The law
Tennessee's college NIL law is T.C.A. §§ 49-7-2801 to 49-7-2804 (as rewritten by Pub. Ch. 300 of 2025) (status: in force). Everything on this page is taken from the enacted text on the legislature's own site, linked under Sources, read on October 21, 2026.
What it says
| Question | What the statute says | Section or source |
|---|---|---|
| Who is covered | An "intercollegiate athlete" is a student enrolled at an institution who participates in its athletic program, or a prospective student who has started or completed ninth grade and can later enroll and participate. "Institution" means a four-year public or private college in Tennessee, including its officers, employees, coaches and staff, but not a school governed by the Board of Regents of the state university and community college system | 49-7-2801(5), (6) |
| Disclosure to the school | An athlete who earns third-party pay "may be required" to disclose the agreement and its terms, subject to commercially reasonable terms in it, to the athletic association or the school, and to file annual reports when and how the association or school designates. No number of days is set. From 2022 to 2025 the statute said "must disclose" to the school | 49-7-2802(d) |
| Banned categories | The statute itself bars athletes from NIL activities that promote gambling, tobacco, THC products or derivatives, alcohol and adult entertainment (THC added in 2025). A school may also bar NIL activities reasonably considered in conflict with its values, and use of its trademarks, trade dress and copyrights | 49-7-2802(g)(1) to (3) |
| Conflicts with team contracts | An athlete or the athlete's representative may not enter an agreement that conflicts or unreasonably competes with an existing agreement of the school or its affiliated foundations, entered into at any time; the school or foundation asserting the conflict discloses the relevant terms. A school may set reasonable time, place and manner rules so NIL activity does not interfere with team activities, operations, facilities or academic and athletic activities | 49-7-2802(i), (f) |
| School and coach involvement | "Institution" includes coaches and staff. A school, its affiliated foundations and authorized third parties may facilitate, offer and provide pay. Their support of NIL activity, including business arrangements with third parties, is not pay or representation by the school. A school or foundation that helps an athlete secure third-party pay is not an athlete agent, provided no individual at the school or foundation has a direct financial interest in the specific terms of that pay (other than an agreement under (b)(1)) and no such individual coerces, compels or interferes with the athlete's decision. A third party claiming to act for a school must give written, verifiable evidence of authority within one week of the athlete's request, or the contract is void on the athlete's notice | 49-7-2801(5)(A); 49-7-2802(b)(1), (b)(2), (h)(3) |
| Direct pay from the school | Yes. An athlete may receive pay related to NIL, enrollment, roster position "or any other categories of compensation available to or received by similarly situated intercollegiate athletes in interstate commerce", and a school and its affiliated foundations may provide it unless expressly prohibited or limited by federal law, a valid court order with binding jurisdiction, or an athletic association that meets the duties in 49-7-2802(b)(3). "Compensation" does not include state appropriated funds | 49-7-2801(4); 49-7-2802(a), (b)(1)(A) |
| Agents and attorneys | An athlete may be represented by a third party, including an athlete agent, and every representative is a fiduciary. An athlete agent must be licensed under 49-7-2104 and meet the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act (Part 21): registration with the Secretary of State, $500 to apply, $200 to renew, valid two years. An attorney must be active and in good standing where licensed. Parents, siblings, grandparents, spouses and legal guardians are not agents. A representation agreement may not last longer than the athlete's participation in the school's athletic program | 49-7-2802(h)(1), (2), (k); 49-7-2104, -2106(f), -2109(a) |
| High school and minors | Prospective students who have started ninth grade are "intercollegiate athletes" under the part. An NIL agreement by an athlete under 18 must follow the Tennessee Protection of Minor Performers Act (Title 50, Chapter 5, Part 2). The part does not address high school athletic association rules | 49-7-2801(6); 49-7-2802(j) |
| Financial literacy | Schools must hold a financial literacy workshop during an athlete's first full-time term, covering at least the part's requirements, budgeting and debt management; a school or its foundations may contract with qualified providers | 49-7-2802(l) |
| Scholarship protection | Diligence or pay "does not affect" the athlete's grant-in-aid or athletic eligibility. A school may adjust need-based aid for NIL pay the same way it would for other students with equivalent need | 49-7-2802(e) |
