Telephone numbers in the Americas
[edit] North America
[edit] North American Numbering Plan
Country Code: +1
International Call Prefix: 011
Trunk Prefix: 1
In the United States (including its territories), Canada, Bermuda, and 18 Caribbean nations, area codes are regulated by the North American Numbering Plan. Currently, all area codes (officially called numbering plan areas) in the NANP must have 3 digits. Historically, the second digit was always "0" or "1", while the second digit of the 3-digit exchange prefix was never "0" or "1." With the increased demand for area codes because of additional lines, FAX lines, pagers, cell phones, etc., the restrictions on the second digit were lifted in 1995. At the same time, the historic restriction on a local (7-digit) telephone number's second digit, which previously could not be a "0" or "1" (to avoid confusion with area codes), was also lifted. Under the new rules, a telephone number such as (378) 400-1234 is perfectly legal, whereas before 1995 it was not permitted.
Despite being one numbering plan, the cost of calling numbers in the NANP (both from inside and from outside) can vary widely depending on which country of the NANP the code is in. As a result, great care is needed on the part of a caller to avoid unexpectedly large bills.
Not all area codes correspond to a geographical area. Codes 8xx (excluding 811 and 899) with the last two digits matching, such as 800, 888, 877, 866, etc., are reserved for toll-free calls. Code 900 is reserved for premium-rate calls (also known as dial-it services, although such services also exist in some places on a local basis using a particular three-digit prefix following the area code, often "976" or "540"). Area code 710 is reserved for the United States Government. Area code 600 is reserved for national Canadian services.
Mobile phones are normally allocated numbers within regular geographic area codes corresponding to or close to the subscriber's home or work location, instead of within a distinctive subset of area codes. (The exception to this rule is New York City, where new mobiles are usually allocated numbers from the 917 area code.) All the extra costs of mobile telephony must be borne by the mobile's owner, unlike in many countries where calling mobiles costs significantly more than calling landlines. Local number portability (LNP) applies across landline and mobile services. In some regions, customer can port a landline number to mobile service and vice-versa.
Dialing plans vary from place to place depending on whether an area has overlays (multiple area codes serving the same area) and whether the state requires toll alerting (a leading 1+ for toll calls). The NANPA web site includes dialing plan information in their information on individual area codes.
In areas without overlays and without toll alerting, including much of California, Illinois, New York (excluding New York City, see below), and New Jersey, calls within an area code are dialed as seven digits (7D) and calls outside the area code as 1 followed by 10 digits (1+10D). Most areas allow permissive dialing of 1+10D even for calls that could be dialed as 7D. The number of digits dialed is unrelated to whether a call is local or toll. In some places, local calls to other area codes are 1+10D, in others they can be dialed as 10D without the leading 1.
In areas with overlays, local calls are all dialed as either 10D or 1+10D; this varies by area. (In New York City, the preferred form is 1+10D but 10D also works.) In areas without toll alerting, all calls to numbers within the caller's area code and overlay codes serving the same area can be dialed as either 10D or 1+10D, while calls to other area codes must be 1+10D. In areas with toll alerting, all toll calls must be dialed as 1+10D.
Most areas permit local calls to be dialed as 1+10D except for Texas, parts of Florida (such as Miami) and many parts of Canada (such as Ontario) which requires that callers know which numbers are local and which are toll, dialing 10D for all local calls and 1+10D for all toll calls
Mobile phone users in North America are not generally required to dial 1, but do need to dial 10D for calls within the North America numbering plan unless:
- Calling from an area without an overlay, and
- Within the home area code of the mobile telephone
[edit] Mexico
Country Code: +52
International Call Prefix: 00
Trunk Prefix: 01
In 1999 Mexico introduced the following new prefixes for use when making long distance calls from telephones in Mexico:
- 00 - international direct dialing (00 + country code + national number)
- including USA and Canada.
- 01 - domestic direct dialing (01 + area code + number)
- 02 - domestic operator dialing (02 + area code + number)
- 09 - international operator dialing (09 + country code + number)
- including USA and Canada.
These codes are not used when calling Mexico from other countries. Such calls should be dialed using whatever international call prefix (such as +, 00, or 011) is required when making international calls from the country where the call originates.)
Mexican area codes are 3 digits long, except for Mexico City (55), Monterrey (81), Guadalajara (33) and their respective outlying areas.
