Port phone numbers

This article explains the process of porting phone numbers.

In this article

Overview

If you want to keep your existing phone numbers but move them over to your avaya.cx account you will need to follow a  process known as porting. Porting happens when you keep your phone numbers but change service providers. When you port phone numbers from your previous carrier to your avaya.cx account, you will first have to submit a port request.

Important: Do not disconnect the numbers or any services related to them before submitting a port request to your avaya.cx account.

We require the following pieces of information for every port request:

• Letter of Authorization (LOA)

• Copy of your bill (COB) or invoice (within the last 30 days)

• Customer service record (CSR) (optional)

Continue reading the sections below for more information on each of these pieces of information.

Letter of Authorization (LOA)

The letter of authorization is a required document that allows us to act on your behalf when porting numbers away from your current carrier. 

Click either link below to view and download the appropriate file:

The LOA explained. The LOA templates contain the account details that are required when submitting your request to the losing carrier. The required information varies if you’re porting local vs toll free numbers. Required on all LOAs:

1. Current Provider: Who are your services with today? We need to know this because ports must be submitted according to their carrier guidelines. 

2. Account Holder: This is the main authorized contact on the account. Only the Account Holder is authorized to make account changes, such as porting phone numbers away. You can find this by talking to your existing carrier. 

3. Company Name: This is the name that your carrier has on file for your account. Spelling of company name is especially important, especially if there are special characters, abbreviations or multiple businesses under your account. You can find this information on your bill copy or by talking to your current carrier. 

4. Service Address: This is the physical location of your office, business, equipment, etc. Service address may be different from your billing address. If you have multiple service addresses you will need to submit separate LOAs by service address. You can find this by talking to your existing carrier.

5. TNs to be ported: A list of the numbers that are porting is required so that we can ensure we are porting only the numbers you want from your existing account.

Required on Local Number LOAs only:

1. Billing Telephone Number (BTN): Is set up at the account level and is used for account configuration. The BTN is the main account telephone number which all of the other telephone numbers are nested under. There can only be ONE BTN per account. 

a. If you are porting your BTN to your Avaya.cx account, but leaving your account active, we will need to establish a new BTN for your account during the porting process.

2. Partial Port Indicator: When a port request is submitted it has to be differentiated as a partial port or a full port. 

a. A full port means that all telephone numbers are porting away from the existing carrier, there will be no numbers left on the account after the port is complete. This typically results in the termination of the account with the losing carrier.  

b. A partial port means that only some of the numbers are porting away from the existing carrier and some are staying behind. For a Partial Port you can either:

i. Leave the remaining numbers active with the current carrier, which is when you will need to establish a new BTN or confirm the existing one should remain. 

OR 

ii. Disconnect the remaining numbers. This typically results in the termination of the account with the carrier.  

Required on Toll Free LOAs only:

1. Billing Account Number: You can find this information on your monthly bill copy/invoice. This is required information which is used to validate authenticity of the port request.   

We cannot process a port request without a letter of authorization. The accuracy of the information provided in the letter of authorization (and throughout the porting process) influences the processing time for the port request. More accurate information correlates with shorter processing times.

Please note that:

• An LOA must be signed within 30 days of the port request. The authorized Account Holder must sign the LOA. 

• If you need to port more than 20 telephone numbers, also provide an attached .xls (Microsoft Excel) file containing the numbers.

• Local phone numbers and toll-free phone numbers have separate letters of authorization. 

Copy of the Bill or Invoice (COB)

We require a copy of your most recent bill or invoice for the telephone numbers you wish to port to your Avaya.cx account.

• The bill or invoice must be dated within the last 30 days

• If the bill does not contain the numbers you’d like to port, a screenshot of the numbers from your carrier’s billing port may be necessary.

• Please make sure your account number is visible on the bill.

Customer Service Record (CSR) (Optional)

Customer service records are optional, but highly recommended especially if there are multiple service addresses on your account. The inclusion of a CSR can help to expedite the porting process – especially if there are multiple service locations, complex features, account set ups and/or more than 50 phone numbers. You can request a customer service record from your losing carrier. 

The customer’s service record is the information that the porting request is verified against during the porting process.

Note: The information on the customer service record may not be the same information that’s listed on the bill or invoice

If you prefer, your Avaya.cx account team can request a customer service record from your losing carrier on your behalf. This will, however, delay processing times in most circumstances.

