Porting a phone number into HighLevel

Before we start: the checklist

Most rejected ports fail on details that could have been confirmed on day one. We collect all of this before anything is submitted, and we confirm the name, address and account number with the current carrier, not from memory.

• The numbers, and what type each one is. Landline, wireless, local VoIP or toll-free. Wireless numbers are handled differently.
• The account number with the current carrier.
• The wireless PIN, or the last four digits of the account holder's SSN where the carrier uses that. Every wireless number needs one, and a wrong PIN is an automatic rejection.
• The authorised person's name and email. They will be emailed the Letter of Authorization to sign.
• The service address, exactly as the carrier has it. A PO box is not accepted.
• A recent bill from the current carrier. A clear PDF showing the numbers, the account owner's name and the carrier's name. On the manual form it must be no more than 90 days old.
• An export of anything worth keeping. Porting moves the number only. Call recordings, voicemails and text history at the old carrier do not come across.
• Who will submit. In HighLevel, only an agency owner or agency admin can submit a port request.

Keep the business running with a temporary number

A port takes weeks, and the business needs to use HighLevel in the meantime. So before the port goes in, we set the account up with a temporary number that is ready for real use.

• Add a new number in the sub-account to act as the temporary line.
• Make it text-ready. Link it to the approved A2P campaign and check it shows the green "A2P Verified" label. Without that, US carriers block its texts.
• Test it with a call and a text in both directions, from an outside phone.
• Leave the main number where it is. It keeps working with the old carrier, so customers calling the usual number notice nothing.
• Agree what happens to the temporary number once the port completes: keep it as a second line, or release it.

Submit the port request

With everything confirmed, the request takes minutes.

• Complete the agreement checklist.
• Enter the number details: carrier account number, landline numbers, wireless numbers, and the wireless PIN where required.
• Enter the contact details: residential or business, the authorised person's name and email, and the full service address.
• Upload the billing statement, review, and submit.
• Save the Request SID from the confirmation screen. It is the reference for everything that follows.
• Get the Letter of Authorization signed. HighLevel generates it from the request and emails it to the authorised person. An unsigned letter stops the port, so we follow up the same day.

Track it, and tell the client what to expect

Status, the Request SID and any carrier action show under Phone Numbers, in the Port-In Numbers tab. HighLevel also emails status changes. Once the losing carrier approves, it issues the date and time window for the switch.

We don't promise a specific date until the carrier confirms one, and same-day ports are not guaranteed. The client hears from us when the date is set, and again the day before.

If it's rejected: the six reasons and the fix

A rejection is nearly always a mismatch between what was submitted and what the current carrier has on file. These are the reasons HighLevel documents.

Registration for business texting

A ported number can make and receive calls, but it can't text customers until it is covered by the right registration. We line this up while the port is in progress, so texting works on day one.

• US local numbers need an approved A2P brand and campaign, and the ported number must be linked to that campaign.
• Toll-free numbers don't use A2P. They go through Toll-Free Verification, and texting stays blocked until the status is Verified.
• If the registration is rejected, the rejection code says exactly why. Our A2P rejection decoder turns each code into the fix and the message for the account owner.

Test everything, then close out

The port is not finished when the carrier says it is. It's finished when we've seen it work.

• The number appears in the correct sub-account.
• Inbound call from an unrelated outside phone.
• Outbound call from each user or group that uses the number.
• Inbound and outbound text, once the number shows as A2P Verified.
• Everything that pointed at the old setup: call forwarding, assigned users, voicemail, ring groups, the phone menu, and any workflow that sends from a specific number.
• Only then does the client cancel the old carrier.
• Write it up: what was ported, the dates, anything that went wrong and how it was fixed.