Mexico +52

Number Format

Area Code:            1-3 digits (see note below)
Subscriber Number:    5-7 digits (see note below)
Trunk Prefix:         01 (see note below)
International Prefix: 00 (see note below)

Mexico numbering notes

Area Code plus Subscriber Number on the conventional service has sum of 8 digits total. However, the Mexican numbering plan is to be expanded to 10 digits total; 800 toll-free service already follows a 10-digit sum (800 + 7-digits, exclusive of long distance prefixes). For person-to-person calls, trunk prefix 02 is used instead of 01 on domestic calls, and 09 is used instead of 00 on international calls.

Area codes begin with any digit except 0.

Subscriber numbers can begin with any digit except 0 or 9 (but may begin with 1 in many cases).

While Mexico City area code is 55 (i.e. numbers are in form +52 55 xxxxxxxx), some suburbs of Mexico City use area codes in the 59x format (i.e. +52 59x xxxxxxx format).

Area code in Mexico is called 'NIR' (Region Identification Number) or "Clave Lada".

Area code information

• Telmex area code listings (Spanish, including PDF format links)
• CFT (regulator)
• San Felipe (Mex) news item
• country-code-mexico.com (carrier promotion)
• Mexico Online

14 April 2006 - "calling party pays" prefixes

Calling regulations regarding telephone numbers where the caller pays the entire call charge calls were implemented. The domestic "calling party pays" prefixes are 044 for local calls, 045 for national calls. The prefixes are optional for calling between two Mexican cell phones.

Calls from outside Mexico will use the +52 1 prefix to identify "calling party pays" status e.g. +52 1 + national number.

Source: IFT announcement (12 May 2015 via ITU)

4 November 2006 - cell phone calling changes

Within Mexico, calls from fixed/wireline phones to wireless phones of most carriers now require the prefix 045 before the area code and subscriber number. The previous mobile access prefix was 01, which was still required for mobile carriers Alestra, Avantel, Axtel and Maxcom.

Callers using the 045 prefix were charged an increased rate per minute with this change (details unclear). The mobile/cellphone user who is called will not be charged for incoming calls through 045.

045 access applies to the carriers Baja Celular, Iusacell, Iusatel, Portatel del Sureste, Telcel, Telecomunicaciones del Golfo Telefonica, Telefonia Celular del Norte, Telefonos del Noroeste, Telmex, Unefon.

From outside Mexico, mobile numbers are reached by +52 1 before the area code and subscriber number, rather than +52 45.

(News courtesy Juanita Boutwell)

Sources:

COFETEL Press Release 21/2006 (PDF)

Lee Iwan bulletin on Mexico cell phone dialling changes (12 October 2006)

1997-2002 National Numbering Changes

Mexico implemented a national numbering change to increase national number lengths from 8 digits to 10 (area code plus subscriber number, exclusive of long distance prefixes).

Most of the renumbering programme is expected to be completed when the new number lengths must be used from other countries as of 16 February 2002.

Explanations of the national renumbering may be found on CFT site (government regulator, in Spanish language).

The Comision Federal de Telecomunicaciones (COFETEL) is the national telecom regulator, responsible for Mexico's telephone numbering.

AT&T; notice on Mexican changes.

Sprint notice on Mexican changes.

Mexican Consulate notes on renumbering.

First Phase - to December 2000 - realignment of subscriber numbers

The first phase (to be completed by the end of 2000) is a realignment of numbering to no area code and 8 digits in Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey. Other areas will have a 1-digit area code and 7-digit subscriber number. There is some confusion regarding when this phase concludes - some references indicate an October 2000 date for this, but local numbering changes continue until December 2000.

Mexico City subscriber numbers became 8 digits by prepending 5 to all local numbers as of 27 February 1999. Details are available (in Spanish) at:

http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/html/1_cft/9cam/2aetapa.html

The schedule for all these changes, provided by state, can be found at the following site:

http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/html/1_cft/9cam/base.html

Second Phase - to December 2001 - national addition of 2 new digits

The second phase will take the 8-digit national numbering to a 10-digit system with the assignment of new area codes:

• Numbers in Guadalajara, Mexico City and Monterrey will have 2-digit area codes and 8-digit subscriber numbers.
• Numbers in other areas will be changed to 3-digit area codes and 7-digit subscriber numbers.

