On May 12, the CFPB formally withdrew nearly 70 guidance materials—including policy statements, advisory opinions, circulars, and interpretive rules—through a Federal Register notice issued by Acting Director Russell Vought. The move stems from an internal memo circulated last month to identify guidance that allegedly imposed unlawful compliance burdens or exceeded statutory authority.
According to the notice, the rescinded documents include guidance dating back to 2011 and cover a wide range of topics. The CFPB cited three primary reasons for the withdrawal: reducing unwarranted compliance burdens, minimizing regulatory overlap with other agencies, and eliminating guidance that allegedly exceeded statutory or regulatory requirements.
The withdrawn guidance spans a wide range of substantive areas, including a 2024 interpretive rule applying Regulation Z to buy now, pay later (BNPL) products; a 2020 advisory opinion addressing the Truth in Lending Act’s application to earned wage access products, and a 2024 advisory opinion asserting UDAAP liability for deceptive or unfair medical debt collection practices, among others.
The notice also emphasized that although the withdrawal is effective immediately, it is not necessarily final. The Bureau may reissue select guidance in the future, but only if deemed necessary or reduces, compliance burdens. In the meantime, the CFPB will not enforce or rely on the withdrawn documents.
Putting It Into Practice: The CFPB’s decision to withdraw dozens of guidance documents continues the broader effort to scale back the agency’s regulatory authority. While the CFPB is rescinding this guidance, potential UDAAP violations, EWA practices, and other issues remain subject to enforcement by other federal and state regulators (previously discussed here and here).