10DLC Registration: Deadlines and Requirements 2025

As of February 2025, 10DLC registration is mandatory for all business SMS messaging in the United States. This guide walks you through the complete registration process, requirements, and how to avoid common pitfalls.

The February 2025 Deadline

Important: As of February 1, 2025, all major US carriers (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon) block unregistered A2P SMS traffic. If you haven't registered, your messages are not being delivered.

What This Means

Unregistered 10DLC messages are blocked at the carrier level
There are no grace periods or exceptions
Even low-volume senders must register
Phone numbers without registration cannot send SMS

Registration Overview

The 10DLC registration process has two main steps:

Brand Registration - Register your business with The Campaign Registry (TCR)

Campaign Registration - Register your specific messaging use case

Let's walk through each step in detail.

Step 1: Brand Registration

Brand registration identifies your business to carriers. You need to provide:

Required Information

Field	Description	Example

Legal business name	Exact name as registered	Acme Corporation Inc.
DBA (if applicable)	Doing business as	Acme Co
EIN	Employer Identification Number	12-3456789
Business type	Entity type	Private company
Industry vertical	Primary industry	Technology
Physical address	Business address	123 Main St, SF, CA 94105
Website	Business website	https://acme.com
Support email	Contact email	support@acme.com
Support phone	Contact phone	+14155551234

Business Types

Type	Description	Trust Score

Public company	Traded on stock exchange	Higher
Private company	LLC, Corp, etc. with EIN	Medium-High
Sole proprietor	Individual with no EIN	Lower
Non-profit	501(c)(3) organization	Medium
Government	Government entity	Higher

Industry Verticals

Common verticals include:

Technology
Healthcare
Finance/Banking
E-commerce/Retail
Education
Real Estate
Hospitality

Your vertical affects campaign approval requirements. Healthcare and finance face stricter scrutiny.

Brand Registration Timeline

Standard: 1-2 business days
With issues: Up to 5 business days
Rejected: Requires resubmission (add 3-5 days)

Step 2: Campaign Registration

After brand approval, you register your messaging campaign. Each campaign describes a specific use case.

Campaign Use Cases

Use Case	Description	Approval Difficulty

2FA/OTP	Verification codes	Easy
Account notifications	Order updates, alerts	Easy
Customer care	Support conversations	Easy
Delivery notifications	Shipping updates	Easy
Fraud alerts	Security notifications	Easy
Marketing	Promotional messages	Moderate
Mixed	Multiple use cases	Moderate
Polling/Voting	Survey messages	Moderate
Higher education	University messaging	Easy
Public service	Government/emergency	Easy

Required for Each Campaign

Use case description - Clear explanation of message purpose

Sample messages - 2-3 example messages you'll send

Opt-in description - How users consent to messages

Opt-out keywords - Usually STOP, UNSUBSCRIBE

Help keywords - Usually HELP, INFO

Message flow - When and why messages are sent

Sample Message Examples

Good example (2FA):

text
Your Acme verification code is 847293.
This code expires in 10 minutes.
If you didn't request this, please ignore.

Good example (Order notification):

text
Your Acme order #12345 has shipped!
Track: https://acme.com/track/12345
Reply STOP to unsubscribe.

Bad example (missing opt-out):

text
Flash sale! 50% off everything today!
Shop now: https://acme.com/sale

Always include opt-out instructions for marketing messages.

Campaign Registration Timeline

Campaign Type	Approval Time

2FA/OTP	1-2 days
Transactional	1-2 days
Low-volume standard	2-3 days
Marketing	3-5 days
High-risk verticals	5-10 days

Trust Scores and Throughput

After registration, you receive a Trust Score that determines messaging limits.