Likewise, local numbers are 7 digits long, while Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara use 8 digit numbers. 8 digit numbers are commonly written two ways:
- xxxx xxxx
- xx xx xx xx
When dialed within its local area, calling-party-pays mobile phone numbers have a designated prefix: 044 - mobile phone (044 + area code + number) For example, when calling within area code 33, a Guadalajara mobile phone would be dialed as: 044 33 xxxx xxxx This prefix is dropped when the number is dialed from another city in Mexico and the domestic prefix 01 is used since calling-party-pays calls can only be made when the mobile subscriber is being called from the same local area. This regulation changed since November 8, 2006, enabling calling-party-pays nationwide (prefix 045). However, some telco operators have refused the new scheme. Outside the country, mobiles are dialed with a "1" prefixed before the area code effective from 4 November 2006: +52 1 33 xxxx xxxx
It is common to see businesses with multiple lines on the same telephone exchange list their alternate lines without repeating the common numbers. For example, "(55) xxxx xx10, 19, 22 y 24" would signify a series of lines in Mexico City:
- (55) xxxx xx10
- (55) xxxx xx19
- (55) xxxx xx22
- (55) xxxx xx24
[edit] Aruba
Country Code: +297
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Belize
Country Code: +501
International Call Prefix:
[edit] Bonaire
Country Code: +599 7
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Costa Rica
Country Code: +506
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Cuba
Country Code: +53
International Call Prefix: 119
[edit] Curaçao
Country Code: +599 9
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] El Salvador
Country Code: +503
International Call Prefix:
[edit] Guatemala
Country Code: +502
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Greenland
Country Code: +299
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Guadeloupe
Country Code: +590
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Haiti
Country Code: +509
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Honduras
Country Code: +504
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Martinique
Country Code: +596
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Nicaragua
Country Code: +505
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Panama
Country Code: +507
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Saba
Country Code: +599 4
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Saint Barthélemy
Country Code: +590
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Saint Martin (French)
Country Code: +590
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Country Code: +508
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Sint Eustatius
Country Code: +599 3
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] South America
[edit] Argentina
Country Code: +54
International Call Prefix: 00
Trunk Prefix: 0
[edit] Aruba
Country Code: +297
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Bolivia
Country Code: +591
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Bonaire
Country Code: +599 7
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Brazil
Country Code: +55
International Call Prefix: 00 xx
| Country | Country calling code | National number length | Dialing plan* | International Call Prefix |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil | 43 | 13 | Closed | 00 |
In Brazil, long distance and international dialing requires the use of carrier selection codes, after the trunk code or international access code. The places where these codes are inserted are shown here by "xx" Some of these codes are:
- 15 for Telefónica
- 14 for Brasil Telecom
- 21 for Embratel
- 23 for Intelig
- 31 for Oi
- 12 for CTBC
Area codes are distributed geographically (see List of dialling codes in Brazil). National dialing is prefixed with 0 (the trunk code) followed by the carrier code (see above) then the area code and the number. For example, to call Rio de Janeiro from another city in Brazil, one would dial the trunk code '0', a two-digit code, the area code '21' and the subscriber's number. Consequently, a Rio de Janeiro number would be displayed in Brazil as
0xx21 xxxx xxxx.
Mobile phone numbers are within the normal area codes but prefixed with the digit '6', '7', '8' or '9'. They have eight digits (including the 6/7/8/9). Exceptions existed in Brasilia up to 2004.
[edit] Chile
Country Code: +56
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Colombia
Country Code: +57
International Call Prefix: 00
Trunk Prefix: 0 followed by 1 or 3 digit carrier code
Bogotá: 1
Medellín: 4
Cali: 2
Pereira: 6
Armenia: 6
Manizales: 6
Cartagena: 5
Barranquilla: 5
Santa Marta: 5
B/manga: 7
Cúcuta: 7
Tunja: 8
Leticia: 8
[edit] Curaçao
Country Code: +599 9
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Ecuador
Country Code: +593
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] The Falkland Islands
Country Code: +500
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] French Guiana
Country Code: +594
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Guyana
Country Code: +592
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Panama
Country Code: +507
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Paraguay
Country Code: +595
International Call Prefix: 00
Trunk Prefix: 0
Asunción and Gran Asunción: 21
Ciudad del Este: 61
Encarnación: 71
Pilar: 86
San Ignacio: 782
Villarrica: 541
Pedro Juan Caballero: 36
Coronel Oviedo: 521
Caazapá: 542
Caaguazú: 522
Concepción: 31
Cellphone - Tigo: 981/3/5/2
Cellphone - Personal: 971/3/5/2
Cellphone - Claro: 991/3/5/2
Cellphone - VOX: 961/3
[edit] Peru
Country Code: +51
International Call Prefix: 00
Trunk Prefix: 0
[edit] South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Country Code: +500
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Suriname
Country Code: +597
International Call Prefix: 00
[edit] Uruguay
Country Code: +598
International Call Prefix: 00
No National Call Prefix needed since August 29th 2010 according to the new numbering plan.
All geographical numbers have 8 digits:
Artigas: 477x xxxx
Canelones: 433x xxxx
Colonia: 452x xxxx
Durazno: 436x xxxx
Florida: 435x xxxx
Fray Bentos: 456x xxxx
Maldonado-Punta del Este: 42xx xxxx
Melo: 464x xxxx
Mercedes: 453x xxxx
Minas: 444x xxxx
Montevideo: 2xxx xxxx
Paysandú: 472x xxxx
Rivera: 462x xxxx
Rocha: 447x xxxx
Salto: 473x xxxx
San Jose: 434x xxxx
Tacuarembó: 463x xxxx
Treinta y Tres: 445x xxxx
Trinidad: 4364 xxxx
[edit] Venezuela
Country Code: +58
International Call Prefix: 00
Trunk Prefix: 0
Barquisimeto: 251
Cabimas: 264
Caracas: 212
Ciudad Bolívar: 285
Maracaibo: 261
Maracay: 243
Maturín: 291
Mérida: 274
Puerto la Cruz: 281
Puerto Ordaz: 286
San Cristóbal: 276
Valencia: 241
Valera: 271
Cellphone - Digitel: 412
Cellphone - Movistar: 414 and 424
Cellphone - Movilnet: 416 and 426
[edit] See also
- Telephone numbering plan
- List of country calling codes
- List of international call prefixes
- List of NANP area codes
- Area codes in the Caribbean
- Category:Telephone numbers by country
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