This page summarizes the law as of October 2026 to help you plan AI phone calls. It isn’t legal advice. Laws and how regulators apply them change, so check your use case with a lawyer before you start a campaign.
At a glance
Is AI cold calling legal in the Netherlands?
Only with prior consent. Article 11.7(1) reads:“Het gebruik van automatische oproep- en communicatiesystemen zonder menselijke tussenkomst, faxen en elektronische berichten voor het overbrengen van ongevraagde communicatie voor commerciële, ideële of charitatieve doeleinden is verboden, tenzij de verzender kan aantonen dat de desbetreffende eindgebruiker daarvoor voorafgaand toestemming heeft verleend.”In English: automated calling systems without human intervention, fax, and electronic messages may only carry unsolicited commercial messages if you can prove prior consent. It covers businesses too. The rule protects every end user, natural or legal person (Article 1.1, explanatory memorandum). Article 11.7(3) only exempts contact details that a business published for receiving commercial offers. AI agents most likely count. No regulator or court has ruled on AI voice agents yet. An AI agent that runs the call on its own fits “without human intervention.” The Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) treats the telemarketing rules as technology neutral for all live phone communication (industry report). Treat AI calls as automated. For consumers, it makes no difference. Article 11.7(2) requires consent for every marketing call to a natural person anyway. The question only matters for companies with legal personality, which a human may call without consent but an AI agent may not. A human in the loop doesn’t settle it. No source says that a human listening in changes the answer. Only a call a human conducts is clearly outside paragraph 1. The industry’s Telemarketing Code, in force since October 1, 2026, bans automated systems that play recorded messages (Art. 8). It doesn’t address live AI conversations.
Cold calls by a human
Since July 1, 2021, a human caller needs consent to make marketing calls to natural persons, including sole traders and partnerships (ACM). Limited companies, associations, and foundations fall outside this rule, so you may cold call them (government business portal). The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) still protects the contact person: you need a lawful basis, usually legitimate interest, and must stop when they object (GDPR Art. 21). In every marketing call to a consumer, say who you are, who you call for, and that you want to sell something (Civil Code Art. 6:230v(6)). Offer the right to object in every call (Article 11.7(2)).Existing customers and callback requests
Existing customers. Since July 1, 2026, a customer relationship no longer replaces consent for calls to natural persons (Energy Act Art. 7.8, in force by decree). Only charities, charity lotteries, and publishers may still call customers from the past three years (ACM). Article 11.7(4) keeps a customer exception for electronic contact details, but it mirrors the email rule in Art. 13(2) of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive. Don’t rely on it for AI calls. Service calls. Reminders, order updates, and support follow-ups aren’t marketing, so keep them free of offers. The ACM also forbids asking for marketing consent during a service call (ACM). Callbacks. A call the person asked for isn’t unsolicited. The Telemarketing Code permits it without separate consent, but identification, caller ID, and calling hours still apply (Art. 14). Keep to what the person asked about.Do-not-call register: Bel-me-niet Register (closed)
The Netherlands has no do-not-call register. The Bel-me-niet Register closed on July 1, 2021, when opt-in replaced it and Article 11.8 lapsed. It never covered legal persons. Keep your own suppression list and remove objectors right away (ACM). botBrains doesn’t screen numbers for you. Use guidance to handle “don’t call me again,” and a Unitool to write the objection to your customer database.Consent for AI calls
You carry the burden of proof (Article 11.7(1)). The ACM accepts only consent that’s specific, personal, clearly recorded, and linked to the person you call. A process description or a call list isn’t enough (ACM).
The law sets no retention period or expiry date, so keep the proof as long as you rely on the consent.
Purchased leads and partners. The company you call for stays responsible for the whole chain, including call centers and lead suppliers, according to the Data Driven Marketing Association (DDMA). Ask vendors for the exact consent text, the collection method, and proof per contact. Consent that doesn’t name your company fails the specificity test. botBrains asks for this evidence first, see before you start outbound campaigns.
