Before you begin

Review the Short Code Guidelines of the country for which you want to apply for a new Short Code.

These country-specific guidelines crucially include information about

• Common acceptable use cases for Short Codes
• Restrictions on Short Code use
• Requirements for Short Code applications and approval
• Relevant regulations

Note that this onboarding process is used only with US Short Codes during the Beta of Short Codes provisioning in Console.

When you start the application process for a new Short Code in the Twilio Console, you will be required to provide the necessary information and supporting documents.

If you are a Direct Customer who intends to use the new Short Code for messaging related to your own products or services, then the guidance and information requirements apply directly to you and your use case.

If you are an Independent Software Vendor (ISV) who wants to provision a new Short Code on behalf of one of your customers for their messaging use case, then you are responsible for gathering the required information from your customer to submit a compliant application.

How to use the Twilio Console to provision a new Short Code

To provision a new Short Code in the Twilio Console you will be completing these steps:

1. Navigate to the Short Code application page
2. Select Short Code country
3. Prepare the Short Code application
4. Follow on-screen instructions to complete the application
5. Submit your application for review
6. Obtain Twilio review approval
7. (Optional) Correct your application if needed and re-submit
8. Pay for Short Code provisioning
9. Obtain Carrier review approval
10. Manage and configure your provisioned active Short Code

1. Navigate to the Short Code Application Page

Log into your Twilio Console.  Inspect the account name at the top of your Account Dashboard and navigate to the account where you would like to provision the Short Code. 

Navigate to Phone Numbers > Short Codes in the left-hand panel. 

 

 

Scenario 1 - No previous Short Code applications

If you did not previously apply for Short Codes, the Short Codes Console page will show a brief explainer.

Press the Apply for a Short Code button to start the application process for your first Short Code.

 

Scenario 2 - Existing Short Code applications or active Short Codes

If you previously applied for Short Codes or have active Short Codes, the Short Codes Console page will allow you to see existing applications and active Short Codes.

Press the Request a Short Code button to start the application process for a new Short Code.

 

 

2. Select Short Code country

Select the country for which you want to request the Short Code and press the Continue button.

 

3. Prepare the Short Code application

Enter the requested information for:

1. The Application friendly name
2. Choose the Request Type New Short Code
3. Choose the applicable Use case categories
4. Select the applicable Traffic type
5. Press the Continue to Application button to proceed

Based on the answers you gave to the above questions, the Console determines which steps you have to follow to provide the required information for a complete application. 

 

 

4. Follow on-screen instructions to complete the application

At this stage, the Short Code Console page provides you with a step-by-step sequence of sections to review and complete. 

Please review the applicable guidelines relevant to the country for which you are requesting a Short Code, including the specific documentation to gather in support of the application.

 

 

Follow each step instructions to complete the required forms and upload supporting documents.

As you complete the sections, the Console automatically saves a Draft of your Short Code application.

At any time during this step-by-step process you can cancel the application process. To do so press the Cancel application button and confirm that you are sure you want to cancel the application.

 

 

4.1 Company Information

This page has two sub sections - Managing company information and brand / Customer facing information.

If you are a direct customer and you will be using the Short code for your own brand, choose the “Same as managing company” option in the Customer facing information section. If you are an Independent software vendor (ISV) and you are applying for a Short Code for one of your customers, you as an ISV would be the Managing company and your customer would be the Customer facing company. 

In either case, you can re-use the business information from an existing customer profile if you have one associated with your account by choosing the “I will use an existing customer profile” option. This will pre-fill all the information from the profile so you don’t need to re-enter that information. If you don’t have a customer profile to re-use, you can manually provide that information by choosing the “I will create a new customer profile” option. 

Important: As per the new CTIA regulation, you are required to provide your customer’s EIN, registered address and point of contact under Customer facing company. Also ensure that the company’s legal name must match to the one provided during EIN registration and the domain in the email address provided must also match the company’s name. 

 

 

5. Submit your application for review

Once you complete all the information gathering steps, you reach the Submit for review step.

Carefully read the explanation of what happens after you submit your application for review.

Press the Submit for review button to proceed with the application.

 

 

6. Obtain Twilio review approval

After you submit your Short Code application, it is reviewed by a Twilio Short Code specialist to ensure that local regulatory compliance guidelines are satisfied. Review times will vary greatly, most customers can expect to move forward in a few weeks. Twilio sends an email notification when your Short Code application has completed the Twilio review. 

You can always review your application and its current status by visiting Phone Numbers > Short Codes and checking the Applications tab. You won’t be able to modify or update your application while Twilio is reviewing it.

 

7. (Optional) Correct your application if needed and re-submit

If the Twilio Short Code specialist identifies any gaps or inconsistencies in your application that could generate a rejection by carriers, you receive an email with detailed feedback.

When you navigate to Phone Numbers > Short Codes and check the status of your application in the Applications tab, it has a status of Corrections needed.

Use the Correct application action to address the identified issues and re-submit your application for review.

 

 

8. Pay for Short Code provisioning

Following a successful Twilio review, your payment will be automatically processed based on the Billing configuration of your Account:

• Invoice: We automatically charge the Short Code to your next invoice. 
• Credit Card: We automatically charge the Short Code to your main credit card at the time of provisioning.

9. Obtain Carrier review approval

After the payment has been processed, Twilio shares your information with local carriers so your application can be reviewed and cleared for sending and receiving messages. The time from payment to approval with the major carriers is about 4-8 weeks. Please note that approvals are subject to carrier discretion, and approval may take longer depending on use case and industry.

If carriers identify a need for corrections, follow the instructions in Step 7 (Optional) Correct your application if needed and re-submit.

 

 

10. Manage and configure your provisioned active Short Code

Once your application is approved by the carriers and the new Short Code has been provisioned, you can manage and configure it by visiting Phone Numbers > Short Codes. 

You can find your newly provisioned Short Code in the Active Short Codes tab.