In 2021 a regulatory change allowed carriers to introduce surcharges where the originating CLI is out-of-country.
A simple example of this is placing a call to a UK Geographic number from an Australian Geographic number.
The terminating carrier may choose to apply a surcharge that is in pence-per-minute and additional to the regular termination rate.
Origin-based surcharges become almost farcical when the charge can also vary based on the terminating party and destination type. Where some mobile carriers charge, others do not, and this has already crept from 01, 02, and 07 telephone numbering into 03 and 08.
You can imagine the billing complexity already and this is exponentially worse when you add in multiple TDM carriers as none are the same.
VoiceHost has currently taken the simple protectionist position.
- Customers cannot present non-UK CLIs for outbound calls.
- NTS will block calls that fall under origin-based charging.
This situation is unwanted, especially in the current economic climate but we hope that you understand the position and that you will not receive any bill shock from us.
Statement: Wholesale Voice Markets Review 2021-26 (ofcom.org.uk)
