Toll-free numbers were historically available for free without any registration requirements. To prevent spam and abuses, US carriers now demand that new numbers be officially assigned before they're allowed to ring for incoming calls. The carriers also require all existing toll-free numbers to be registered by September 30, 2022. The carriers will block SMS messages sent from unregistered toll-free numbers after this date.
Covered in this article:
What do you need to know about registering Toll-Free Numbers?
Why is this happening?
How to buy toll free numbers?
What do you need to do?
What if you don’t take action?
What do you need to know about registering Toll-Free Numbers?
The messaging industry is changing the message volumes that can be sent over Restricted (previously called “unverified”) and Pending (submitted for verification) Toll-Free numbers. Increased message filtering will also occur in addition to the new limits applying to both Restricted and Pending. If you’ve already verified your Toll-Free numbers, no further action is needed.
Effective April 1, 2023, Twilio will apply the following industry-wide thresholds for messaging sent over Restricted and Pending Toll-Free numbers:
Restricted:
Daily limit: 500
Weekly limit: 1,000
Monthly limit: 2,000
Pending:
Daily limit: 2,000
Weekly limit: 6,000
Monthly limit: 10,000
Registration is still required for all Toll-Free numbers when sending to Canada.
In the near future, the verification process will need to be completed before sending any traffic to a toll-free number. The official date will be shared in the coming weeks, however, please start to prepare and plan for this change in your onboarding processes.
On April 1, 2023, messages sent via Toll-Free numbers that have not been Verified will be held to the messaging limits referenced above. If they exceed the limits, they’ll be blocked with a 30032 error code. Using additional Toll-Free numbers (snowshoeing) to exceed these limits isn’t allowed and will result in the same block and error code.
Why is this happening?
How to buy toll-free numbers?
What do you need to do?
- Go to the Toll-Free Registration page in the Location Phone Number Tab and complete the form on this page. Keep in mind, you’ll experience verification delays if you omit any information.
- Opt-In Description - provide the URL Opt-in. The image that you attached needs to reflect where customers give their consent to receive further messages from you.
It has to reflect sms language and not have it hidden in the Privacy policy or terms and conditions. You can check the requirements of the opt-in here: LC - Phone Messaging Policy
This is highly important to avoid any rejection from the carrier since they are asking for proof of opt-in. Two examples of the Opt-in here:
- Submit the form and a support ticket will be created.
Once submitted to the telephony channel, the verification process can take up to 4-6 weeks to complete. During this time, your Phone Numbers are moved to a ‘pending verification’ state that removes the messaging limits while we review your submission.
Below is the screenshot:
Due to the high demand for Toll-Free verification, some requests can take longer than the average given. We are working diligently to minimize the number of requests that are delayed. We kindly ask for your patience as we work through the high number of requests.
In the meantime, Toll-Free Number Registration tickets will stay closed and we will send you an email once it's approved.
What if you don’t take action?
Sign Up for LC Phone Beta Now!! - https://www.gohighlevel.com/isv-launch
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