Trust Score Levels

Trust Score	Throughput	Typical Business

Low	1 msg/sec	Unvetted sole proprietor
Medium-Low	2 msg/sec	New small business
Medium	5 msg/sec	Established business
Medium-High	10 msg/sec	Vetted company
High	15 msg/sec	Vetted enterprise

Improving Your Trust Score

Complete brand vetting ($40 one-time fee)

- Verifies business information - Can increase score significantly

Provide complete information

- Don't skip optional fields - Include detailed descriptions

Build history

- Scores improve with compliant messaging over time - Avoid spam complaints

Use established business entities

- LLCs and Corps score higher than sole proprietors - Longer business history helps

Common Rejection Reasons

Brand Registration Rejections

Issue	Solution

EIN mismatch	Ensure EIN matches IRS records exactly
Invalid website	Website must be live and match business
Missing information	Complete all required fields
Unverifiable business	Ensure business is registered with state

Campaign Registration Rejections

Issue	Solution

Missing opt-out	Add "Reply STOP to unsubscribe" to samples
Unclear use case	Provide specific, detailed description
URL shorteners	Use your own domain or provider's shortener
Prohibited content	Review carrier content policies
Mismatched samples	Samples must match declared use case

Content Prohibited by Carriers

Cannabis/CBD (even in legal states)
Debt collection (special requirements)
Gambling
Firearms
Adult content
Prescription medications

Special Registration Types

Sole Proprietor Registration

For individuals without an EIN:

Uses SSN (last 4 digits only)
Lower Trust Scores
Limited to 1,000 messages/day
$2 registration + $2/month

Political Campaigns

Political messaging has special requirements:

Must identify the organization
Requires proper opt-in records
Subject to FEC regulations
Higher scrutiny on approval

Healthcare (HIPAA)

Healthcare messaging requires:

No PHI in messages
Business Associate Agreement with provider
Additional compliance documentation
Longer approval times

Registration with Zavu

Zavu simplifies the registration process:

What We Handle

Form preparation - We pre-fill what we can

Submission - Direct connection to TCR

Review - Our team checks before submission

Troubleshooting - We help fix rejections

Monitoring - Ongoing compliance management

What You Provide

When creating a sender in Zavu, you'll need:

typescript
// Information you provide through our dashboard
{
  // Brand Information
  businessName: "Acme Corporation",
  ein: "12-3456789",
  website: "https://acme.com",
  address: "123 Main St, San Francisco, CA 94105",

  // Campaign Information
  useCase: "account_notifications",
  description: "Order status updates and shipping notifications",
  sampleMessages: [
    "Your order #12345 has shipped! Track: https://acme.com/track/12345",
    "Your Acme order is out for delivery today.",
  ],
  optInDescription: "Users opt-in during checkout by checking 'Send me order updates via SMS'",
}

Timeline with Zavu

Step	Time

Account creation	Immediate
Sender setup	5 minutes
Brand registration	1-2 days
Campaign registration	1-3 days
Total	2-5 business days

Checklist Before You Start

Before beginning registration, gather:

[ ] Legal business name (as registered)
[ ] EIN or Tax ID
[ ] Business address
[ ] Business website (must be live)
[ ] Contact email and phone
[ ] Clear use case description
[ ] 2-3 sample messages
[ ] Opt-in process documentation

Maintaining Compliance

Registration is just the beginning. To stay compliant:

Do

Keep opt-out lists updated
Honor STOP requests immediately
Include opt-out in marketing messages
Monitor delivery rates for issues
Update registration if use case changes

Don't

Send to opted-out numbers
Share phone lists between campaigns
Send content different from registered samples
Exceed throughput limits consistently
Ignore carrier policy updates

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use one registration for multiple phone numbers?

Yes, multiple numbers can share a single campaign registration.

What if I have multiple use cases?

You can register multiple campaigns under one brand, or use a "mixed" campaign type.

Do I need to re-register annually?

No, registration is permanent unless:

Your business information changes
You want to add new use cases
Carriers require updates

Can I start sending immediately after registration?

Yes, once approved you can start sending right away.

What happens if my registration is rejected?

You'll receive feedback on why it was rejected. Fix the issues and resubmit. With Zavu, we help you through this process.

Getting Started

Ready to register? Here's how:

Sign up at dashboard.zavu.dev

Create a sender - Follow the guided setup

Submit information - We handle the TCR submission

Wait for approval - Usually 2-5 business days

Start sending - Begin messaging once approved

Need help? Our team can guide you through the registration process. Contact us or check out our A2P 10DLC Guide for more information.See also:

What is A2P 10DLC? - Understanding the basics
A2P 10DLC Fees 2025 - Complete fee breakdown
SMS API for Developers - Start sending SMS

Need help with 10DLC registration? Contact us or join our Discord community for support and updates.