Country code Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville, +242 or 00242?
There are two spellings for the area code Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville, namely +242 and 00242. Which area code do you have to use? What is the difference between the two country codes for Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville and what are the different versions for?
The country code of Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville that starts with a “+” (i.e. +242) is the so-called international code (international spelling). It is primarily used in the mobile communications sector. Most cell phones can make an international call to Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville using the +242 area code. This applies to almost every country in the world.
Unfortunately, there are phones (especially older models) that do not support the international spelling. The area code Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville with leading zeros (00242) is then used on these phones. The leading zeros are also referred to as the so-called traffic elimination number. When you call, they indicate that it is an international call.
Problem: access code and area code 00242
In fact, the 00242 variant is used for calls to the Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville, especially in Europe. In other countries of the world, the international code 00242 will not work. Example: In the USA, international calls to the Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville begin with 011. An international call here begins with the area code 011242.
Conclusion
For calls from UK to Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville you can always use the country code 00242. In other countries, the two leading zeros must be replaced by a different access code. The international variant (+242) of the country code Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville works in all countries in the world. However, it is not supported in all networks and by all telephone devices.
Example of phone calls to Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville
To illustrate the use of the international dialing codes Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville (+242 or 00242), here is an example again:
You want to call the number 456789 with the area code 0123 in the Republic of the Congo / Brazzaville. In this case you can use the following numbers (from UK/Europe):
00242 123 456789
If you are using a mobile phone, the following notation also applies worldwide:
+242 123 456789