1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE DECEMBER 2020 DEBT COLLECTION RULE

1700 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20552

December 18, 2020

Executive Summary1of the December 2020 

Debt Collection Rule

 This is a Compliance Aid issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The Bureau published a Policy 

Statement on Compliance Aids, available at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/policy-compliance/rulemaking/finalrules/policy-statement-compliance-aids/, that explains the Bureau’s approach to Compliance Aids. 

On December 18, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) issued a final rule 

(December 2020 Rule) amending Regulation F to provide additional requirements regarding

validation information and disclosures provided at the outset of debt collection communications, 

prohibit suits and threats of suits regarding time-barred debt, and identify actions that must be 

taken before a debt collector may report information about a debt to consumer reporting agencies

(CRAs). 

Background

In 2019, the Bureau published a notice of proposed rulemaking (2019 Proposal) to amend 

Regulation F, which implements the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), to prescribe 

federal rules governing the activities of debt collectors. In addition, the Bureau published a 

supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking on March 3, 2020 (2020 Supplemental Proposal)

proposing disclosure requirements related to the collection of time-barred debt. 
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On October 30, 2020,1 the Bureau issued a final rule (October 2020 Rule)to amend Regulation F 

to address most of the provisions in the 2019 Proposal, including communications in connection 

with debt collection and the interpretation and application of the FDCPA’s prohibitions on 

harassment or abuse, false or misleading representations, and unfair practices in debt collection. 

To address the remaining issues from the 2019 Proposal and the 2020 Supplemental Proposal, the 

Bureau has issued the December 2020 Rule. This summary discusses that December 2020 rule, 

specifically, the 1) requirements to provide validation information at the outset of collection

communications, 2) required actions prior to the debt collector reporting a consumer’s debt to 

CRAs, including the three major credit reporting agencies, and 3) a prohibition on suing or 

threatening to sue a consumer to collect a debt for which the applicable statute of limitations has 

expired (a “time-barred debt”).

2 The Bureau is not finalizing the time-barred debt disclosures 

proposed in the 2020 Supplemental Proposal.3 

Validation Information Requirements and Disclosures

The FDCPA requires a debt collector to provide the consumer with certain information when the 

debt collector first communicates with the consumer to collect the debt or shortly thereafter. The 

December 2020 Rule implements the FDCPA’s validation information requirement. The Rule 

requires the debt collector to provide the consumer with certain information related to the debt

and the consumer’s rights (the “validation information”) and imposes certain timing and delivery 

requirements. When this validation information is provided in writing or electronically, the 

document containing the information is commonly referred to as a “validation notice.” 

1 The rule was issued on the Bureau’s website on October 30, 2020, and it was published in the Federal Register on 

November 30, 2020. 85 FR 76734 (Nov. 30, 202o). The December 2020 Rule refers to the October 2020 Rule as the 

“November 2020 Final Rule.” More information about the October 2020 Rule can be found in the October 2020 Rule 

Executive Summary. 

2 The December 2020 Rule is effective November 30, 2021.

3 While these disclosures are not being finalized, note that the FDCPA and October 2020 Rule requirements still apply 

to communications about time-barred debt. For example, a debt collector may not use any false, deceptive, or 

misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of a time-barred debt. Additionally, a debt 

collector may not use unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect a time-barred debt.
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The Rule clarifies that the debt collector may provide the validation information in a validation 

notice delivered in writing or electronically.4 The Rule’s content requirements, the timing and 

delivery requirements, validation period requirements, and the model notice safe harbors are 

discussed below. 

Required Content

Under the December 2020 Rule, the validation notice must include the following validation

information:

 Debt collector communication disclosure: A statement that indicates the communication is

from a debt collector.

 Name5 and mailing information: The debt collector’s name and mailing address, the name

and mailing address of the consumer who owes the debt, and the name of the creditor to

whom the debt is currently owed. Also, if the validation information is provided in

connection with a debt related to a consumer financial product or service (e.g., credit card

debt, mortgage-related debt), the name of the creditor as of the itemization date (see below

regarding “itemization date”).

 Account number: The account number (full or truncated) associated with the debt.

