FAQ & Related Information for Calling Australia from UK

Who can use access numbers compared on this website to make a call to Australia?

Anyone calling from within the UK can use any of the access numbers to make cheap international calls by dialing from any landline or mobile phone. Please note that you have to havee the bill payer's permission before using access numbers to make a call.

Can I use these access numbers to make cheap calls to Australia from a UK landline?

Yes, Call Rates Scanner is optimised to compare best call rates from UK landline to world destinations. Please note that the total charge, for the call to Australia, is a composite of access charge (levied by your landline provider) and service charge (presented in comparison tales on pages of this site). See questions below, that explain both charges in detail.

Can I use these access numbers to make cheap calls to Australia from a UK mobile?

Yes, however you will be charged more by your mobile service provider, that is, the access charge of the call to Australia is higher than that of landline. Call Rates Scanner is comparing low cost call providers that are focusing on service via 08 and 09 access numbers. Access charge for these numbers are usually higher for mobile phone operators,unless you have inclusive minutes (see questions below).

Can I use these access numbers to make cheap calls to Australia from a UK payphone?

Yes, but the total charges from payphones will be higher than that of landline, due to higher access charge of the call to 08 and 09 numbers from a payphone.

I don't have a BT landline. Can I use these access numbers to make cheap calls to Australia from a non-BT landline?

Yes, you can make calls to Australia from other UK landline providers, such as PlusNet, Talk Talk, Sky, Virgin etc. However, the total charge may be different, due to access charge of the call that varies between landline providers.See questions below, that explain the access charge and service charge of the call to Australia

Can I make cheap calls to Australia mobile numbers, as well as landline numbers?

Yes, Call Rates Scanner compares access numbers from 74 providers of low cost international calls, which offer cheap calls to both landline and mobile numbers in Australia

Can I use these access numbers when I travel outside the UK?

All access numbers compared on this site are only available for calls originating within the United Kingdom. So if you live abroad or if you are on holiday outside the UK you will not be able to take advantage of this service.

How much am I really charged for calling Australia from UK landline?

Ofcom has changed the structure of charges, that makes the cost of calling service numbers clear for everyone. It's called UK Calling, and it splits the cost of calling service numbers in two parts:

• access charge – is how much your phone line provider (e.g. BT, Talk Talk, Sky, Virgin etc.) charges you per minute for making the call to any 08 or 09 access number. The charge is the same whether you are calling Australia or any other destination.
• service charge – is the charge that is set by one of the low call cost providers for calls to Australia, compared here, on Call Rates Scanner, and this is the charge that is shown in the price column in all tables for Australia

The sum of the access charge and service charge is the total cost of the call to Australia, which should show on your bill. Some phone line providers show the bill with these two charges separately, others show the total of the two. Some phone line providers, may include certain calls in your monthly subscription, e.g. calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers, in which case the entire call to Australia may be free to you. Yet other providers may charge discounted rate on access charge, during off-peak. access charge to access numbers is likely vary between various providers.

Is VAT included in the price of call to Australia?

Yes, VAT is included in the price. The price shown in the tables (service charge) plus the access charge is the total price you pay per minute, there are no hidden fees or additional charges.

Do providers charge a connection fee for each call?

Apart from access charge and service charge there are no additional charges or fees for making a call. Call Rates Scanner does not charge you for the calls. Your phone line provider bills you for the entire call (access charge and service charge), then passes on service charge to the operator of the access number (e.g. low cost call provider). This is true for both fixed landline and mobile line providers. Calls from payphones are priced differently, payphones do have a concept of connection fee instead of access charge, but the service charge is dissolved into the cost of other charges. Please refer to help section, Call costs for access numbers to Australia, for detailed service charge tariffs of landline and mobile phone line providers, and public payphones. There are other types of cheap call services (not listed on this website) that may charge a connection fee for the call. None of the 74 cheap call providers, compared here charge any additional fees.

Are my calls to Australia billed by the minute?

You are most likely billed by the minute, however it depends on your phone line provider tariff (e.g. BT, Talk Talk, Sky, Virgin etc.). Call Rates Scanner does not charge you for the calls to access numbers, this is simply a comparison site. Your phone line provider bills you for the entire call (access charge and service charge), then passes on service charge to the operator of the access number (e.g. low cost call provider).

When do I start being billed?

You will be charged by your phone line provider, the moment you connect to any of the access numbers, when you hear a prompt voice message.

How do I get billed for the calls to Australia?

