Last updated · Written for practice managers and office administrators.
AT&T is discontinuing landline service in named wire centers, with FCC authorization, on two schedules. POTS in 39 wire centers may end on or after July 14, 2026 (FCC DA 26-459). AT&T Phone for Business and Remote Call Forwarding across 19 states may end on or after November 15, 2026 (FCC DA 25-1042). The number stays portable while service is live.
The two authorizations, side by side
| FCC public notice | Services affected (as listed) | Area | Authorized date |
|---|---|---|---|
| DA 26-459, WC Docket 26-98 (released May 11, 2026) | AT&T Residential Local Service (residential POTS), AT&T Business Local Exchange Access Line Service (business POTS), AT&T Phone Service (residential wireline VoIP) | 39 named wire centers, listed with CLLI codes in the appendix | On or after July 14, 2026 |
| DA 25-1042, WC Docket 25-334 (released December 12, 2025) | VoIP services called AT&T Phone Service and AT&T Phone for Business | Certain wire centers in AL, AR, FL, GA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MI, MS, MO, NC, OH, OK, SC, TN, TX, WI | On or after November 15, 2026 |
| DA 25-1042, WC Docket 25-333 (released December 12, 2025) | Remote Call Forwarding Service or TeleBranch services | Same 19 states | On or after November 15, 2026 |
The word “copper” belongs only to the first row. The November 2026 authorization is often reported as an AT&T copper shutdown; it is not. It covers AT&T’s own VoIP product and Remote Call Forwarding, which is exactly where many small-business fax lines ended up when AT&T moved them off copper in earlier years. An office can be untouched by the copper filing and squarely inside the VoIP one.
Which service is my fax line on?
Read the service description on the bill, not the marketing name you remember. In rough terms:
- “Business Local Exchange Access Line” or a plain measured business line is POTS on copper. The POTS line definition explains what that means physically.
- “AT&T Phone for Business” is AT&T’s VoIP service, delivered over the AT&T gateway in your office. A fax machine plugged into that gateway is already faxing over VoIP; the fax over VoIP guide covers why that is fragile.
- “Remote Call Forwarding” is a number with no line behind it that forwards to another number. When the product ends there is nothing to migrate in place; porting is the way to keep the number.
How to check whether your wire center is on the list
- Read the notice and the bill. Find the written discontinuance notice sent to the account holder. It must name the service, the date and the area. Match it to the service name on your bill: business local exchange line, AT&T Phone for Business, or Remote Call Forwarding.
- Check the FCC public notice appendix. Open FCC DA 26-459 (WC Docket 26-98) for POTS or FCC DA 25-1042 (WC Dockets 25-333 and 25-334) for AT&T Phone for Business and Remote Call Forwarding. The appendix lists each affected wire center by name and CLLI code. Compare it with the serving wire center on your notice.
- Check AT&T's network disclosures. AT&T publishes copper retirement and network change notices at clec.att.com. Search for your state and wire center to see whether a retirement notice has been filed even if you have not received a customer letter yet.
A wire center is the central office that serves your address, identified by an eleven-character CLLI code such as the ones printed in the DA 26-459 appendix. Your notice, or AT&T business support, can tell you which wire center serves the account. If it is not in either appendix today, that does not mean it never will be: carriers file for additional wire centers over time, and each new filing gets its own public notice on the FCC’s docket.
What happens to the fax number
In a technology-transition discontinuance, AT&T’s stated approach is to move customers to a replacement service and carry the number across. For a voice line that may be all you need. For a fax line, three outcomes are possible, and only one of them is fully in your control:
| Outcome | How it happens | Risk to the fax number |
|---|---|---|
| Migrated to an AT&T replacement service | You accept the replacement offered in the notice. | Number is kept, but fax reliability depends on the replacement product. Ask in writing whether it supports fax. |
| Ported to another provider before the date | You submit a port request while the AT&T service is active. | Number is kept on a service you chose. This is the only outcome you control end to end. |
| Line lapses on the authorized date | Nothing is arranged before the shut-off. | Releasing the number becomes AT&T’s decision. Under 47 CFR § 52.15 a disconnected business number can be reassigned after 45 to 365 days. |
Steps to keep the number
- Run a portability check on the fax number. Enter the fax number in the free usfax.com portability check. It reports which carrier holds the number and whether it can move. Do this while the line is still active.
- Submit the port with a recent bill. Provide the account number, the account-holder name exactly as billed, the service address and any PIN printed on the bill. usfax.com charges nothing to port a number in; AT&T may bill a port-out fee under its terms.
- Test, then cancel the old line. Send and receive a test fax on the new service after the port completes. Only then cancel the AT&T line. Cancelling first turns a routine port into a recovery attempt on a disconnected number.
Submit the port well before the authorized date. A simple local port is quick once the request is complete, but a rejected request costs a full cycle, so leave room for one retry. The porting guide lists the fields AT&T validates and the rejection reasons we see most.