Total Telecom had reported that calls from outside Mexico would be required to use the new area codes as of 17 November 2001. A list of the new area codes can be found at the following URL (Note: NIR is assigned by Local Calling Area number):

http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/html/1_cft/9cam/base.html

The national renumbering process will conclude December 2001 when the national number is finally expanded to 10 digits.

December 2001: Reports of last-minute code changes

Some December 2001 Mexico notes from Hugh M. Hamilton:

"There seem to have been some last-minute changes to the new area codes. I downloaded the conversion program from Cofetel; the program is provided by Iusacell, a major cellular carrier. Where it gives 666 as the new code for Tijuana, Cofetel's new table gives 664, as did the original Cofetel tables. The Iusacell program shows 646 for Ensenada, as does Cofetel's new table, but the original Cofetel tables showed 611. ?? Meanwhile, the old +52 plus eight digits still work from here, via Sprint at least."

(Telmex at one point had two downloadable programs: 100principales.exe (100 biggest cities) and claveslada.exe (whole country). However, these links no longer seem to exist).

1 July 1999 to June 2002 - local area consolidations

A consolidation of local calling areas started on 1 July 1999, to conclude June 2002. This consolidation is done in parallel with the national numbering changes.

This consolidation is based on municipal boundaries in the majority of the cases - a local calling area will resemble the boundaries of towns and cities.

Additionally, this action reduces the number of calling areas from 1464 to 406. A map containing all the new calling areas and the dates of their consolidation can be found on the following URL:

http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/html/1_cft/bol99/2_Consol/mapacons.html

April 2002 report from Hugh M. Hamilton regarding Sprint's handling of the Mexican numbering changes:

"Sprint is really shining with the Mexican renumbering. Now, when an old 011 52 + eight-digit number is dialled, an announcement in English (with a Spanish-language option) allows as how the area codes have all changed, then reads off the new 10-digit number, and then completes the call to the new number. Pretty slick."

Examples of renumbering

The following table has examples of the numbering changes. For each Locality listed, there are three columns:

1) Numbers as they were initially structured prior to the start of the national renumbering process;

2) The First Phase to be completed by the end of 2000;

3) The Second Phase which adds the two area code digits beyond 2000.

The new area codes will eventually relate to the restructured local calling areas.

In some cases (such as Guaymas and Tecate below), the Second Phase area code will be the same as before this renumbering.

Older numbering structures (in effect many years prior to 1999) are noted in brackets for historical reference.

Locality           Initial         First Phase    Second Phase
========           ============    ============   ==============
Durango, Dgo       (18) 123-xxx    (1) 812-3xxx   (618) 812-3xxx

Ensenada, BC       (61) 78-xxxx    (6) 178-xxxx   (611) 178-xxxx
[old: (617) 8-xxxx]

Guadalajara, Jal   (3) 613-xxxx    3613-xxxx      (33) 3613-xxxx
[old: (362) 3-xxxx --> (36) 13-xxxx]

Guaymas, Son       (622) 1-xxxx    (6) 221-xxxx   (622) 221-xxxx

Mexicali, BCN      (65) 62-xxxx    (6) 562-xxxx   (655) 562-xxxx
[old: (656) 2-xxxx]

Mexico, DF         (5) 518-xxxx    5518-xxxx      (55) 5518-xxxx
[old: (25) 18-xxxx --> (55) 18-xxxx]

Monterrey, NL      (8) 343-xxxx    8343-xxxx      (81) 8343-xxxx
[old: (83) 43-xxxx]

Tecate, BCN        (665) 4-xxxx    (6) 654-xxxx   (665) 654-xxxx

Tijuana, BCN       (66) 85-xxxx    (6) 685-xxxx   (664) 685-xxxx
[old: (668) 5-xxxx]

Mexican regulator's explanation of the national renumbering.

Index to new codes (by local calling area, with area codes listed under NIR).

The Mexico Telecom Regulator has made available a Spanish-language document for the Fundamental Technical Numbering Plan of 20 June 1996. (info courtesy Mark J Cuccia).

