Summary: SMS Regulation by Country

Question

Accepted Answer

Global Regulatory Guide for SMS Messaging
Sender ID registration requirements, local restrictions and criticality levels matrix.




Country / Region
Allowed Sender Type
Prior Registration
Key Restrictions and Local Notes
Criticality




United States and Canada
Numeric only (10DLC / Toll-Free / Short Code)
Mandatory
Alphanumeric sender IDs are prohibited. Brand registration in the 10DLC ecosystem or Toll-Free number verification is required. Strict filtering of public shortened URLs.
Critical


Spain
Alphanumeric and numeric
Mandatory
CNMC regulation. Mandatory registration of alphanumeric aliases, proving a legitimate link with the brand. Strict prohibition of generic terms.
High


France
Alphanumeric and numeric
Mandatory
Generic senders are prohibited. Strict curfew for marketing SMS: prohibited from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m., on Sundays and public holidays.
High


Finland
Alphanumeric and numeric
Mandatory
Strict registration with the Traficom authority to mitigate impersonation scams involving banks or government bodies.
High


United Kingdom
Alphanumeric and numeric
Recommended
Strong automatic operator filters against generic senders and suspicious links. A clear branded sender is required.
Medium


Germany
Alphanumeric and numeric
No
Open market, but with very strict anti-spam control at text-content level by network operators.
Low


Brazil
Numeric and alphanumeric
Mandatory
Requires a local legal entity or representation to register the Sender ID. Unregulated gambling or cryptocurrency content is prohibited.
High


Mexico
Numeric. Some operators replace senders with short codes
No
Local operators often replace international or alphanumeric senders with random local numeric codes to prevent spam.
Medium


Colombia
Alphanumeric and numeric
Optional
Time restriction for commercial SMS: only allowed from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Fraud keyword filtering applies.
Medium


India
Alphanumeric, exactly 6 characters
Mandatory
Extremely strict DLT system. Requires registration of the company, headers and each exact text template. Users registered on the national DND — Do Not Disturb — list are blocked.
Critical


Saudi Arabia and UAE
Approved alphanumeric
Mandatory
Zero tolerance for spam. Requires signed Letters of Authorisation (LOA), local business documents and manual approval from each network operator.
Critical


China
Approved local numeric sender
Mandatory
Direct international traffic is prohibited unless routed through an approved government and local operator gateway. A fixed text “signature” must be added at the end of the message.
Critical


Singapore
Alphanumeric (SSIR Registry)
Mandatory
Registration in the IMDA Full Registry is mandatory. Any message from an unregistered sender is automatically marked as “Likely-SCAM”.
Critical


Australia
Alphanumeric and numeric
Mandatory
ACMA regulation. Mandatory registration of alphanumeric Sender IDs to prove legitimate brand ownership and prevent impersonation.
High


South Africa
Alphanumeric and numeric
No
Regulated by the WASPA code of conduct. Strict prohibition on sending commercial messages at night or during weekends without prior explicit consent.
Medium

SMS: Requirements and Regulation by Country

Summary: SMS Regulation by Country

Restrictions for sending SMS to the United States

Restrictions for sending SMS to Finland

Restrictions for sending SMS to Spain

Restrictions for sending SMS to France

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