prioritize explicit consent, as it provides the strongest legal basis for sending marketing emails.

Implement a double opt-in process to verify email addresses and confirm subscriber intent.

Maintain meticulous records of consent, including timestamps, IP addresses, and the specific language used.

Regularly clean your email lists to remove inactive or disengaged subscribers and prevent spam traps.

Ensure your unsubscribe process is straightforward and honor requests promptly, within 10 days.

Common pitfalls

Assuming implied consent is sufficient for all regions, especially when targeting EU or Canadian audiences.

Failing to track the expiration dates for implied consent relationships, leading to non-compliant sends.

Using pre-checked boxes for opt-in, which is not considered explicit consent under stricter regulations.

Not having a clear, easily accessible unsubscribe link in every commercial email.

Neglecting to remove unsubscribed contacts from all marketing lists within the legally mandated timeframe.

Expert tips

Consider applying the strictest global consent standards to all your email marketing, simplifying compliance.

Segment your audience based on their consent type and regional regulations to tailor your sending practices.

Use re-permission campaigns for inactive subscribers or those whose implied consent is nearing expiry.

Regularly review and update your privacy policy and consent language to reflect current laws.

Monitor your email deliverability metrics closely, as increased spam complaints often indicate consent issues.

Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says we must move away from the mindset that simply possessing an email address grants permission to send mail, citing an instance where a company added them to a list years after a conference.

2019-06-03 - Email Geeks

Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks says they found it unbelievable that implied interest could be stretched to such an extent.

2019-06-03 - Email Geeks

Key takeaways for compliant email marketing

Understanding how long email consent lasts and the rules surrounding it is vital for any email marketer. While some regions allow for implied consent with specific time limits, explicit consent is increasingly becoming the global standard and best practice for maintaining a high-quality, engaged email list.

Proactive consent management, transparent opt-in processes, and prompt handling of unsubscribe requests are not just legal requirements; they are fundamental to building trust with your audience and ensuring your emails consistently reach the inbox. Staying informed about evolving regulations and maintaining diligent records will safeguard your email program against penalties and bolster your sender reputation.