Telmex expanded the two-digit '0X' service codes (for emergency, directory assistance, etc) to a three-digit '0XX' format.

Introduction of competitive long distance carrier selection began 1997 in major centres. Three-digit carrier identification codes will be used to select particular carriers for calls.

Long distance prefix codes (domestic and international) are also changing to accommodate competitive long distance carriers. The international calling prefix, at least in the Tijuana region, has been changed to the international standard 00+ as from 6 March 1997 (from 95+ for North American calls, 98+ for other nations). (Source was Telnor, which may no longer have details on its site).

Telmex is another Mexican carrier which may have additional information on numbering changes.

(Mexico news and detail courtesy courtesy of Mark Cuccia, Hugh M. Hamilton and Antonio Romo Fragoso).

24 July 1999 - Mexico City local area consolidation

On 24 July 1999, the Mexico City metro area was consolidated into a single calling area. See this announcement from COFETEL:

http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/html/1_cft/bol99/jul99/bol29_22jul.html.

15 January 1999 - mandatory new long distance prefixes, special codes

As from 15 January 1999, long distance calls in Mexico can only be dialed with the following new prefixes:

• 00 - international direct dialling (00 + country code + nat'l number)] Includes USA and Canada.
• 01 - domestic direct dialling (01 + area code + number)
• 02 - domestic person-to-person (02 + area code + number)
• 09 - international person-to-person (09 + country code + nat'l number) Includes USA and Canada.

For details, see the COFETEL website http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/html/1_cft/9cam/index.html (in Spanish).

Also as from 15 January 1999, a new scheme for calling the following special service and operator codes became mandatory:

• 020 - long distance operator (domestic)
• 030 - time
• 031 - wake up call
• 040 - directory assistance
• 044 - caller-paid to cellular numbers (local)
• 050 - repair and complaints (local service)
• 055 - repair and complaints (long distance service)
• 060 - local police
• 061 - State police
• 066 - national emergency system
• 068 - firefighters
• 070 - community services
• 071 - electric service (power grid)
• 072 - reports and complaints for public services
• 073 - water and sewer services
• 075 - orientation and support to personal integrity line
• 077 - information on elections
• 080 - emergency services
• 090 - international operator

For information on operator/special codes, see the COFETEL website: http://www.cofetel.gob.mx/html/1_cft/9cam/seresp.html (in Spanish).

(courtesy Antonio Romo Fragoso)

1 July 1997 - Toll-Free Numbers Expanded

Numbers in the toll-free 800 service were 5 digits until the July 1997 expansion to 7-digit numbers. Depending on the number range of the former 5-digit number, 71 was prepended or 00 was appended to the number to form the new number. In international format, the new numbers are of the form +52 800 xxxxxxx.

February 1991 - inbound North American area code access discontinued

Callers in the North American Numbering Plan were once able to call specific areas in Mexico using area codes 706 (northwest Mexico) or 905 (Mexico City). These were officially removed from service in February 1991 in favour of international dialling using country code 52.

The former Mexico access area codes were reassigned within the North American Numbering Plan: 905 to Ontario, Canada in 1993 (to split the former area code 416 territory); 706 to Georgia, USA 1992 (to split the former area code 404 territory); 903 to Texas, USA in 1990-91 (to split the former area code 214 territory).

18 October 1980 - NANP Northwest Mexico 903 changed to 706

903 was assigned as an NANP area code approximately 1962-3 for North American access to certain northwestern Mexico border towns, prior to widespread availability of international dialling (011+ or 01+ in the NANP). Use of 903 area code was changed to 706 as of 18 October 1980. The +1 706 nxx xxxx numbers would correspond to Mexican numbers of the form +52 6nx xxxxx. There were some modifications to the northwest Mexico numbering ranges since 1980. since 1980. [Information courtesy Mark Cuccia and his various sources].

No information is available on when area code 905 was originally assigned for North American access to Mexico City.

Other Information

Some special area codes used in Mexico's domestic network (prior to the 1997-2000 renumbering):

300 - calling/called parties share charges
500 - personal numbers with call-transfer (caller pays local charge)
700 - virtual private network carrier access
800 - toll-free
888 - additional toll-free (no word if this is in service yet)
900 - surcharged provided services