Can you record a phone call in New Jersey?
One-party consent: you may record a call you take part in without telling the others. New Jersey's Wiretap Act allows it unless you record to commit a crime, a civil wrong or another harmful act.
- Phone calls
- New Jersey's Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act (N.J.S.A. 2A:156A-3 and 2A:156A-4(d)) makes interception a crime, but not when you are a party to the communication or one party has given prior consent. The exception is lost if the purpose is a criminal, tortious or other injurious act. Being the subscriber of a phone line is not consent to record other people's calls on it.
- Business calls
- New Jersey law requires no announcement, but announce on calls with Pennsylvania or other all-party states. The New Jersey Data Privacy Act (in force since January 15, 2025) covers businesses handling personal data of at least 100,000 consumers, or 25,000 if they earn revenue from selling data. The Division of Consumer Affairs enforces it; consumers cannot sue under it.
- What counts as consent
- Your own consent as a participant is enough; no beep or announcement is required. In-person talk is protected only where people reasonably expect it is not being recorded. Open filming that people could see was not covered (Kinsella v. Welch, 2003).
- Penalties
- A third-degree crime: 3 to 5 years in prison, a fine up to $15,000, or both. First offenders are presumed not to be jailed. Civil damages: actual losses or $100 per day (at least $1,000), plus punitive damages.
Say this at the start
Telling everyone and asking is the safe habit everywhere.
- English
Before we start: I record my calls so I can keep accurate notes. Is that OK with you?
Worth knowing
- Bills to make New Jersey an all-party state have not advanced: Senate Bill S4739 (October 2025) and Assembly Bill A1211 (2026), which sits in the Assembly Judiciary Committee. The one-party rule still applies in 2026.
- Calling someone in an all-party state such as Pennsylvania or California? Their law may apply. California's Supreme Court applied its all-party rule to calls a broker recorded in Georgia (Kearney v. Salomon Smith Barney, 2006).
- Unlike federal law, which dropped the words in 1986, New Jersey also excludes recordings made for any other injurious act, so its ban on harmful-purpose recording reaches further.
Sources
Checked on 14 October 2026. A plain summary of the law, not legal advice.
- N.J.S.A. 2A:156A-4, Lawful interception activities; exceptions (Justia, 2025)guide
- New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs: Data Privacy Law FAQsregulator
- Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press: New Jersey recording guideguide
- RecordingLaw.com: New Jersey recording lawsguide
- Kearney v. Salomon Smith Barney, California Supreme Court (2006)court
Other states
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Questions
Is New Jersey a one-party consent state?
Yes. One-party consent: you may record a call you take part in without telling the others. New Jersey's Wiretap Act allows it unless you record to commit a crime, a civil wrong or another harmful act.
Can a business record calls in New Jersey?
New Jersey law requires no announcement, but announce on calls with Pennsylvania or other all-party states. The New Jersey Data Privacy Act (in force since January 15, 2025) covers businesses handling personal data of at least 100,000 consumers, or 25,000 if they earn revenue from selling data. The Division of Consumer Affairs enforces it; consumers cannot sue under it.
What counts as consent in New Jersey?
Your own consent as a participant is enough; no beep or announcement is required. In-person talk is protected only where people reasonably expect it is not being recorded. Open filming that people could see was not covered (Kinsella v. Welch, 2003).
What happens if you record a call illegally in New Jersey?
A third-degree crime: 3 to 5 years in prison, a fine up to $15,000, or both. First offenders are presumed not to be jailed. Civil damages: actual losses or $100 per day (at least $1,000), plus punitive damages.
Hang up. The notes are done.
Superscribe records your business calls on the number you already have and writes the note when you hang up. You say one line at the start, and it does the rest.
