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Check leads with Precleared when your agent works in Clay
Clay's MCP server lets your agent search and run Clay from a chat. Connect Precleared's MCP server next to it, so every lead your agent sends on to Clay's Sequencer or a campaign is checked first. For tables, the HTTP API column recipe checks every row inside Clay itself.
What you need
- A Precleared key. Every new key starts with 14 days at 100 checks a day, then your own 100 a day over MCP, no card needed. Get a free key.
- Clay's MCP server. The hosted one connects through Claude's Clay connector, or by typing @Clay in ChatGPT, and needs a workspace role above Viewer. There's also a local server in the Clay CLI.
1. Connect both servers
- Claude.ai: add the Clay connector, then Precleared from the Claude directory or as a custom connector with
https://precleared.dev/mcp?src=guide-clay. - Claude Code: run
/plugin marketplace add clay-run/agent-plugins, then/plugin install clay@clay-plugins, and add Precleared with the command below. - Local: the Clay CLI runs a server with
clay mcp. Sign in withclay login, or setCLAY_API_KEY.
claude mcp add --transport http precleared "https://precleared.dev/mcp?src=guide-clay" --header "Authorization: Bearer pc_live_..."
See Clay's MCP docs.
2. Give your agent the rule
Paste this into your agent's instructions, a project's instructions or a skill:
Before you send a lead on to Clay's Sequencer or any campaign, call Precleared's contact_check once for its email address. Send address_source (where you got the address) and sender_country, plus company_name and pitch when you know them. - ok_to_email: carry on, using the Clay function your team set up for adding contacts. Keep the receipt id with the lead. - consent_needed or blocked: don't send the lead on. Note the next_step, so the address can go on the Sequencer blocklist. - unknown: don't send the lead on yet. Supply the missing fact (recipient_country, default_recipient_country if all your prospects are in one country, or company_number), then check again. Every email must meet footer_text: usually who you are, a postal address and a way to opt out.
What happens to each lead
| Verdict | What your agent does in Clay |
|---|---|
ok_to_email | Sends the lead on, keeping the receipt id |
consent_needed or blocked | Holds the lead back for the Sequencer blocklist |
unknown | Holds the lead until the missing fact is supplied, then checks again |
Good to know
- Clay's MCP server has no built-in tool for adding contacts to a sequence. It runs Functions your admin builds, for example one that uploads contacts to Sequencer.
- Block addresses in Sequencer's Blocklist tab, or with Clay's "Add email to blocklist" enrichment.
- Settings come from Clay's docs as of 30 October 2026.
- The
?src=guide-claytag on Precleared's address only tells us which guide you used. It doesn't change your allowance or your results.
Every check has a signed receipt. Open precleared.dev/r/ followed by its id to show a client why an email went out.
Decision support with sources, not legal advice.