Technically they come from the same place that issues "landlines" or "mobile" phone numbers.

There are multiple virtual phone number "types":

Local(geographic), National, Mobile, Toll-free, Metered, Shared cost.

Illustration of a bird character dressed in a suit and tie, holding a smartphone, standing in front of a chalkboard, resembling a professor or business professional.

A brief history lesson

Phone numbers didn't start with the invention of the phone. Initially, callers were connected via names and a switchboard. It wasn't until 1879 in the U.S. that phone numbers were introduced as a practical solution to the growing number of telephone users.

From the early 20th century, phone numbers were tied to specific physical locations and copper-wire landlines. Then, the internet and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s, making it possible to transmit voice data over the internet rather than through traditional phone lines.

Initially, virtual numbers were used primarily by businesses to route calls more efficiently and to establish a local presence in multiple locations without needing to set up physical offices. As time went on, and as internet infrastructure and VoIP technology improved, virtual phone numbers became more accessible to individual users as well.

Where do virtual phone numbers come from?

Virtual phone numbers are regulated by government agencies or telecommunications authorities in each country, the same places that issue and regulate your landline or mobile phone number. In the United States, for example, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) oversees the distribution and regulation of phone numbers. Among other duties, they ensure that phone numbers are allocated fairly, preventing issues like overlapping numbers or numbering shortages in high-demand areas.

Our partners are licensed to receive large blocks of numbers from these authorities. We then assign these numbers to our customers based on their needs.

In essence, virtual phone numbers are real phone numbers, but instead of being tied to a physical phone line or location, they’re hosted in the "cloud."

Different countries, different rules

Rules and regulations can vary significantly depending on the country—and sometimes even the type of number you're requesting. In the U.S., U.K., Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Finland, and many others, obtaining a virtual number is relatively straightforward. There are no special registration requirements for obtaining phone numbers with these prefixes / area codes. However, on the opposite end of the spectrum are countries like Germany, where, for example, a Berlin number would require proof of address in Berlin.

Many countries are not as strict, though. For example, in Thailand or Singapore, you can get numbers using any address in the world (albeit you'll still need to provide an ID or company certificate).

The regulations can also vary based on "number type"—for a South Africa local (geographic) number, you'd need proof of address in the South African city where you want a number. However, an SA mobile number allows for registration using any address in the world.

Text messages/SMS

We hope the day will come when all companies, including financial institutions and government agencies, will accept virtual phone numbers as regular numbers and send verification texts (i.e., short-code/2FA) to them as they do to standard mobile numbers. More and more individuals are using virtual numbers as their "main" numbers while keeping their "main" phone number private. We actually touch on this subject in a blog post - Can blockchain fix the VoIP phone number verification conundrum?

That's not to say that all virtual phone numbers have this issue. While FlyNumber can't guarantee verification texts, we've seen our NYC 917 numbers receive verification codes from Google Voice, or our Israeli mobile numbers receive texts to verify OpenAI accounts.

We anticipate this improving as time goes on and tech companies (like ourselves) get better at filtering out spam users.

Porting

Just like "regular phone numbers," virtual phone numbers can also be ported in or ported out to and from companies. You could also port a mobile number to a virtual phone number company or vice versa. The company holding the number would need to "release" the number after the "new" company makes a request to port in. In general, your account should be in good standing before trying to port a number away; otherwise, it's a big no-no for a company not to allow a port out.

You'll find cases where a provider can't port in certain phone numbers. However, you won't really find a case where a provider wouldn't release a current number they hold.

So before porting out a number, you'll want to make sure your "new" provider can, in fact, port in that exact number.

Routing and forwarding

The beautiful thing about virtual phone numbers is that they are, in fact, virtual. Meaning it doesn't matter where you are or what device you're using, (at least with FlyNumber) you can route the calls where you want, how you want.

With us, you can forward the number to any standard phone number in the world or set the number directly to a VoIP address. Take advantage of our cloud phone system, and you'll have more routing options than you could ever think of.

That's the whole idea behind FlyNumber. The FlyNumber is "virtual", so let's keep it that way.