Interception of Wire, Electronic or Oral Communications (Virginia wiretap act)
VA wiretap act
Communications
Virginia is a one-party consent state: recording or intercepting a call or conversation is lawful if the recorder is a party or one party consented, and otherwise a felony. Victims can sue for liquidated damages. Service providers may not divulge communication contents in transit and may give subscriber records to law enforcement only under a subpoena, warrant, court order, or the customer's consent.
- Where
- Virginia
- Citation
- Va. Code §§ 19.2-61 to 19.2-70.3 (Title 19.2, Chapter 6), esp. §§ 19.2-62, 19.2-69, 19.2-70.3
- Status
- In force
- In force since
- 1973-07-01
- Last amended
- 2025-07-01
- Enforced by
- Criminal prosecution by Commonwealth's attorneys; injured persons by civil action (19.2-69)
- People can sue
- Yes
- Penalties
- Unlawful interception, use, or disclosure is a Class 6 felony (19.2-62(A)); civil recovery of actual damages but at least $400 per day or $4,000 (doubled for spousal, attorney-client, clinician-patient, counselor, and clergy communications), punitive damages, and attorney fees (19.2-69).
- Applies to
- Any person who intercepts, discloses, or uses wire, electronic, or oral communications (19.2-62(A))
- Providers of electronic communication or remote computing services, including foreign corporations, as to subscriber records (19.2-62(C), 19.2-70.3)
Practices it requires
- Do not intentionally intercept, or use a device to intercept, wire, electronic, or oral communications, or knowingly use or disclose intercepted contents.Va. Code § 19.2-62(A)
- Public electronic communication service providers must not divulge the contents of communications in transmission except as listed (consent, forwarding, service protection, inadvertent evidence of crime).Va. Code § 19.2-62(C)
- Disclose subscriber records (not content or real-time location) to law enforcement only under a grand jury subpoena, search warrant, qualifying court order, or subscriber consent.Va. Code § 19.2-70.3(A)
Other duties
- Interception is not a crime when the interceptor is a party to the communication or a party has given prior consent (one-party consent).Va. Code § 19.2-62(B)(2)
- Persons whose communications are unlawfully intercepted, used, or disclosed may recover liquidated or actual damages, punitive damages, and fees.Va. Code § 19.2-69
Sources
- Official text
- Va. Code § 19.2-62 (Virginia Law, law.lis.virginia.gov)
- Va. Code § 19.2-69 (Virginia Law, law.lis.virginia.gov)
- Va. Code § 19.2-70.3 (Virginia Law, law.lis.virginia.gov)
Checked against these sources on 2026-09-25 by research agent (Claude), primary sources.
Unverified: Effective dates inferred from Virginia's default July 1 effective date for regular-session acts (history notes); enacting bill pages not checked. 19.2-62 history: Code 1950 § 19.1-89.2; 1973, c. 442; through 2004, c. 149. 19.2-70.3 latest amendment 2025, c. 286.
Research reference, not legal advice.