Your subscription cancellation rights in Texas
Texas has no automatic renewal statute — two 2025 bills died in committee. What protects you instead: the DTPA, federal ROSCA, and your own records. A candid guide.
The short answer
Texas is one of the states without a dedicated automatic-renewal law, and the 2025 attempts to create one died in committee. That does not mean you have no rights — deceptive sign-up flows and obstructed cancellations can violate the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and federal ROSCA governs online subscriptions everywhere in the US. But it does mean the burden of catching a renewal before it charges sits with you more squarely in Texas than in California or New York.
Leutrim Miftaraj
Founder, SubTracker · Updated September 9, 2026
The honest starting point: there is no Texas auto-renewal statute
Texas has no dedicated automatic-renewal or subscription statute: the 2025 bills that would have created one (SB 838 and HB 2859, 89th Legislature) both died in committee, so what protects Texas consumers is the general Deceptive Trade Practices Act, federal ROSCA, and the terms of the contract itself.
Most guides skip this and paraphrase California rules as if they were national. They are not. If you searched for a Texas law that forces companies to let you cancel online, the accurate answer is that no such state statute exists as of this page’s date — and knowing that changes how you should protect yourself.
What applies instead
The Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. The DTPA is a general-purpose consumer statute, and it reaches subscription conduct when that conduct is deceptive: renewal terms that were misrepresented or hidden at sign-up, charges that continue after a documented cancellation, or a cancellation path that exists on paper but not in practice. It is not an auto-renewal law — there is no Texas rule prescribing renewal notices or online cancellation buttons — but deception is deception under it.
Federal law. ROSCA, the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act, applies in Texas as everywhere: online sellers must clearly disclose the terms of a recurring charge, obtain your informed consent, and provide a simple mechanism to stop recurring charges. The FTC’s broader click-to-cancel rule is not in force — it was vacated in July 2025 — so ROSCA is the federal floor that actually binds.
Your contract. With no statute overriding it, the contract’s own renewal and notice terms govern. Read the renewal clause once, note the notice period, and treat those dates as binding — because in Texas, they are.
What this means practically
In California, a forgotten renewal is partly the company’s legal problem — reminders and easy exits are mandated. In Texas the same forgotten renewal is mostly your problem. Three habits close the gap:
Record the renewal date and the notice period the day you subscribe. Not when the first charge surprises you. The contract clock runs whether you watch it or not.
Cancel in writing and keep the confirmation. A charge after a documented cancellation request is a strong DTPA position; a charge on a subscription you merely intended to cancel is not.
Screenshot the sign-up flow for anything expensive. If renewal terms were not clearly presented, that screenshot is your evidence — and the lack of clear presentation is what turns a billing dispute into a deception claim.
If a company blocks your cancellation
Put the request in writing with the date, state what you signed up for and when, and request written confirmation of the cancellation. If charges continue, dispute them with your card issuer and file a complaint with the Texas Attorney General’s consumer protection division — documented complaints, with dates and screenshots, are the ones that get traction.
Watch this space
The 2025 bills show the direction of legislative interest, and other states have moved quickly in recent years. If the Texas Legislature enacts a subscription statute in a future session, this page will be updated — until then, treat any guide claiming Texas mandates renewal notices with suspicion.
This page gives general information, not legal advice. Statutes are summarised; the wording that binds is the current text of the law itself. For a contested case, a consumer-protection office or a licensed attorney in your state is the right address.
Source: SB 838 (89R), Texas Legislature Online, checked September 9, 2026. · How we verify legal content
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Start freeFrequently asked questions
Does Texas have an automatic renewal law?+
No. Texas has no dedicated automatic-renewal or subscription statute, and the two 2025 bills that would have created one — SB 838 and HB 2859 — died in committee. What applies is the general Deceptive Trade Practices Act, federal ROSCA, and the terms of your contract.
Can a Texas company require a phone call to cancel?+
No Texas statute forbids it the way California’s law does for online sign-ups. ROSCA requires a simple mechanism to stop recurring online charges, and a cancellation path that is deliberately obstructive can support a deception claim — but the clean state-law right to cancel online does not exist in Texas.
What should I do before subscribing to anything in Texas?+
Record the renewal date and notice period immediately, because no statute obliges the company to remind you. For anything expensive, screenshot the sign-up flow — if renewal terms were not clearly presented, that record is what strengthens a later dispute.
Where do I complain about a subscription company in Texas?+
The Texas Attorney General’s consumer protection division accepts complaints, and the FTC handles ROSCA at the federal level. Complaints supported by dates, screenshots and written cancellation records carry the weight.
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