| Confidentiality of contracts | Records and data received or developed in the course of diligence, pay or other activity under the section (planning, recruitment, eligibility, marketing, financial strategies and more) are confidential and not open to public inspection. On a public records request a school releases only annualized, aggregated amounts it paid athletes for NIL under (b)(1), with no personally identifiable or third-party proprietary information. The Attorney General may review the records. The subsection is repealed on 2032-07-01 | 49-7-2802(m)(1) to (5) |
| NCAA and conference penalties | An athletic association may not interfere with or restrict an athlete's pay, representation or diligence or affect eligibility; may not punish a school or foundation for activity the part allows; and may not threaten or condition membership on repeal of a state law. It must preserve athletes' and schools' legal rights and immunities, make sure its rules are legally exempt from antitrust law before enforcing them, and not penalize a school's membership, revenue or eligibility for the association's own failure to meet these duties; it indemnifies the State, schools and athletes for its noncompliance | 49-7-2802(b)(3), (b)(4); 49-7-2803(a) |
| Remedies and enforcement | The Attorney General may sue an athletic association under the part; 49-7-2803 creates no private cause of action. A contract with an unverified third party claiming to act for a school is void on the athlete's notice. A third-party agreement (other than one under (b)(1)) that conflicts with eligibility must be rescinded or modified before the athlete competes; if it is not timely fixed, the athlete may have it declared void from the start. Schools and foundations are not liable for good faith NIL decisions, and sovereign immunity is not waived. Under 49-7-2804 a private school and its association may jointly opt out of (b)(3), (b)(4) and 49-7-2803, with notice to athletes within 30 days | 49-7-2802(b)(1)(B), (c), (k); 49-7-2803; 49-7-2804 |
| Employee status | Not addressed | None |
How the law changed: four versions in four years
- 2021. Public Chapter 400 (HB 1351) created Part 28, in force 2022-01-01. Pay had to match fair market value, could not be for athletic performance or attendance, and could come only from a third party; schools and their employees could not be involved at all.
- 2022. Public Chapter 845 (HB 2249), in force 2022-04-20, let schools support NIL activity without it counting as pay or representation, as long as they did not coerce, compel or interfere, and added the first bar on athletic association interference.
- 2024. Public Chapter 823 (SB 709), in force 2024-05-01, rewrote the part during the Tennessee v. NCAA case: high school recruits from ninth grade on were covered, schools still could not pay unless federal law, a court or the association allowed it, and the Attorney General was given power to sue an association.
- 2025. Public Chapter 300 (SB 536), signed 2025-05-01 and in force that day, five weeks before the House settlement was approved on 2025-06-06, flipped the default: schools and foundations may pay for NIL, enrollment and roster position unless federal law, a valid court order or a qualifying association rule expressly limits it. It also made disclosure optional for schools to require, added THC products to the banned list, made NIL records confidential until 2032-07-01, and let private schools opt out of the association rules by agreement.
Tennessee v. NCAA and the Attorney General
In 2024 Tennessee and Virginia sued the NCAA in federal court in Knoxville over its rule against NIL talks with recruits. On 2024-02-23 the court granted a preliminary injunction, finding the "NIL-recruiting ban" likely violates federal antitrust law (No. 3:24-cv-00033). The Attorney General's office says Florida, New York and the District of Columbia were also part of the suit. On 2025-03-17 the Attorney General announced a final settlement, then pending court approval, that would let recruits and athletes in the transfer portal negotiate NIL pay before committing, let third parties negotiate NIL deals with recruits during the standard recruiting windows, let schools help recruits with NIL, and require the NCAA to publish proposed NIL changes for five years and meet with the states first. The Attorney General's letter of 2025-12-03 cites the consent judgment and permanent injunction entered 2025-03-21 (ECF No. 92).
That letter, signed by the Attorneys General of Tennessee, Florida, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia, objects to the College Sports Commission's university participant agreement, including its penalties on schools when a state or athlete sues and its required arbitration. It is a letter, not a court ruling; no court ruling on 49-7-2803 against the CSC was found.
