How Porting Business Phone Numbers Works

Is my number portable? How long does number porting take?  Does business number porting cost money?
Find everything you need to make it quick, simple, and free to transfer your business phone numbers. 

how-porting-business-phone-numbers-works

A business phone number is a fundamental part of your brand identity. It’s the number - or group of numbers - that has been splashed across your web pages, social media, and promotional materials...not to mention picked up several international search engines.

Your business number is everywhere.

It’s a number you’d probably prefer to keep. After all, your customers have grown familiar with it because they’ve been in contact with you for years. However, the clunky landline or subpar provider has run its course and you’ve been considering switching to VoIP because of your market expansion goals.

Businesses can easily transfer their legacy phone number over to a new carrier with a process called porting. Porting a business number is pretty easy with the right provider - even if you’re going international. In this article, we’ll take a look at some common questions around international porting, supported number types, and process tips to efficiently port over.

How Number Porting Works

What is number porting?

Porting is the process of transferring a legacy phone number over to a new carrier. Companies will port their numbers elsewhere for a variety of reasons: long-distance call charges on landlines, inability to forward calls, inferior call quality and support tools, etc.

Customers new to AVOXI have shared their input behind their decisions to port over to us. Our consistent uptime and excellent call quality, global voice reach in 170+ countries, and exceptional free phone features to optimize processes and improve the customer experience were among the most mentioned.

AVOXI’s VoIP porting service is quick, easy, and available for several number types in over 100 countries - at no cost! For a limited time, customers can get a full month of free calling with every business number ported to our network! Check that your number transfers efficiently with AVOXI’s VoIP phone number portability chart.

What documents do I need to port my number?

While the required documentation may vary by country and provider, in most cases, a business will need to provide the following information:

  • Letter of Authorization. A completed letter of authorization (LOA) gives permission to the new carrier to contact your current carrier and begin the porting process. AVOXI provides an LOA template for anyone interested in transferring their business number to our network.
  • Proof of Ownership. Proof of ownership is necessary for a new carrier to transfer the number. This document can be something as simple as a bill or invoice that references your name, number, and billing address.
  • Number Porting Form. Porting international numbers may require an additional form. Talk with your new provider about how to obtain one. Porting US and Canadian numbers are excluded from this form requirement.

How long does porting a number take?

The time it takes to port will largely depend on your provider’s process, your old provider’s responsiveness, and how quickly you can send off the requisite information. Most of AVOXI's international number transfers take 3-7 days to complete, but we advise giving yourself a 30-day window for those rare cases that need more processing and provisioning time.

From the time of request, porting local or toll free numbers in the US or Canada generally takes 2-3 weeks to complete. Customers are not expected to face any down time during the porting process. 

Can I transfer a landline number to a VoIP service?

Yes! Porting numbers to VoIP, even traditional landline services, is quick and easy with most VoIP porting services. 

Information Needed to Transfer Your Business Numbers

The Number Porting Process

Is Your Business Number Portable?

The following table reflects the international number types AVOXI is currently able to port for you. We are one of very few VoIP services that specializes in international number porting, and customers often tell us that we were able to port phone numbers they owned in other countries after other carriers said their numbers were not portable.

However, if your number type is not listed as portable, that doesn't necessarily mean it's impossible to port your number! It simply means we have not successfully ported that number type recently and cannot ensure those numbers can be transferred. If your number type is portable, contact us to find out how much you can save by porting phone numbers to AVOXI! 

Toll Free and Local Number Portability

Algeria DID Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Australia National Yes - Port Now!
Australia DID Yes - Port Now!
Austria ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Austria DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Bahamas ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Belgium DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Belgium ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Bermuda ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Brasil DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Brasil ITFS Yes - Port Now!
Brunei Darussalam ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Bulgaria DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Cameroon DID Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Canada DID Yes - Port Now!
Canada ITFS Yes - Port Now!
Chile DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Chile ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Colombia ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Croatia DID Yes
Croatia ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Curacao National Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Cyprus ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Czech Republic ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Denmark ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Dominican Republic ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Estonia ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Estonia DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Finland DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Finland ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
France DID Yes - Port Now!
France ITFS Yes - Port Now!
France National Yes, contact [email protected]
French Guiana ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Germany ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Germany DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Germany National Yes, contact [email protected]
Greece DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Guadeloupe ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Hong Kong ITFS Yes - Port Now!
Hungary ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Hungary DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Hungary National Yes, contact [email protected]
Iceland ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Ireland ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Ireland DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Ireland National Yes, contact [email protected]
Isle of Man Mobile Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Israel DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Israel National Yes - Port Now!
Italy ITFS Yes - Port Now!
Japan ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Korea, South ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Korea, South DID Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Lithuania DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Lithuania ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Luxembourg DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Malaysia DID Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Martinique ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Mayotte ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Mexico DID Yes - Port Now!
Mexico ITFS Yes - Port Now!
Monaco ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Montserrat ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Morocco ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Netherlands ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Netherlands DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Netherlands National Yes, contact [email protected]
New Zealand DID Yes, contact [email protected]
New Zealand ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Panama DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Peru DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Peru ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Poland National Yes, contact [email protected]
Poland DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Portugal DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Puerto Rico DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Reunion ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Romania ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Romania National Yes, contact [email protected]
Romania DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Russian Federation DID Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Russian Federation ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Saint Kitts and Nevis ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Saint Lucia ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Singapore National Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Slovakia DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Slovakia ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Slovenia ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Slovenia DID Yes, contact [email protected]
South Africa DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Spain DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Spain ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Spain National Yes, contact [email protected]
Sudan DID Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Sweden DID Yes, contact [email protected]
Sweden ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Switzerland ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
Switzerland DID Yes - Port Now!
Turks and Caicos Islands ITFS Yes, contact [email protected]
United Arab Emirates ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
United Kingdom ITFS Yes - Port Now!
United Kingdom DID Yes - Port Now!
United Kingdom National Yes - Port Now!
United States of America DID Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
United States of America ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Venezuela ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Vietnam National Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Virgin Islands, British ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]
Virgin Islands, U.S. ITFS Portable in most cases. Contact [email protected]

How to Transfer Business Phone Lines for Free

Porting your business number is a great service to reach your global audience and align your brand within new markets. Switching to a new provider doesn’t have to be a hassle. In fact, seeking a new VoIP provider can help you discover new technologies and features that can assist a business in its global communication efforts.

AVOXI’s feature-rich voice platform and analytics provide a wealth of information and benefits to our customers. The value-add tools and functionality help streamline international communication processes and, in return, improve the customer experience. A win-win.

Learn More About Porting Business Numbers with AVOXI ➜