Steps

Typically you will go through the porting process when you are onboarding with us. Follow these steps to submit a request to port numbers to your Avaya.cx account. Be sure to work closely with your CSM. 

1. Prior to porting, prepare the following materials (described in the Overview section above) in advance of your submission. If you have any questions when you’re gathering this information please reach out to lnp@avaya.cx. 

   1. 1. Letter of authorization 

★ Be sure to include the numbers you wish to port*!
*If you are porting FAX numbers please include a separate list as they need to be processed separately*

1. 1. 2. Most recent bill or invoice

      3. Custom service record (optional)

2. During your onboarding you will work closely with our team who will ensure your documentation is ready for submission. 

3. Once you're ready for submission, please email your documents to lnp@avaya.cx with your requested Due Date. Please also CC your CSM for visibility. 

★ See the Porting timelines section below for estimated porting timelines to determine the earliest possible porting timeframes. 

4. The porting telephone numbers will be added to your account(s) for Caller ID use and set up. You will work with your CSM to ensure configuration is accurate. 

★ These numbers will only route internally. This will not disrupt your existing services and routing with your current carrier. 

5. Wait for the numbers to be ported. 

   1. 1. During this step, you may see porting rejections that need to be resolved in order to gain approval from the losing carrier. Each time a rejection is encountered the clock is “reset” and the porting interval starts from the beginning. 

      2. Check out the Common Rejection Reasons section below to learn more about what types of rejections you may see and how to overcome them. 

6. FOC is issued. We (lnp@avaya.cx) will reach out to confirm the FOC date and time. 

7. We (lnp@avaya.cx) will reach out to you via email to confirm your numbers have been ported successfully. 

8. Your CSM and onboarding team will work with you to route the numbers to the correct IVRs when the port takes effect to avoid downtime.

Porting timelines

Ports are activated between 10 AM and 11 AM EST unless otherwise specified. Telephone numbers will be made messaging enabled at time of port. However, SMS Campaign Registration will most likely still be required if you wish to send messages on your ported numbers.

The table below provides estimates for porting requests.

Porting holidays

Please keep in mind that no porting activity takes place on the following days (this list is updated yearly):

Common rejection reasons

These are some common reasons why a number port could be rejected.

Number disconnected / Number not active

The telephone number (or the account holding the telephone number) is considered disconnected or inactive.

To resolve this, re-activate service with your carrier to continue.

Pending order

A pending order can be anything from another port request, a feature added or disconnected, address change, etc. 

To resolve this, contact your carrier to get the order closed out or canceled in order to proceed.

Billing Telephone Number (BTN) / Account Telephone Number (ATN) mismatch

This can occur if the BTN provided on the order doesn’t match the BTN on the carrier’s records. Most often, this can be resolved by referencing a CSR.

To resolve this, contact your carrier to get the correct BTN. 

Partial port / Full port

The LNP team will also assist you in the correct way to resubmit if you receive this rejection. 

When this rejection occurs, it is because the wrong “Port Migration Indicator” was selected. Please review the Partial Port Indicator section in LOA Explained to learn more about what’s needed to resubmit.

Account freeze

The account has a hold or a freeze in place on the account. This typically happens when account changes, such as adding/removing phone numbers, features, services, etc. are made. These rejections typically resolve themselves in about 1-3 weeks. 

To resolve this, you can attempt to reach out to your carrier and have them clear the freeze/hold. 

Name mismatch / address mismatch

The business or residential name on the order doesn’t match the carrier’s records.

To resolve this, contact your carrier to pull the current name on the CSR (customer service record).

PIN Code

A PIN number is a unique code that is set up with the current carrier to prevent unauthorized port outs from an account.

To resolve this rejection, reach out to your current carrier and have them advise the PIN on your account. 

Other feature rejection

Depending on how the account was set up, there could be other features that need to be addressed.

Expedite a port

We do not currently support requests for expediting ports. 

Cancel a port

You can request that a port be canceled at any time up to 48 hours (two business days) prior to the established FOC (Firm Order Confirmation) date on the port. However, cancellation requests within this 48-­hour window are not guaranteed and your order could still be activated to Edify.

Unauthorized port

If you believe a telephone number has been ported without authorization, please reach out to lnp@avaya.cx and provide an updated LOA. 

Porting out of Edify

We hate to see you go but we want to make this process as easy as possible. All you need to do is initiate a porting request with your new carrier! Feel free to pass along our contact information, lnp@avaya.cx, to your new carrier.