Virginia: Call and Conversation Recording Consent Requirements

Requirements one by one

Governing law and covered recording

Virginia's recording rules are in Chapter 6 of Title 19.2, Va. Code §§ 19.2-61 through 19.2-70.3. Section 19.2-62(A) makes it a Class 6 felony to intentionally intercept, disclose, or use any wire, electronic, or oral communication. The everyday exception is § 19.2-62(B)(2), which makes participant and one-party-consent recording lawful.

Whose consent a participant needs

Virginia requires only one party's consent. Section 19.2-62(B)(2) says it is not a criminal offense "for a person to intercept a wire, electronic or oral communication, where such person is a party to the communication or one of the parties to the communication has given prior consent." Because you are a party to any conversation you take part in, you supply the consent yourself, and you do not have to tell the other people.

Privacy, confidentiality, or secrecy trigger

The privacy qualifier applies only to in-person speech. Section 19.2-61 defines an "oral communication" as one uttered with "an expectation that such communication is not subject to interception under circumstances justifying such expectations." A conversation with no reasonable expectation of privacy is not an "oral communication" the statute protects. Telephone (wire) and electronic communications are covered without a separate privacy showing.

Telephone, in-person, and electronic coverage

The one-party rule applies the same way to a telephone call, an in-person conversation, and an electronic communication (§§ 19.2-61 and 19.2-62). Section 19.2-62(B)(3) places some communications outside the offense entirely—for example, an electronic communication configured to be readily accessible to the general public, and listed public or radio communications.

Major participant-facing exceptions

There is no general exception letting a private person record just because they suspect wrongdoing. The remaining carve-outs in § 19.2-62(B) are institutional: communication-provider operations, publicly accessible electronic and listed radio communications, intercepting to identify harmful interference, and authorized pen-register or trap-and-trace use. None of these changes the basic participant rule.

Criminal classification and penalty

Unlawful interception, disclosure, or use is a Class 6 felony under § 19.2-62(A). Section 18.2-10(f) sets the punishment for a Class 6 felony: one to five years' imprisonment, or—at the discretion of the jury or the court trying the case without a jury—confinement in jail for up to 12 months and a fine of up to $2,500, either or both.

Civil remedy and evidence effect

Section 19.2-69 gives a person whose communication was unlawfully intercepted, disclosed, or used a civil action for actual damages (but not less than liquidated damages of $400 a day or $4,000, whichever is higher), punitive damages, and a reasonable attorney fee. Virginia doubles the liquidated figure to $800 a day or $8,000 when the communication is between people in certain confidential relationships—spouses, attorney and client, a healing-arts practitioner and patient, a listed counselor and client, or clergy and a person seeking spiritual counsel. Separately, § 19.2-65 bars an unlawfully intercepted wire or oral communication, and evidence derived from it, from being received in evidence when disclosure would violate the chapter.

Interstate and federal boundary

Federal law lets a participant, or a person with one party's prior consent, record unless the purpose is a criminal or tortious act (18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(d)), which matches Virginia. But a call that reaches another state can bring that state's law into play, and several states require every party's consent. When more than one state may apply, get consent from everyone.

What trips people up

In-person recording turns on a reasonable expectation of privacy. Only an "oral communication"—one said with a justified expectation against interception—is protected under § 19.2-61. Talk in a genuinely public setting generally is not, so the analysis for a face-to-face conversation can differ from a phone call, which is protected as a wire communication regardless.

Damages are higher for confidential relationships. Section 19.2-69's liquidated damages double—to $800 a day or $8,000—when the recorded communication is between spouses, an attorney and client, a healthcare provider and patient, a listed counselor and client, or clergy and a person seeking counsel. Recording those conversations unlawfully is markedly more expensive.

"Class 6 felony" is a real felony. Section 18.2-10(f) allows a one-to-five-year prison term, even though a judge or jury may instead choose a misdemeanor-like jail term and fine. Do not treat the conduct as minor because the lighter option exists.

Common questions

Do I have to tell the other person I am recording our Virginia call? No. One party's consent is enough and you are that party, so a participant may record without notifying the others.

Can I record a conversation happening in a public place? For in-person speech, the statute protects only an "oral communication" said with a justified expectation of privacy, so recording talk with no such expectation—out in public—generally is not covered.

What can someone do if I recorded them unlawfully? Section 19.2-69 lets them sue for actual or liquidated damages (doubled for certain confidential relationships), punitive damages, and attorney's fees, and § 19.2-65 keeps the recording out of evidence. The conduct is also a Class 6 felony.

Statutes and sources

• Va. Code § 19.2-62 — unlawful interception, disclosure, or use (Class 6 felony) and the one-party-consent exception. https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title19.2/chapter6/section19.2-62/ (accessed 2026-07-20)
• Va. Code § 19.2-61 — definition of "oral communication." https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title19.2/chapter6/section19.2-61/ (accessed 2026-07-20)
• Va. Code § 18.2-10(f) — punishment for a Class 6 felony. https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title18.2/chapter1/section18.2-10/ (accessed 2026-07-20)
• Va. Code § 19.2-69 — civil action, enhanced damages for confidential relationships, and defense. https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title19.2/chapter6/section19.2-69/ (accessed 2026-07-20)
• Va. Code § 19.2-65 — intercepted wire or oral communications not received in evidence. https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title19.2/chapter6/section19.2-65/ (accessed 2026-07-20)
• 18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(d) — federal private-participant consent rule. https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title18-section2511&num=0&edition=prelim (accessed 2026-07-20)