 Itemization-related information: 6 An itemization of the current amount of the debt

reflecting interest, fees, payments, and credits since the itemization date. The “itemization

date” reflects an event in the debt’s history that provides a reference point that consumers 

may recognize. The debt collector may select one of five reference dates as the itemization

date: 1) the last statement date; 2) the charge-off date; 3) the last payment date; 4) the

4 The Rule also allows the debt collector the option to provide the validation information orally during the initial 

communication. However, the Bureau notes that it might be difficult for a debt collector to convey all of the required 

information orally and in a way that meets the requirements of the regulation. As a result, this summary focuses on 

the requirements as they apply to validation notices sent by written and electronic delivery methods.

5 The December 2020 Rule allows the debt collector to disclose the trade name or “doing business as” (d/b/a) name 

instead of the legal name for the debt collector, the creditor to whom the debt is currently owed, and the creditor that 

owned the debt as of the itemization date.

6 If the debt is a residential mortgage debt and a periodic statement is required under Regulation Z at the time the debt 

collector provides a validation notice, the December 2020 Rule establishes a special rule that allows the debt collector 

to provide the most recent periodic statement in lieu of certain itemization-related information requirements.
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transaction date; or 5) the judgment date. The debt collector may disclose the itemizated 

information as of that itemization date on a separate page provided in the same 

communication with the validation notice if the debt collector includes on the validation 

notice, where the itemization would have appeared, a statement referring to that separate 

page. 

 Current amount of the debt: The amount of the debt as of when the validation information

is provided.

 Information about consumer protections: Statements about the consumer’s right to

dispute the debt and request original-creditor information, and rights that apply if the

consumer completes those actions. The statements must include the date the validation

period (i.e., the 30-day period, as discussed below, during which the consumer’s

submission of disputes and requests for original-creditor information about the debt

obligates the debt collector to respond before resuming collection of the debt) will end.

Additionally, for consumer financial product or service debts, a statement directing the

consumer to a page on the Bureau’s website with more information regarding consumer

protections in debt collection.

 Consumer-response information: Prepared statements and prompts that the consumer

may use to take certain actions, such as disputing the debt. On the model notice, the

consumer-response information is formatted as a tear-off that the consumer may detach

and return to the debt collector, if the consumer chooses. If the validation notice is

provided electronically, the consumer-response information must include a statement

explaining how the consumer can take these actions electronically.

The contents above must be “clear and conspicuous,” which is defined in the December 2020 Rule 

to mean readily understandable. If the validation notice is provided in writing or electronically, 

the location and type size also must be readily noticeable and legible to consumers. 

Optional Content

In addition to the required content, if a debt collector wishes to retain the safe harbor for using the 

model notice (discussed below), the debt collector may also include certain optional content in the 

validation notice, provided that the optional content is no more prominent than the required 

content. Optional content includes: 1) the debt collector’s telephone contact information, 2) a 

reference code the debt collector uses to identify the consumer or the particular debt, 3) certain 

payment disclosures, 4) certain electronic communication information, such the debt collector’s 

website or email address, 5) certain Spanish-language disclosures regarding how a consumer may 

request a Spanish-language validation notice, 6) the merchant brand, affinity brand, or facility 
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name associated with the debt, and 7) disclosures specifically required under (or that provide safe 

harbor under) other applicable law.7 

If the validation information is provided electronically, the December 2020 Rule allows the debt 

collector the option to vary the format or content of the notice in certain places to accommodate 

the electronic delivery, such as by including hyperlinks or formatting consumer response prompts 

into fillable fields. 

Delivery Method and Timing Requirements

The validation notice must be provided either: 1) in the debt collector’s initial communication to 

the consumer or 2) within 5 calendar days after the initial communication.8 For purposes of the

validation information, “initial communication” means the first time the debt collector conveys 

information to the consumer about the debt, directly or indirectly. If the consumer pays off the 

debt before the validation information is required to be sent (i.e., prior to the end of the 5 calendar 

days after the initial communication), the debt collector is not required to provide the information. 

If the debt collector provides the validation notice in the initial communication, the debt collector

can provide the required information in whichever method the debt collector chooses for the 

initial communication itself. If provided in the initial communication electronically, the debt 

collector need not comply with E-SIGN requirements, but must comply with the general disclosure 

delivery requirements in the October 2020 Rule (i.e., in a manner reasonably expected to provide 

actual notice and in a form the consumer may keep and access later). The October 2020 Rule also 

contains additional requirements related to electronic disclosures. 

