All consumer credit transactions made in this state are subject to the Wisconsin Consumer Act (WCA). Acts, practices, procedures, and forms used in conjunction with these transactions must comply with the provisions of the
Wisconsin Consumer Act, Wis. Stats. Chs. 421-427 and 429 and
Wisconsin's Marital Property Law Wis. Stat. Ch. 766.
Unless otherwise instructed by a licensing or registration authority, those who engage in consumer credit transactions in Wisconsin are not required to submit acts, practices, procedures, or forms to DFI for review.
Those who choose to have the agency review their acts, practices, procedures, or forms must follow the instructions, found at
Wis. Admin. Code DFI-WCA 1.82.
Drafting Forms
Drafters must first review the provisions of the WCA and the federal consumer credit laws. Forms must be drafted to comply with these laws. DFI will not draft your form for you, so be sure to read the WCA and relevant federal Statutes carefully before drafting the form. It is usually helpful to have an attorney familiar with consumer credit in Wisconsin draft the form for you. Review of forms for compliance with the WCA is provided so that drafters may ensure that they accurately understand the requirements of the WCA in drafting the form. Forms found to contain a large number of conspicuous violations will be summarily disapproved and returned to the drafter for revision to comply with the WCA and federal consumer credit laws.
Every submission of a form to replace a previously submitted form must denote all changes from the prior form by underlining or highlighting the changes on the submitted forms. Every request for review of a form must be accompanied by a cover letter explaining any changes from a previously submitted form. If you know the date of prior approval, please indicate it in your cover letter.
For the quickest turn-around time, you may attach a form saved as a Microsoft Word document or Adobe Acrobat file to an e-mail to WCA Consumer Credit Forms Review at ConsumerAct@dfi.wisconsin.gov.
To request an interpretation regarding an act, practice, or procedure, you may submit it in an e-mail to WCA Interpretive Opinion Requests at
ConsumerAct@dfi.wisconsin.gov.
If we are unable to open an attached document, we will notify you and request submission via conventional mail. By law, we have 60 days to review your request. Electronically-submitted requests generally take less time than other methods of submission. If the request is not sent electronically, three copies of the form (only one copy of an interpretive opinion request is necessary) must be submitted to the following address:
Department of Financial Institutions
Bureau of Consumer Affairs
4822 Madison Yards Way, North Tower
P.O. Box 8041
Madison, WI 53708-8041
If the creditor intending to use the act, practice, procedure, or form is not
registered under the Wisconsin Consumer Act, a $100 per hour fee may be assessed prior to reviewing the act, practice, procedure or form. We will estimate the time it will take to review the forms. If the actual time it takes is less than the estimate, the overpayment will be refunded. If it takes longer than estimated, you will not be charged an additional fee. Acts, practices, procedures or forms submitted for review under the Wisconsin Consumer Act will be reviewed within sixty days of receipt by the Department.
Contact Us
Phone: (608) 264-7969
Toll-Free: (800) 452-3328 (in Wisconsin)
Fax: (608) 264-7968