Agents in Tennessee
NIL agents fall under the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act, T.C.A. §§ 49-7-2101 to 49-7-2125 (Public Chapter 216 of 2017, in force 2017-09-01). An individual may not act as an athlete agent without a certificate of registration from the Secretary of State; if the athlete starts the contact, the agent has 7 days to apply, and a contract resulting from a violation is void (49-7-2104). The fee is $500 to register and $200 to renew (49-7-2109(a)); registration lasts two years (49-7-2106(f)). The agency contract must be notarized and say the agent is registered in Tennessee (49-7-2110). Within 72 hours of signing, or before the next athletic event if sooner, both the agent and the athlete notify the athletic director (49-7-2111(b), (e)). The athlete may cancel within 14 days, and that right cannot be waived (49-7-2112). Violations of 49-7-2114 are a Class E felony (49-7-2115), the Secretary of State may assess a civil penalty of up to $50,000 (49-7-2117), and schools and athletes may sue for actual, treble and punitive damages (49-7-2116).
Records
Two separate rules keep athletics records out of public view at Tennessee's public universities. 49-7-2802(m) covers the NIL records themselves (with only aggregated annual totals released) until 2032-07-01. Public Chapter 759 of 2026, in force 2026-04-16, separately makes commercial contracts entered into solely for an athletics program confidential where disclosure could affect a business's competitive advantage, until 2033-07-01, while keeping public the aggregate state funds spent, the contract's existence, the parties and its general topic (49-7-170(a)(2)).
Bills that did not pass
HB 1386 / SB 1419 (filed 2025) would have replaced Part 28, required NIL programs at colleges and allowed schools to collect talent fees. The House sponsor took it off notice in the Higher Education Subcommittee on 2026-01-21, and the Senate bill has sat in the Senate Education Committee's general subcommittee since 2025-03-26. It is not law.
How it changed
| Act | What it did | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| Pub. Ch. 400 of 2021 (HB 1351, substituted for SB 1000) | enacted Part 28: NIL pay at four-year public and private schools other than those governed by the Board of Regents, at fair market value, never for athletic performance or attendance and only from a third party; schools could not be involved; disclosure and annual reports to the school; banned categories; agents licensed under Part 21; contracts limited to the athlete's participation; financial literacy workshop | 2022-01-01 |
| Pub. Ch. 845 of 2022 (HB 2249, substituted for SB 2392) | let a school support NIL activity without it counting as pay or representation, provided it does not coerce, compel or interfere; deleted the bar on pay from supporting entities tied to enrollment; family members representing an athlete are not agents; added the first bar on athletic association interference | 2022-04-20 |
| Pub. Ch. 823 of 2024 (SB 709, substituted for HB 1059) | rewrote the part: prospective students from ninth grade covered; schools, foundations, coaches and staff may not pay unless federal law, a court order or the association expressly permits; liability shield for good faith involvement; school staff who assist are not agents; association may not interfere (49-7-2803), enforced by the Attorney General | 2024-05-01 |
| Pub. Ch. 300 of 2025 (SB 536, substituted for HB 194) | rewrote the part again: athletes may be paid for NIL, enrollment, roster position and other categories, and schools and affiliated foundations may pay, unless federal law, a valid court order or a qualifying association rule expressly prohibits or limits it; association duties and indemnity (49-7-2802(b)(3), (4)); disclosure became "may be required"; THC products banned; NIL records confidential to 2032-07-01; private school opt-out (49-7-2804) | 2025-05-01 |
| Pub. Ch. 759 of 2026 (HB 2141, substituted for SB 2292) | outside Part 28: made commercial contracts entered into solely for a public school's intercollegiate athletics program confidential where disclosure could affect a business's competitive advantage, until 2033-07-01 (49-7-170(a)(2), (g)) | 2026-04-16 |
Federal law
As of 2026-10-21, S. 4668 (Protect College Sports Act) passed the Senate 77-22 on 2026-09-28 and has been held at the House desk since 2026-10-05, with no House action; it is not law. If enacted as passed, § 121(a)(2) covers state laws that govern, regulate or invalidate school, conference or association rules on NIL compensation, transfers or eligibility. On its text, that describes Tennessee's association duties and indemnity (49-7-2802(b)(3), (b)(4)) and the bars in 49-7-2803, along with the Attorney General's power to enforce them. Tennessee's pay authorization already yields to federal law (49-7-2802(b)(1)(A)(i)) and matches § 101(c), which lets schools, collectives and third parties pay, subject to the § 114 cap. § 121(b) keeps, unless they conflict with § 121(a), Uniform Athlete Agent Acts (Tennessee's Part 21 is the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act), contract law (the participation limit in 49-7-2802(k), the minors rule in (j)) and privacy law; § 121 does not mention public records laws such as 49-7-2802(m). The bill would add, for Division I, a report to the school and the association's designated entity within 5 days of a deal over $600 (§ 101(b)), a bar on restricting eligibility for NIL deals except for conduct-code violations and unauthorized use of school marks (§ 101(a)(1)(B), (a)(3)), and a 5% cap on agent fees for endorsement contracts (§ 102). § 122 is neutral on employee status.
