Stop Credit Card Offers by Mail: U.S. Guide
These instructions cover U.S. credit-bureau prescreening lists. A request to an individual bank is a separate step.
For prescreened credit card and insurance offers in the United States, use OptOutPrescreen.com, the official service named by the Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A request to one bank does not remove your name from the credit reporting companies' prescreening lists.
Prefer the phone? Call 1-888-567-8688. The official website and phone service offer the same five-year opt-out; a permanent opt-out needs one more step.
In the UK? Go to the UK postal-marketing routes below. The U.S. prescreen process is not a UK mailing-list service.
Choose a five-year or permanent opt-out
- Use the official site or phone number. The CFPB lists OptOutPrescreen.com and 1-888-567-8688.
- Choose the duration. The online or phone process can opt you out for five years. For permanent removal, start the request, then sign and mail the Permanent Opt-Out Election form. Starting online alone does not finish the permanent request.
- Follow the official identity checks. Complete sensitive identity verification only through the official OptOutPrescreen process. Do not send Social Security numbers or identity documents to Junk Mail Magic.
- Destroy unused offers securely. Shred applications, convenience checks, or other documents that include personal or financial information.
Do I have to provide my Social Security number?
No. The FTC says your Social Security number and date of birth are optional in the official opt-out process. Providing them can help match your record. You still need to identify the name and mailing address you want removed.
Enter personal details only on optoutprescreen.com or through its official phone service. Do not upload the completed election form, your Social Security number, or an identity document to Junk Mail Magic. Our photo service does not submit the credit-bureau opt-out for you.
Start from the official website or call the listed number yourself. To read its FAQ, open the official homepage and choose Frequently Asked Questions. The service says it does not make outbound phone calls. If someone calls offering this service, hang up rather than sharing identity details.
Why offers may still arrive
The official FAQ says a request becomes effective with the four credit reporting companies within five days if they can locate your credit file from the information you provide. That is a list-processing window, not a promise that the last envelope arrives in five days.
The FTC explains that prepared offers may keep arriving for several weeks. A company may have received a list before your opt-out took effect. Keep the request date and compare later mail with the original sender and label; our follow-up guide explains what to check.
The CFPB notes that a company may still contact you if it has done business with you or got your name from another source. Prescreen opt-out covers lists supplied through credit reporting companies. It does not block every promotion from a lender, retailer, insurer, or marketing partner.
For a sender-specific promotion that continues after the prescreen opt-out, use the bank or insurer's official privacy or marketing-preference channel. Keep account security separate from a marketing request. Never put passwords, full account numbers, or Social Security numbers in a general customer-service email.
Does opting out improve my credit score?
No. OptOutPrescreen's FAQ says opting out does not improve your score. These firm-offer inquiries are not used to calculate credit scores. The FTC also says prescreening inquiries do not hurt your credit. This is not credit repair.
You can still apply for credit or insurance after opting out. Some offers available only through prescreened lists may stop. To receive them again, choose opt-in through the official service.
An opt-out is not a credit freeze
OptOutPrescreen changes whether credit reporting companies include you on lists for firm offers. It does not freeze a credit file or stop you from applying for credit yourself. Use the credit bureaus' separate freeze process when the goal is to restrict access to a credit report.
What if I live in the UK?
OptOutPrescreen covers U.S. credit-bureau offer lists, not UK mailing lists. For advertising addressed to you at a UK residential address, the free Mailing Preference Service can reduce unsolicited mail. Check its coverage before registering: it does not cover unaddressed mail, mail addressed to a business, or marketing from companies with which you already have a relationship.
For offers from your bank, use its official customer-service or privacy channel to ask it to stop postal marketing. The ICO's guidance on the right to object explains your direct-marketing rights and why a company may keep a suppression record instead of deleting every account record. Keep bank statements and required account notices separate from marketing requests. Follow these UK routes directly; the U.S. prescreen steps above do not apply.
Where Junk Mail Magic fits
Use the official prescreen process for the broad credit-bureau list. For company-specific insurance offers, use the sender's route, such as our GEICO mail guide, State Farm mail guide, or Medicare plan mail guide. Use Junk Mail Magic for a specific paper mailer when you want help identifying the sender and preparing a postal-mail removal request. See our junk mail guide for catalogs, charity appeals, and other mail types.
Have a catalog or another advertising mailer?
Use OptOutPrescreen for credit-bureau offer lists. For other unwanted paper mail, a photo helps us identify the sender and prepare a removal request. Try one request free, with no card required.
Try one request free