Suppressions: why an address can't be re-added
Your suppression list records who must never be emailed, and why. See what puts an address there, which entries you can remove, and why re-importing doesn't help.
Your suppression list is the addresses your account will never email, with the reason for each. It’s what makes an opt-out stick: a suppressed address is skipped on every send, however it’s added back. You’ll find it under Contacts → Suppressions.
If someone is missing from a send and their contact page looks fine, check here. Type the exact address into Check an exact address and click Search.
What puts an address here
| Reason | What happened | Applies to | Can it be removed? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hard bounce | The mailbox doesn’t exist | All of EmailFig (your account only with your own Amazon SES) | No |
| Soft bounce | Repeated temporary failures across separate sends | Your account | No |
| Complaint | The person marked your email as spam | Your account | No |
| Unsubscribe | The person used your unsubscribe link or preference centre | Your account | Only by the person opting back in |
| Manual | You suppressed the address | Your account | Yes, by you |
The contact’s status matches: bounces make them cleaned, everything else makes them unsubscribed. For the difference between bounces, see Soft vs hard bounces.
Hard bounces are blocked across EmailFig
When you send through EmailFig, a hard bounce blocks that address for every account. So an address you’ve never mailed can already be blocked. These show as Platform-wide and have no Remove button. If you send through your own Amazon SES, your hard bounces only block the address in your account, but platform-wide blocks still apply to you.
If you’re sure a platform-wide block is wrong (say, a mailbox that was down is working again), email contact@emailfig.com with the address and what changed.
Why re-importing doesn’t help
Imports, the New contact form and signup forms all check this list. An imported or re-added address comes in as unsubscribed or cleaned, never subscribed. If someone who unsubscribed signs up again, they get a confirmation email, and only their own click brings them back. A signup from an address that bounced or complained is ignored.
Erasing a contact keeps their suppression too, so they can’t be mailed again by mistake.
Suppress an address yourself
Type it into Manually suppress an address and click Suppress. Use this when someone asks to be removed by reply, phone or any other way outside your emails. If they’re a contact, they’re unsubscribed at the same time.
Remove a suppression
Remove only appears on suppressions you added yourself (here, or with Unsubscribe on a contact’s page). Removing one lifts the block but doesn’t resubscribe the contact. They stay unsubscribed until they opt back in themselves.
What the person sees
If a blocked person opens your preference centre or a confirmation link, they’re told they won’t receive your emails, and they can’t change that. Only for a suppression you added does the page also suggest they contact you, because you’re the only one who can remove it.
Reading the page
The list shows your account’s own suppressions. Platform-wide blocks aren’t listed, but Check an exact address finds them. Not suppressed means the address isn’t blocked, either for your account or platform-wide.