T1E: Third-party communication; authorized and prohibited transmissions; permissible one-way communication

The definition of a third-party communications is a message sent between two amateur stations for someone else (the third party). The "third party" in amateur communications is the person who is sent a message, by amateur communications, other than the control operators who handle the message.

No payment of any kind is allowed for third-party messages sent by an amateur station.

Third-party messages are allowed to be sent to a foreign country only when the US has a third-party agreement with the foreign country or the third party is qualified to be a control operator. Besides normal identification, when sending third-party communications internationally, a US station must transmit both call signs at the end of each communication.

If you let an unlicensed third party use your amateur station, you must continuously monitor and supervise the third-party's participation from your station's control point. If you are allowing a non-amateur friend to use your station to talk to someone in the US, and a foreign station breaks in to talk to your friend, you should have your friend (a third party) wait until you find out if the US has a third-party agreement with the foreign station's government.


The use of codes or ciphers is NEVER allowed to hide the meaning of an amateur message, except when special requirements are met.


An amateur is NEVER allowed to broadcast one-way communications or information to the general public. An amateur station is NEVER permitted to transmit music, except incidental music during authorized rebroadcasts of space shuttle communications.