What sits on top of it
- Division I reporting. Third-party deals of $600 or more go to NIL Go within five business days, whatever the state's own rule (NIL Go, reporting a deal, level by level).
- Your school. A school can set a stricter policy than the statute, and most set the disclosure process.
- Agents. Tennessee's athlete-agent rules are on the state-by-state registration table.
- High school. High school NIL in Tennessee is set by the state's athletic association, not this statute.
- Taxes. NIL taxes in plain words.
How Leave fits
In Leave, every deal thread carries a rules summary for the athlete's state and level, and keeps the contract, its dates and the disclosure deadline that applies. It is a summary, not a ruling; the school and the statute decide. Leave is software, not an agent, and takes 0% of any deal. You decide, you send.
Questions about college NIL law in Tennessee
What is Tennessee's NIL law in 2026?
Tennessee Code §§ 49-7-2801 to 49-7-2804, first enacted by Public Chapter 400 of 2021 (in force 2022-01-01) and rewritten by Public Chapter 823 of 2024 and Public Chapter 300 of 2025 (in force 2025-05-01). It lets athletes be paid for NIL, enrollment and roster position, lets schools and their foundations pay unless federal law, a court order or a qualifying association rule expressly limits it, bars associations from penalizing athletes and schools for what the part allows, and keeps NIL records confidential until 2032-07-01.
Can Tennessee colleges pay athletes directly?
Yes, under state law. T.C.A. 49-7-2802(b)(1)(A) says a third party, "including, but not limited to, an institution and its affiliated foundations", may facilitate, offer and provide pay for NIL, enrollment, roster position and similar categories unless expressly prohibited or limited by federal law, a valid court order, or an athletic association that meets the duties in (b)(3). State appropriated funds are excluded from "compensation" (49-7-2801(4)). The statute applies to four-year schools, not those governed by the Board of Regents.
Do I have to tell my school about an NIL deal in Tennessee?
Since 2025-05-01 the statute says an athlete "may be required" to disclose a third-party agreement and its terms to the athletic association or the school and to file annual reports at a time and in a manner they set (49-7-2802(d)); it sets no deadline of its own. Before that, the statute required disclosure to the school. The timing and manner are whatever the association or the school designates.
Does Tennessee require an NIL agent to be licensed?
Yes. T.C.A. 49-7-2802(h)(1) says athlete agents who represent intercollegiate athletes to secure pay under the part must be licensed under 49-7-2104 and meet the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act. Registration is with the Secretary of State, costs $500 (renewal $200) and lasts two years (49-7-2106(f), -2109(a)). Attorneys must be in good standing where licensed, and parents, siblings, grandparents, spouses and guardians are exempt. A representation agreement may not outlast the athlete's participation in the school's program (49-7-2802(k)).
Are NIL contracts public records in Tennessee?
No. T.C.A. 49-7-2802(m) makes records gathered in the course of NIL diligence, pay and related activity confidential, notwithstanding the open records law. A school answering a records request releases only annualized, aggregated totals it paid athletes for NIL, without identifying information. That subsection is repealed on 2032-07-01. Separately, Public Chapter 759 of 2026 keeps some athletics program commercial contracts confidential until 2033-07-01 (49-7-170(a)(2)).
Can a Tennessee NIL deal last after college?
A representation agreement cannot: 49-7-2802(k) says it may not be in effect longer than the athlete's participation in the school's athletic program. Before the 2025 rewrite, (k) applied the same limit to agreements to pay for NIL; the 2025 text applies it to representation agreements only, and requires any third-party deal that conflicts with eligibility to be fixed before the athlete competes, or the athlete may have it declared void from the start.
Be your own agent. Leave.