If the debt collector does not provide the validation information in the initial communication, the 

debt collector generally must provide the validation notice no more than 5 calendar days after the 

initial communication. If providing the validation notice during this later period, it must meet the

general disclosure delivery requirements in the October 2020 Rule. If electronic, it must also meet

7 If the debt is not related to a consumer financial product or service, the debt collector also has the option to include the 

content required for validation information that is related to a consumer financial product or service (i.e., the name of 

the creditor that owned the debt as of the itemization date and specific statements about consumer protections). 

8 If providing the validation information orally, the debt collector may only provide it during the initial communication. 

The debt collector may not provide the validation information orally after the initial communication. As discussed 

above, this summary discusses the requirements for the written and electronic delivery methods. 
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the electronic disclosure requirements in the October 2020 Rule, and the debt collector must have

E-SIGN consent.

For purposes of the validation information, the initial communication does not include formal civil 

action pleadings (including proof of claims filed in accordance with the United States Bankruptcy 

Code). Additionally, it does not include any form or notice that is not related to the collection of 

debt and that is expressly required by the Internal Revenue Code, Title V of the Gramm-LeachBliley Act, or any federal or state law or regulation mandating notice of a security breach or privacy 

risk. 

The December 2020 Rule revises the definition of consumer used in the October 2020 Rule. 

“Consumer” now includes both living and deceased consumers. As a result, the debt collector

must provide the validation notice either to the living consumer, or, if the debt collector knows or 

should know the consumer is deceased prior to providing the validation notice, to the person

authorized to act on behalf of the deceased consumer’s estate (e.g., an executor, administrator, or 

personal representative). 

Validation Period Requirements

Under the December 2020 Rule, the debt collector must allow the consumer 30 calendar days

from the date the consumer receives, or is assumed to have received, the validation notice, to 

dispute the debt or request original-creditor information about the debt.9 This 30-day period is 

identified in the rule as the “validation period.” A debt collector may use the date on which the 

consumer is assumed to receive the validation notice to calculate the end date of the validation 

period (even if the debt collector later learns when the consumer received the notice). A consumer 

is assumed to have received the validation notice 5 business days10 after the date the debt collector 

sent it.

During the validation period, the debt collector must not engage in collection activities or 

communications that overshadow, are inconsistent with, or would interfere with the consumer’s 

rights to dispute the debt or request original-creditor information. Additionally, if the consumer 

9 Similarly, if the debt collector provides the validation information orally it must allow the consumer 30 calendar days 

from the date the consumer receives the validation information. As discussed above, the summary discusses 

requirements for the written and electronic delivery methods.

10 For purposes of the December 2020Rule, business days do not include Federalholidays, Saturdays, and Sundays. 
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disputes the debt or requests original-creditor information in writing11 within the validation 

period, the debt collector must cease collection of the debt, or the disputed portion, until the debt 

collector provides the information needed to verify the debt or provides the original-creditor 

information. 

Safe Harbor for Model Validation Notice Use

Under the December 2020 Rule, a debt collector who uses the model validation notice complies 

with the Rule’s content requirements, including that the notice be clear and conspicuous. Use of 

the model validation notice also would not constitute a violation of the October 2020 Rule’s 

prohibition on conduct that “overshadows” a consumer’s rights during the validation period. 

Additionally, a debt collector receives this safe harbor if it uses any of the specified variations of 

the model notice in Appendix B, or if it provides a notice substantially similar to the model notice 

in Appendix B. This includes adding any of the optional disclosures specifically identified in the 

rule, omitting optional disclosures that appear on the model notice, or providing certain 

disclosures on a separate page, as provided for in the Rule. 

If a debt collector includes any additional disclosures beyond: 1) the required validation 

information; 2) the optional disclosures identified in the rule; or 3) any changes to the form that, if 

included, still leave the form substantially similar in substance, clarity, and meaningful sequence 

to the model notice, then the safe harbor generally does not apply with respect to the entirety of 

the validation notice. 

The safe harbor does not cover validation notice delivery method and timing requirements.

