Having trouble contacting us?

Global Affairs Canada has changed from its 30-year-old phone system to a new Voice over IP (VoIP)* or IP Telephone system. As a result, we now are using the new National Capital Region (NCR) area code “343”. All new Global Affairs Canada phone numbers in the NCR are now 343 with the new “203” prefix.

There may be cases where private telephone systems across Canada have not yet been programmed to recognize this new “343” area code and “203” prefix. If you have problems phoning us, please contact your local phone line provider and ask them to ensure that your phone system allows you to call 343-203 numbers. You may provide them with the phone number of +1-343-203-0100 as a test line; this is our voice mail line and it will be answered 24/7.

Background

The Government of Canada’s Economic Action Plan 8.1 aims to move 120,000 government phone lines to the new and more economical IP Telephone systems. Because of the lack of available lines in the older “613” area code, the CRTC awarded Global Affairs Canada numbers in the 343-203 group. Although “343” has been in existence since 2010, it is not widely known yet. “203” is a brand new prefix.

Shared Services Canada is working with the CRTC and Bell Canada to ensure that all commercial telephone companies recognize the 343-203 numbers

Unfortunately, it is not possible to contact every one of the thousands of private companies who operate their own phone systems. This is why we are asking you to contact your local technical support group should you have problems calling Global Affairs Canada.

* VoIP – Voice over Internet Protocol: a system for the delivery of voice communications over Internet Protocol (IP) networks, such as the Internet, rather than using a dedicated pair of wires for voice only.