Tell callers they’re talking to an AI
Since August 2, 2026, Article 50 of the EU AI Act requires that people know they’re talking to an AI system, at the latest when the conversation starts. This applies to inbound and outbound calls, to consumers and to business contacts, and you can’t count on the exception for obvious cases when your AI agent sounds human. The default introduction already says that your AI agent is an AI, so keep that statement first when you edit it. When you call a consumer to sell something, the Consumer Rights Directive also requires you to name your company, anyone you call for, and the commercial purpose at the start. Dutch law adds no AI-specific rule. In marketing calls to consumers, state who you are, the company, and the commercial purpose at the start (Civil Code Art. 6:230v(6)). The Telemarketing Code also asks you to say why you may call, ask whether it’s convenient, and mention the recording and its purpose (Art. 4 to 4.2). For outbound marketing calls:Call recording
Criminal law. Article 139c of the Criminal Code only punishes recording calls that aren’t meant for you, so a participant may record, including your AI agent. Article 139a excludes phone calls. Data protection. You need a lawful basis such as legitimate interest or consent (GDPR Art. 6), and you must tell the caller (GDPR Art. 13). Announce it at the start (government business portal). When the caller presses the star key, botBrains stops and discards the recording but keeps the transcript. botBrains stores call data in the EU. Voice as biometric data. A recording only becomes biometric data when you process it to identify someone (GDPR Art. 4(14) and Art. 9). Recording for quality doesn’t.Caller ID and calling hours
Show your number. Article 11.7(8) forbids hiding your number on marketing calls. It must be your real number, reachable free or at normal rates (ACM), for at least six months (Telemarketing Code Art. 5). Callers see your botBrains number, and botBrains provisions Dutch numbers on request. Calling hours. The law sets none. The Telemarketing Code limits consumer calls to 9:00 to 21:00 on weekdays and 10:00 to 17:00 on Saturdays, with no calls on Sundays and public holidays (Art. 9). It also allows at most three attempts per day, four hours apart (Art. 2.1), and bans voicemail messages (Art. 7). botBrains doesn’t enforce calling hours, so schedule calls yourself. On voicemail, the agent hangs up without a message.Sector rules
Fines and enforcement
In 2025, the ACM checked energy and telecom sales calls, and VodafoneZiggo committed to taking responsibility for its whole sales chain (ACM). After July 1, 2026, the ACM planned information demands in both sectors (DDMA). We found no enforcement against AI calls or robocalls.
What’s next. The ACM and the Dutch Data Protection Authority are drafting joint guidance on customer service chatbots, covering AI disclosure and access to a human, planned for autumn 2026 (Dutch IT Channel).
Sources
- Telecommunicatiewet, Art. 1.1, Art. 11.7, Art. 11.8, and Art. 15.4
- Kamerstukken II 2019/20, 35 421, nr. 3, explanatory memorandum to the opt-in law
- Staatsblad 2025, 89, entry into force of Art. 7.8 Energiewet
- Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 6, Art. 6:230v
- Wetboek van Strafrecht, Art. 139a and Art. 139c
- Directive 2002/58/EC, Art. 13
- GDPR, Art. 4, Art. 6, Art. 7, Art. 9, Art. 13, Art. 21, and Art. 83
- EU AI Act, Art. 50 and Art. 99
- ACM, Verkoop via telemarketing
- ACM, stricter rules from July 1, 2026, published June 25, 2026
- ACM, proof of explicit consent, published June 29, 2022
- ACM, stricter supervision of sales calls, published July 17, 2025
- Ondernemersplein, Telefonische verkoop (telemarketing)
- DDMA, Code voor Telemarketing 2026, applies from October 1, 2026
- DDMA, ACM on the new telemarketing rules, published June 24, 2026
- DMCC, ACM input on consent rules, published May 21, 2026
- Dutch IT Channel, ACM and AP guidance on chatbots, published April 21, 2026
Next steps
Phone integration
Set up your phone line, introductions, and outbound calls.
Calling laws by country
Compare consent rules for AI calls across the EU, the UK, and the US.