Translation into Other Languages

Generally, the December 2020 Rule allows the debt collector the option to send the consumer a 

validation notice completely and accurately translated into any language. If a debt collector 

chooses to offer translated validation notices, the debt collector must provide the translated notice 

with an English-language notice in the same communication as the translated validation notice. 

11 Note that the October 2020Rule allows a consumer to dispute the validity of the debt or request original-creditor 

information electronically through any medium that the debt collector accepts electronic communications from 

consumers. 
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The debt collector may provide the translated notice separately if it previously provided the 

consumer an English-language notice. 

Under the December 2020 Rule, the debt collector must provide a Spanish-language validation 

notice if it included the optional disclosure notifying the consumer of the ability to request Spanish 

translation (discussed above in the Optional Content section), and the consumer made that 

request. The debt collector must provide the consumer a validation notice completely and 

accurately translated into Spanish. 12 

Required Actions Before Credit Reporting

Some debt collectors have historically engaged in “passive collection,” the practice of furnishing

collection information about a debt to a CRA without first taking an action to notify the consumer

about the debt. The December 2020 Rule prohibits this practice. 

Under the December 2020 Rule, before a debt collector furnishes information to a CRA the debt 

collector must do one of the following: 

1. Speak with the consumer in person about the debt; 

2. Speak with the consumer by telephone about the debt; 

3. Mail the consumer a letter about the debt and wait a reasonable period of time to receive a 

notice of undeliverability; or

4. Send the consumer a message about the debt by electronic communication and wait a 

reasonable period of time to receive a notice of undeliverability. 

Each of the four actions identified above requires the debt collector to convey information “about 

the debt” to the consumer. Providing the validation information, discussed above, is one way to 

comply with this requirement, although it is not the only way. 

12 The Bureau plans to make available on its website, prior to the effective date of the December 2020 Rule, a Spanishlanguage translation of the validation notice. The language of a validation notice that a debt collector obtains from the 

Bureau’s website is considered a complete and accurate translation. 
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In taking any of the four actions above, a debt collector must comply with the requirements and 

prohibitions in the October 2020 Rule, including, for example, the prohibition on communications 

at inconvenient or unusual times or places, as applicable.

If a debt collector chooses to comply with this requirement by mailing a letter or sending a 

message electronically, the debt collector cannot immediately begin furnishing information to the 

CRAs after doing so. In these circumstances, the December 2020 Rule requires a debt collector to 

wait a reasonable period of time to receive a notice of undeliverability before furnishing 

information to a CRA. The December 2020 Rule provides that a period of 14 calendar days after 

the letter or electronic message was sent is deemed a “reasonable period of time.” During the 

“reasonable period of time,” the debt collector must permit receipt of, and monitor for, 

notifications of undeliverability from communications providers. 

If the debt collector receives a notice of undeliverability during the “reasonable period of time,” the 

debt collector must not furnish information about the debt to a CRA until it resubmits the 

information about the debt to the consumer using one of the methods identified above. For 

example, if the debt collector receives a notice of undeliverability during the “reasonable period of 

time” after sending an email about the debt to the consumer, the debt collector may not furnish 

information to a CRA until it either 1) speaks with the consumer in person, 2) speaks with the 

consumer by telephone, 3) mails a letter and waits another reasonable waiting period, or 4) sends 

another electronic communication and waits another reasonable waiting period. However, if the

debt collector does not receive a notice that the letter or electronic message was undeliverable

during that reasonable waiting period, the debt collector may furnish information about the debt

to a CRA, even if the debt collector later receives a notice of undeliverability.

The requirements under the prohibition on passive collection do not apply when furnishing 

information to certain specialty CRAs that compile and maintain information on check writing 

history.

Time-Barred Debt

Time-barred debts are debts for which the applicable statute of limitations has expired. The 

statute of limitations is the period during which a person can bring a legal action to collect the 

debt. 

Under the December 2020 Rule, a debt collector is prohibited from bringing or threatening to 

bring a legal action against a consumer to collect a time-barred debt. Proofs of claim filed in 

connection with a bankruptcy proceeding are not included in this prohibition.
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Additional resources and implementation support 

Other implementation resources and updates on future debt collection rulemakings are available 

at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/policy-compliance/guidance/other-applicablerequirements/debt-collection/.