Fair use policy & Security

Any misuse of number, whatever nature, might lead to service suspension or number claimed back.

Germany: 100+ Range Allocation

German Regulator Bundesnetzagentur (BNetzA) defines the maximum range sizes for new subscribers in the document ‘Struktur und Ausgestaltung des Nummernbereichs für Ortsnetzrufnummern‘.

A German and an English version are available on the homepage of BnetzA:

1. Bestimmung der Anzahl zuzuteilender Rufnummern bei durchwahlfähigen VoIP-Anschlüssen
2. http://www.bundesnetzagentur.de/cln_1431/DE/Sachgebiete/Telekommunikation/Unternehmen_Institutionen/Nummerierung/Rufnummern/ONRufnr/Ortsnetze_Basepage.html?nn=268384

(Struktur und Ausgestaltung des Nummernbereichs für Ortsnetzrufnummern)

3. https://www.bundesnetzagentur.de/EN/Areas/Telecommunications/Companies/NumberManagement/GeographicNumbers/LocalNumbers_Basepage.html?nn=404520

(Structure and configuration of the number range for geographic numbers)

For a block greater than 100, the allocation must be approved by BnetzA before assigning numbers to the end-customer.

Process is as per the following:

• Customer sends the request form to BnetzA
• Official timeline for BnetzA to answer is 3 weeks, but less than 1 week in practice.
• Customer sends the approval to Colt
• Customer can assign the numbers.

It’s the customer’s responsibility to engage with BnetzA and share the confirmation with Colt.

Request form is available below in German/English. It can be filled out in both languages; the other language will be populated automatically.

Austria

There is a private numbering plan in Austria.  When you assign a single main number to an end-customer, the end-customer can configure or add digits/extensions (0-9 or 00-99 or 000-999 or 0000-9999) to the main number in their PBX, as per their needs.  You do not need to inform Colt of the range of extensions/digits when (de/re) activating a number, submitting a port-in order or sending an address update – these transactions require the main number only.  The end-customer’s emergency address is entered and stored at the main number level, and not at the extension level.

France: Hosted customer numbers

There are 2 important Regulatory changes impacting the use of phone numbers in France, which came into effect on 1st January 2023:-

1.            The resale of geographic and location independent numbers for outbound voice services is forbidden

2.            France no longer has 400+ local area codes.  01-05 numbers are available for use throughout mainland France

ARCEP, the Regulator in France, published further information on these changes here: https://www.arcep.fr/uploads/tx_gsavis/22-1583.pdf

If you are reselling Colt numbers to your end-customers under your own brand, then you need to take action to register with ARCEP and obtain your own numbers, which Colt can then host on your behalf.  You can contact your Colt Account Manager to complete the order form to host your number blocks with Colt.  For further information, please refer to these links to the Customer Q&A in English and in French.

Hosting your numbers

When we confirm your own numbers are available to use, you will be able to reserve and (pre)activate your own numbers, update addresses etc.  As a result of the Regulatory changes above you will only need to search for numbers on the basis of the LAC: 01-05 and the LAC extension or search by city will no longer be available - should you need the historical reference, please refer to the Number Coverage file.  Your own numbers will be available in ranges of 1, 10, 100 as requested in your order form.  If you run out of single numbers, then our system will automatically take a range of 10 Free numbers and split this into 10 Free single numbers and similar logic applies if you run out of ranges of 10 etc.  You can also view or query for your Free numbers in France and this enables you to monitor your own inventory and apply to ARCEP for new number blocks in good time – the E2E lead-time is 2-3 months depending on ARCEP, Orange & OLO availability during busy periods.

If you have obtained your own routing/porting prefix in France then you can select this when you port-in a number.

We will return deactivated numbers from your number blocks to your “free” pool of numbers at the end of the quarantine & frozen period.  We will return numbers which were ported-out and which have been cancelled / deactivated by the end-customer into your “free” pool of numbers at the end of the quarantine & frozen period, using our established processes & system integration with APNF.

The responsibility to supply compliance reports or to comply with regulatory audits is yours.  Colt will provide a clear view of your number inventory  - the number status & end-customer data via our APIs & Numbers on Demand which you can use to meet these requests together with your own data. 