Your phone line provider will charge you the advertised pence per minute rate (i.e. service charge), plus their access charge. The latter charge is the same whether you are calling Australia or any other destination and it varies between phone line providers (e.g. BT, Talk Talk, Sky, Virgin etc.). We recommend that you check your phone line's provider access charge before dialing any of the access numbers.

Are there peak and off-peak rates for Australia?

No, all rates (service charge part) are the same cheap call rates no matter what time of day or night it is, however some phone line providers may charge a discounted rate on access charge of the call, during off-peak. Other providers, may include the calls to certain access numbers in your monthly subscription, e.g. calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers, in which case the entire call to Australia may be free to you.

Why calls to access numbers are not included in my 'inclusive' minutes?

Many phone line providers only include calls to geographic or mobile destinations within inclusive minutes package - usually numbers beginning 01, 02, 03 and 07 - as such numbers. 08 and 09 access numbers are normally excluded from the inclusive calls package. However, some providers are offering inclusive calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers for additional monthly flat charge. Some of the access numbers compared on Call Rates Scanner are such numbers. It may be worth checking with your phone line provider if it offers such a package.

Can I call Australia for free with my inclusive minutes?

It depends... Some providers include the calls to certain access numbers in your monthly subscription, example being the calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers. Some of the access numbers compared on Call Rates Scanner are 0845 and 0870 numbers and likely to be free of charge for you. This means that calling to Australia will be free, subject to fair usage as defined by your phone line provider (e.g. BT, Talk Talk, Sky, Virgin etc.). Careful, some providers are trying to exclude 0845 and 0870 access numbers from their "inclusive minutes calling plan" if they discover the number is a dial-through number that provides cheap calls to Australia. For example, BT has a clause in their calling plan, saying that the plan excludes "calls to dial-up internet, calling card and dial-through access numbers". However, they don't keep track of such numbers and low cost call providers regularly rotate the numbers. Thus, this clause is more like a get out clause for them to bail out of the contract, in order to charge extra, if they can prove that this 0845 or 0870 number was used as dial-through access number. This means that you have to be aware that you may be charged a full price by your landline or mobile phone provider for those numbers, i.e. the access charge and service charge of the call.

Am I still being charged when my call to Australia is unanswered or the line is engaged?

Yes, you will be charged from the time you connect to any access number for Australia and hear the voice prompt.Your phone line provider charges you for calling the cheap call access number regardless if the number in Australia is engaged or the person you are calling does not answer.

Does provider charge the person I am calling in Australia?

No, only you will be charged by your phone line provider for dialing one of the cheap call access numbers. Plese note that the rates presented in the tables show only service charge of the call. Your are also charged access charge. Please see questions above for clarification.

Are there any subscription or registration fees?

No, there is no account to open, no extra charges, no other bills to pay and you don't need a credit card either. We offer cheap calls instantly.

Do I have to sign up or make a prepayment before I can use your access numbers for Australia?

No, all you need to do is dial one of the access numbers presented in the tables, before dialing the destination number in Australia to start saving on calls instantly. There are no prepayments, no sign up, no personal information to provide, no registration and no PIN numbers to remember.

Do I need to open an account before I can start making calls?

There is no account to open, no credit card needed, no personal information to provide, no registration. Simply dial the access number for Australia then the destination number in Australia. The call charges will appear on your normal phone bill.

How do I make a follow-on call without hanging up and re-dialing the access number again?

It depends on the low cost call provider. Some providers allow you to call a different number in Australiawithout hanging up, when you have finished your previous call. Try pressing the hack key (#) twice. If it works you should hear the prompt voice message again and you're ready to dial another number. Note that you may need to hang up and dial different access number for a different country.

How do I use access numbers to call Australia?

These are the steps:

• Find the access number for Australia in the tables.
• Call the instant access number.
• Dial the complete international number (including the country code).
• Press hash key (#).
• You're connected to the number in Australia, enjoy your call.

What is the dialing code to Australia?

The country dialing code for Australia is 0061. If you know the number you want to call in Australia but do not know how to dial that number from UK, this is what you need to do: Dial access number, wait for the prompt, dial 0061 + local number in Australia including city code + hash key (#).

Where can I find a list of call charges for Australia?

