From January 1, 2023, you will be able to keep your fixed telephone number in 01, 02, 03, 04 or 05, even after moving to another region of metropolitan France. And thus keep it for life, without geographical constraints!
Whether you are an individual or a professional, you will soon be able to keep the same fixed telephone number all your life, if you wish! Normally, each geographic number beginning with 01, 02, 03, 04 or 05 is associated with one of the five large zones segmenting the metropolitan territory, themselves subdivided into 412 smaller zones, called elementary numbering zones (ZNE). As a result, the user must necessarily use a number corresponding to the ZNE in which he is located, which requires him to change it in the event of moving to another ZNE. But this rule introduced with the arrival of ten-digit geographical numbers – itself inherited from the old numbering – will evolve. The Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Posts and Press Distribution (Arcep) indeed decided, in July 2019, to change the national numbering plan. To From January 2023, numbers beginning with 01, 02, 03, 04 or 05 may be kept in the event of a move to another geographical area than that in which they were initially located. Clearly, this is the end of fixed geographic numbers.
Geographic number: a lifting constraint
Since January 1998, individuals and companies using a traditional fixed telephone line have had the right to keep their telephone number beginning with 01 to 05, except in the event of moving outside their ZNE. A constraint that was relaxed a little in 2020 with the possibility of changing the ZNE and keeping its initial number, provided you stay in one of the five major zones: 01 (Ile-de-France), 02 (North-West) , 03 (North-East), 04 (South-East) and 05 (South-West). Arcep’s decision, which will apply from January 2023, allows you to keep your fixed telephone number, including in the event of moving to another area. For example, a resident of Paris (prefix 01) can keep their number if they move to Lyon, an area that uses the prefix 04. And that’s not counting the numbers starting with 09 since they are connected to an Internet box and do not correspond to a geographical area. In addition, a new customer may ask his operator that his number does not begin with the two digits initially assigned to the geographical area in which he is located. In short, everyone does what they want!
However, this relaxation will not apply to the overseas departments and territories. Fixed numbers will remain specific to each territory, even if any subscriber can move within his territory while keeping his number. On the other hand, it will have to be changed in the event of a move to another overseas territory or to mainland France. Arcep has nevertheless planned to merge the two ZNEs constituting the territories of Guadeloupe, Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin, as well as the seven ZNEs of the territory of Guyana. It’s already that !
Geographic number: a technological evolution that simplifies things
One can naturally wonder why such a change. This evolution happens to have been made possible by the widespread use of voice over Internet Protocol – also known as voice over IPs or VoIP – for landline calls. This is because traditional telephony, known as the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network), operates through physical telephone lines and cable and network systems, which allow users to make telephone calls to landlines. and portable. Then came IP telephony, much more flexible, less expensive and compatible with many terminals (IP telephones, smartphones, tablets, computers, etc.), which therefore lifted the geographical constraints that previously existed. This is why the PSTN network is slowly but surely coming to the end of its life.
The generalization of voice over IP meets a practical need for individuals – Arcep estimates that around half of moves are made by changing ZNE – but also an economic issue for companies. Indeed, they are forced to change numbers during a move, even a few kilometers, which penalizes them in their economic activities, the geographical number having been communicated for several years. For more portability, remember that to change operator while keeping your landline number – this is also the case for mobile numbers – you must recover your unique RIO (see our practical sheet).