Soft opt-in for fundraising: What the 2026 guidance means for charities

The Fundraising Regulator has published new guidance about the soft opt-in exemption for charities under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (Guidance). This follows the guidance published earlier this year by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). The Guidance sets out the regulations on soft opt-ins for charities and aims to make it easier for charities to understand when they can email, text and message their supporters without their prior consent.

The extension of the "soft opt-in" to non-commercial organisations under Section 114 of the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 opens a vital communication channel for charities, helping to bolster fundraising campaigns.

What is the soft opt-in exception for charities?   

The "soft opt-in" exemption for charities under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 allows eligible UK charities to send electronic fundraising marketing by email, text or direct social media message without explicit prior consent, provided specific legal conditions are met and a clear chance to opt out is given.

This communication would be sent using data gathered when a supporter expressed an interest in the charity, for example, when they made a donation. 

Although the soft opt-in is an exception to the normal Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR) consent requirement for direct electronic marketing, it doesn’t mean that charities can turn away from data protection law. The Fundraising Regulator states that charities still need an appropriate lawful basis under the UK GDPR to handle personal data, with consent or legitimate interests being the most likely bases, depending on the circumstances.

What are the requirements for using the soft opt-in for charities?

Section 114 of the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, which updates the electronic mail rules for direct marketing, came into force on 5 February 2026. It outlines that the soft opt-in can be used if specific conditions are met including: 

1. The sole purpose of the marketing is to further the charity's purposes.
2. The contact details have been obtained because the individual expressed interest in the purposes of the charity, or they have offered/provided support to further the purposes.
3. The individual has been given a simple means of refusing to receive marketing at the time the details were obtained and at the time of each subsequent communication. 

What does the new guidance say? 

The Guidance is intended to sit alongside the Code of Fundraising Practice and aims to provide practical examples for charities on when the exemption could apply to support them when carrying out fundraising marketing. 

Example:

“An individual makes a one-off donation using their credit card to an animal welfare charity using its website. The charity has already carried out a legitimate interest assessment and decided it would be low risk to use the charitable purposes soft opt-in to send fundraising marketing to its website donors. 

The donor provides their personal email address as part of donation processing. At the same time as collecting the donor’s email address, the charity offers the donor a simple means of opting out of future direct marketing by ticking a box. The individual does not opt out. A few months later, the charity emails the donor again using the email address it previously collected, asking if they would like to make another donation. The fundraising marketing email also includes a simple way to opt out of future direct marketing. 

The donor makes another donation and again does not use the simple means of opting out of future marketing. The charity later sends a further fundraising marketing email, again including a simple opt-out option. The charity used the email address collected at the time of the first donation, gave a clear opt-out at the time and subsequently. The charity has taken the right approach.”

How can charities stay compliant when using the soft opt-in?

The Fundraising Regulator hopes the Guidance will help charities take advantage of the new soft opt-in provision and unlock a new way to engage with supporters. When read alongside the legislation and the ICO’s guidance, the Guidance should assist charities in determining whether the soft opt-in exception applies. It is important to bear in mind that the supporter must have the chance to opt out at all points of contact, which must be clear and easy to do. 

To avoid formal regulatory enforcement, including heavy financial penalties of up to £17.5 million or 4% of global annual turnover imposed by the ICO, and public reputational damage for breaching data protection when using the soft opt-in exception, charities must ensure that they have a  privacy policy in place.

Is there anything else we need to consider before using the soft opt-in?

Where charities are relying on legitimate interest for their processing, they will need to carefully assess their interests and balance them against the impact on individuals’ rights and freedoms. In some cases, it may not be appropriate to rely on the soft opt-in, for example, where someone accesses a charity's crisis service and subsequently sending them direct marketing mail could result in harm. Each charity will therefore need to carefully consider the appropriateness of relying on the soft opt-in before proceeding with this.

To read more about the Code of Fundraising Practice, please see our article here.

If you need support with data protection obligations within your charity, please get in touch with Rhiannon Hastings, solicitor in our commercial and data protection team via [email protected] or 0191 211 7891.