Call Rates Scanner is a comparison site for cheap calls to Australia and over 300 other destinations. It presents the cheapest way to call Australia mobile or landline number, or indeed the number in any world destination, by showing access numbers and the price of a call per minute. There are several ways to find the appropriate access number for Australia:

1. All the destinations are listed in alphabetical order in a clearly presented table on the main page, where Australia can be found by simply scrolling down the page
2. There is a search icon and the text field in the header of the main page (right hand side). By typing any part of Australia you can filter out all destinations that do not match the typed text
3. You can simply go directly to the page that shows all cheap calls to Australia.

Please also view the video, How to Find and Make Cheap Calls to Australia, which shows how to use this site.

How come I have been charged the full cost for the call to Australia?

If the full international number for Australia shows on your telephone bill, then this means that, you haven't dialled the access number before dialling number in Australia. Please remember to always use one of the instant access numbers, listed in the tables to make savings on international calls.

One of the instant access numbers has charged too much for my call to Australia

In principle, the low cost providers cannot overcharge you. The rates to all access numbers are set by Ofcom, the UK telecommunications regulator. There may be several reasons you were charged more when calling Australia using the access number:

• You only took into account the service charge of the call (the rate shwon in the table). The total price of the call consists of both access charge and service charge (see questions above).
• You called Australia from mobile phone but expected to be charged as if calling from the landline. Many mobile network providers have higher access charge.
• You called Australia from payphone but expected to be charged as if calling from the landline. Calling from payphone attracts a higher access charge.
• The access number for Australia advertised by the low cost call provider had inaccurate price. Call Rates Scanner is a comparison site for cheap calls to Australia and over 300 other destinations, offered by 74 chep call providers. Although we're updating information from all the providers several times a day, we have no control over the accuracy of the information advertised by those providers. However, we periodically check the verity of this information and evaluate each provider on how up-to-date and accurate it is. The verity of each provider is displayed as a percentage in the table on the page for all cheap calls to Australia. We recommend you chose the access number with higher verity of information to avoid potentially additional costs.

In summary, the rates you are actually charged on your bill depend on the prices set by your phone line provider. Low cost call providers have no influence on their billing system, nor do they receive a penny extra of any surcharge applied. We advise you to get in touch with your phone line provider to protest your bill. In case of inaccurately advertised access numbers, we advice you get in touch with the low cost provider whose access number if you wish to complain. Should your phone line provider or low cost provider not settle the issue satisfactorily please visit Ofcom's website for guidance.

Quality of connection was not good, when calling Australia using one of access numbers.

Some networks can be more busy than others, during popular events; the connection problem may go away when you try calling a number in Australia again. Please note that you are charged the moment you call an access number and not when someone picks up the phone. Also, not all providers of cheap international calls, listed on this website, maintain the same quality of service. We do our best to ensure that the information about cheap international calls to Australia is accurate. When you click to view all cheap calls to Australia you will be presented with the table that not only lists call rates of a given provider, but also the call quality and reliability of information presented by this provider. Sometimes it is worth dialing slightly more expensive access number, which is more reliable. We try to monitor providers regularly, but this information is not updated daily. This is due to the limited resources that Call Rates Scanner has at its disposal. If you found that the sound quality or accuracy of information for a specific provider is different from that stated here, please inform us, stating which destination in Australia you called and which access number you used. Our contact details can be found at Contact.

Some of access numbers do not work.

Some phone line providers may not allow calls to some of access numbers. Please contact your provider and ask them to make the number available for you to use. Sometimes calls to 09 numbers could be barred from your phone by default, but you can contact your phone line provider to have the bar lifted. Some Indirect Access providers do not allow calls to some or all of access numbers. If you dial a code before your calls (e.g. 1833, 1877) you can simply omit this code and dial the access number directly. Omitting such Indirect Access code means the call will be charged by your phone line provider instead (e.g. BT, Talk Talk, Sky, Virgin etc.) . If you are using a special box you can either unplug it to bypass it.

Why did access numbers or rates to Australia changed?

Low cost providers often change the access numbers for Australia for various reasons, for example, trying to offer a cheaper price. The access numbers have a fixed rate attached to them, so in order to change the price of call to Australia providers have to change the access number as well. To ensure you are always calling the cheapest access number possible, please visit Call Rates Scanner before making a call.

Some of access numbers listed for Australia begin with 09, are they expensive?

09 numbers are classified as premium rate, and vary significantly depending on each access number. The charges can be as little as 5p/min and can cost over 1 pound. Please check the table for the quoted rates for each 09 number. Please also remember thatt there's access charge to all service numbers, which may make calling Australia expensive, depending from which phone you're calling (see help section, Call costs for access numbers to Australia)