Cell Phone Options

5POSTS

Yesterday

Initial research revealed that I could switch my existing American cellphone number to a Google number prior to leaving the US. Then once it France, get French service and both numbers would work on the same phone. Today, I read the following:

When you port a phone number from a traditional carrier (like Verizon, T-Mobile, or AT&T) over to Google Voice, the underlying system classifies your number as VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol).To combat international financial fraud, many U.S. banks and government services explicitly block short-code SMS verification texts from reaching VoIP numbers.

This means that text notifications would likely not work, like from an American banking institution when you are trying to work with them or if there is a log in problem / password problem.

Does anyone have any insight?

See also

Getting a phone and Internet in France - Guide
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Robert Hopkin Member

13POSTS

8 hours ago

I don't know about using cellphone numbers from overseas but I would like to share an experience from 2024 after arriving in France, buying a house and trying to get both cellphone numbers for myself and my wife and, most importantly, a fibre optic Internet connection froma service provider to our house. When we first arrived we went for a cell number and connection with Orange (formerly France Telecom). We moved into the new house - never occupied before which had fibre optic cable available in the road outside - already in use by our neighbours. Having already a cell phone with Orange we thought to use them for everything so we went to their branch in Ales to arrange the fibre optic connection for the house. After we gave them the address they went to their computers and they use Google Maps/Earth for location. They looked at our address and said -

We cannot connect to your house because it does not exist.

What had happened was that the house had been built since the last time the Google satellite had passed over the area - so as far as they were concerned they couldn't oblige because they couldn't see it so therefore the house (according the their system) did not exist! It did not matter to them that we told them we were already living in the house - their system was so stubborn and inflexible that they refused to even send a team to look! When we insisted that it did in fact exist they became very rude and aggressive and virtually threw us our the door. Later, thanks to advice from a neighbour, we went to SFR and they were just the opposite and incredibly helpful- they sent a team within two weeks and we were connected. Since then I would NEVER, EVER have anything to do with Orange. Be warned.