Tri-partite agreement with Colt numbers

If you do not have your own numbers from ARCEP yet, then from 21^st January 2023 you are responsible for submitting a tri-partite agreement with every order for new Colt number activations. The tri-partite agreement template can be found in English here and in French here.  You are responsible for filling in your own company details, the numbers being ordered, entering the accurate address details of your end-customer and obtaining the end-customer’s signature. 

France: Introduction of RIO codes for the wider business market

There are some changes to the use of RIO codes in France, which came into effect from 1st December 2023, pursuant to Arcep’s decision no 2022-2148.

A RIO code is a unique identifier associated to a telephone number, which is created when a consumer or small business request a new telephone number in France and its purpose is to facilitate the portability process.  If they wish to move / port numbers to a new operator, then the new operator will request the RIO code provided by the current operator for each single telephone number from the consumer / small business in order to validate that the port order is legitimate and to implement the porting order.  These RIO codes are not yet mandatory in the wider business market but this will gradually change.

The changes are:

1. Colt, as a technical operator, must define a unique RIO code for every:
   1. Colt geographic or location independent number
   2. Geographic or location independent number ported-in to Colt
   3. Geographic or location independent number hosted by Colt on your behalf – this includes both new and ported-in numbers where you have mandated Colt as your OPTA (i.e. where we technically manage the porting of your numbers on your behalf)
2. Colt must make these RIO codes available to you via a secure portal, which is our Numbers on Demand portal and over API and these will be available in our May 2024 release.   Up until the May 2024 release, if you require the RIO code for e.g. a consumer / small business port, then please get in touch with FRPortingDesk@colt.net.

It is not foreseen that RIO codes will be required for number portability in the wider business market until 2025, due to the complexity of inter-operator process & system integration work and pursuant to Arcep’s decision.

In a wider context, if you currently support consumers, we would like to remind you that consumer-specific obligations apply pursuant to the regulations, including the provision of an IVR service through which you provide the RIO code associated to a specific number.

As an operator providing voice services in France, you are responsible for portability to your end-customers and other operators, even where Colt is technically managing portability for you as your OPTA.  Obligations regarding how the RIO codes should be shared with your subscribers apply, as well as other obligations related to portability (i.e. additional information to be provided to your subscribers,  contractual provisions, etc.). Obligations may vary depending on the customer type (business, small business, consumer) and the kind of service you provide (OTT, single-number or multi-number offers, etc.).

For further information please see this decision from ARCEP: https://information.colt.net/hubfs/22-2148_FR_Published%20document_22Mar2023%20en-GB.pdf

The RIO code will be present against each CLI in the Numbers on Demand portal when viewing the ‘Number Details’ and will be returned in the B2B API response (SOAP/HTTPs: getNumberDetails and REST: GET/CLIDetails) as well.

Portugal & Spain: Introduction of CIF/NIF/VAT ID check

In May 2024 we have introduced an external check on the CIF/NIF/VAT ID in Portugal and Spain against the European Commission’s VAT Information Exchange System (VIES). – see: https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/taxation/vat/check-vat-number-vies/index_en.htm.   The reason is to improve the accuracy and validity of orders for new numbers and ports as explained below:

• The VAT ID/CIF is included in the CVP generated by Colt for an end-customer and is highly confidential.  The CVP was introduced by the PT Regulator, Anacom, to give greater security to end-customers.  End-customers must include their CVP in a future port order to prove their request is genuine.
• As requested by the ES Regulator, CNMC, the VAT ID/CIF/NIF must be uploaded into the emergency database in Spain and be an exact match to the registered end-customer name.

In Numbers on Demand portal you will see the extra validation step on the CIF/NIF/VAT ID in Portugal & Spain when activating a number, porting-in a number and updating an end-customer address, including bulk orders.  In both Portugal and Spain if your end-customer has only recently registered for VAT and their details are not yet in VIES, then you can enter their VAT ID by selecting “NIF//CIF/VAT ID not registered” and your order will proceed as normal.

Spain: Number Type offerings