Continued from Part 2: How to move a landline number to a cell phone carrier

This Sounds Great! Is There Any Bad News?

Here comes the bad news. The Federal Communications Commission has made it illegal for all wireless providers to refuse a valid port request. A cell phone number can always be ported to a different provider. That’s actually the good news. The bad news is this is not always true for landlines.

Depending on the size of your landline carrier, they may have received a state waiver for porting numbers. This allows the company to refuse a port request. When this happens, you will not be able to transfer your landline number to any other provider. If your request is denied and all the information provided to the wireless company was correct, you may want to consider contacting your state’s public utility commission. This department will let you know whether or not your landline carrier has a waiver.

Companies without a waiver will need to honor the request and your number should be associated with your cell phone within the appropriate time frame. Once the port has been completed, your landline service should be automatically disconnected. You should then receive a bill for any amount owed to the carrier.

What If I Owe My Telephone Company Money?

A successful telephone number port does not remove your payment obligation. This refers to contracts as well. It is important to contact your landline provider if you are unsure as to whether or not there will be any sort of early termination fee. Moving a number to a new carrier will count as early termination if you are still under contract. This is especially true if your landline was bundled with other services such as cable or internet. You may lose discounts or incur additional fees for breaking the “bundle.” Long distance will never travel with the transfer of your landline number. Make sure that long distance calling is provided by your new wireless carrier before making long distance calls. It usually is but be 100% sure. Also, carriers will not allow portability if you have outstanding bills so you better clear any past due invoices.

I prefer Talking on Handsets. What are my Options for Me?

Yes! Don’t worry if you enjoy using a handset while at home. There are devices available which will allow you to use your cordless or corded handset instead of your cell phone. Docking stations can be purchased from a variety of sources and allow you to use your internal telephone wiring via cable or Bluetooth. All you need to do is set up the station and your cell phone in an area of the home that has reception. When calls come in, you will be able to answer using the normal telephone. If you need to leave the house or want to switch back to the cell phone, you can simply remove the phone from the docking station.

What’s the First Step?

The first thing you need to do is get in contact with the wireless company you are currently using like Verizon or Sprint. They will be responsible for everything associated with the port request (Really? Yes! You don’t really need to do much). In order for a valid request to be made, you will need to show them a recent landline bill which has your current and correct personal information which is good, or anyone could put in a request for the White House’s landline number to go to their cell phone. This information will be used to help both providers verify your identity so that a port request can be put through.

Another stipulation is that the number being ported must be within the same local area as the new provider. For example, you cannot transfer a landline number from California to a cell phone company in Texas. Keep in mind that once the landline number has been ported over, you will lose your current cell phone number.

If you want to keep the cell phone number as well, you will need to open a new cell phone line with your wireless service for the transfer of the landline number. At this point, you need to decide if it’s cheaper to just keep the landline on a minimal use plan or get a new cell phone with a new number. Sometimes it’s still cheaper to transfer to a cell phone if you can add a new phone under a family plan model.

How Long Does the Transfer Take?

While the transfer of cell phone numbers can happen within a matter of hours, the transfer of a landline number to a mobile phone can take several days. Your wireless company will be able to provide you a better estimate on the length of time for your particular port request, but at most it’s 10-14 days with 3-4 business days a more likely estimate. During the porting process, you may not be able to receive telephone calls so be sure that you have a backup communication system in place if necessary.

Continued Reading: How to move a landline number to a cell phone carrier Part 3.