Is it legal to call leads with an AI voice agent in Spain?

Short answer: yes, it's legal if you do it right. With an AI voice agent, the prudent approach is to have the lead's prior, provable consent to receive sales calls, have the agent say at the start that it's an AI and that the call is recorded, and immediately respect anyone who asks not to be called. This is general information, not legal advice: check your case with your DPO or legal advisor.

The five rules

1. 01Prior consent. Article 66.1 of Spain's General Telecommunications Law requires prior consent for automated sales calls with no human involvement. The law doesn't say whether a conversational agent falls under that, so the prudent approach is to treat it as if it does.
2. 02Make it provable. Keep the date, time, form and accepted text (Art. 7 GDPR).
3. 03Say it's an AI. Article 50 of the EU AI Act, applicable from August 2, 2026, requires telling people they're talking to an AI system.
4. 04Say who is calling and why, and whether the call is recorded.
5. 05Respect objections. If the lead says "stop calling me", accept it without pushing back and apply it across every channel.

The form checkbox

Use separate, unticked checkboxes, one per channel:

• "I agree that [school] may call me, including through a virtual assistant, to tell me about [programs]."
• "I agree to receive information on WhatsApp."
• "I agree to receive information by email."

The agent's first sentence

I'm calling from [school] about your information request for [program]. I'm a virtual assistant, and this call is recorded to handle your request.

Two special cases in education

• Minors: in Spain, under 14, consent must come from a parent or guardian (Art. 7 LOPDGDD).
• Deciding admission: the EU AI Act classes systems that decide access to educational institutions as high-risk. Informing and booking isn't deciding; leave that decision to people.

We cover it all, article by article, in our guide to GDPR and sales calls to leads.

Frequently asked questions

Can I rely on legitimate interest to call with an AI agent?

It isn't recommended. With an AI agent, it conflicts with Article 66.1 of Spain's General Telecommunications Law. Use consent.

Do I need to check the Robinson List?

If the lead consented to your calls, you don't need to check it for that contact.

What about messaging on WhatsApp?

You need prior authorization (Art. 21 of Spain's LSSI), and Meta also requires the user's opt-in and approved templates to start the conversation.