Australia SMS Features and Restrictions Australia SMS Features and Restrictions

Australia SMS Features and Restrictions

Marcus Tan

Country Summary

Country Name Australia
ISO AU
Country Code 61
Region Oceania
MCC (Mobile country code) 505

 

Sender ID Guidelines

Vonage is aware of the new regulations announced by ACMA on 9 Oct 2025. These new regulations are expected to take effect from 1 July 2026. Prior to this date, there are actions required from Vonage and then our customers. Once the details are worked out, a communication will be sent to inform customers on the actions required. In the meantime, the below guidelines shall continue to apply.

In order to combat scam Calls and scam SMS towards Australia, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), which is the communications and media services regulator in Australia, has published the Scam Code Act. Under this Scam Code Act, telcos and service providers are obligated to identify, trace and block suspected SMS & Voice scams. Due to these new rules, registration is now required with Vonage to ensure smooth delivery of the SMS towards Australia.

 

Alphanumeric Sender ID

Important: From 1st July 2026, all alphanumeric Sender IDs (both new and existing) must be registered. Traffic from non-registered sender IDs will display as "Unverified".

*To initiate the Sender ID registration process, please check Global Sender ID Portal or contact your account manager or support
Numeric Sender ID

Numeric sender IDs will be accepted as long as it is an Australia SMS enabled number subscribed from Vonage or ported to Vonage, and it has to be international format (with country code 61).

Outbound SMS sending from non-registered Australian LVNs is blocked.
Generic Sender ID Generic sender ID which doesn't correlate with a brand or company name will not be accepted and subject to blocking by the operators.

 

 

Use-Case & Content Guidelines

Marketing Traffic

To ensure ongoing compliance with the Australian SPAM Act 2003, promotional/marketing SMS messages:

  • Can only be sent with the consent of the recipient (the account-holder)
  • Must include clear sender information
  • Must contain an opt-out or unsubscribe function

Failure to comply may lead to a number of penal actions by ACMA, including formal warnings, fines and mandated account suspension.

 

Additional Information

P2P traffic is prohibited.

No political, religious, unsolicited promotion, or gambling content.

There are no additional content restrictions beyond those in our Acceptable Use Policy.

 

 

Articles in this section