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UK call divert codes: the full GSM reference
UK networks all use the same GSM supplementary-service codes for call diverts. There are four conditions — no answer, busy, unreachable and all calls — and each one is set, checked and cancelled separately. ##61# is the one people search for most: it cancels the divert for calls you do not answer, which sends them back to voicemail.
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The complete table
Replace number with the full destination including the leading 0. Dial these from your handset keypad exactly as you would dial a phone number, then press call.
| Condition | Turn on | Check | Turn off |
|---|---|---|---|
| When you don't answer | **61*number# | *#61# | ##61# |
| When you don't answer, after a set ring time | **61*number**20# | *#61# | ##61# |
| Every call, immediately | **21*number# | *#21# | ##21# |
| When you're already on a call | **67*number# | *#67# | ##67# |
| When your phone is off or has no signal | **62*number# | *#62# | ##62# |
| All conditional diverts at once | **004*number# | — | ##004# |
| Everything, including all-calls | — | — | ##002# |
What does ##61# do?
##61# erases the divert for unanswered calls. It does not send those calls anywhere new — it removes your rule, so the network's own default takes over again, and on every UK network that default is voicemail.
That is the whole reason it is often described as "turning voicemail back on". Nothing is being turned on. A rule is being deleted, and voicemail is what is underneath it.
It only affects the no-answer condition. If you also set a divert for all calls with **21*, or for busy with **67*, those are still in place afterwards. Each condition is cancelled with its own code, or all of them at once with ##002#.
How to read the code
The structure is consistent once you see it. A leading ** or * registers and activates. A leading *# interrogates — it asks the network what is currently set and shows you the answer. A leading ## erases.
The two digits in the middle are the condition: 21 for all calls, 61 for no reply, 62 for not reachable, 67 for busy. 004 means all three conditional ones together, and 002 means absolutely everything.
So ##61# reads as "erase the no-reply rule", and *#21# reads as "tell me what the all-calls rule is". Once the grammar is familiar you do not need the table.
Codes that get confused with these
*#06# shows your handset's IMEI. It is unrelated to diverts and is harmless.
*#21# is an interrogation, not an activation. It is safe: it asks whether an all-calls divert exists and reports back. It has circulated for years as a way to detect whether a phone has been "tapped", which it is not — a divert is not surveillance, and finding one set usually means you or your network set it.
##002# is the safe reset. It cancels every divert on the line, which occasionally surprises people who had deliberately set an all-calls divert to a colleague and forgot.
Common questions
It cancels the call divert for unanswered calls. Those calls then go back to your network's default destination, which is voicemail. It does not affect diverts you have set for other conditions such as busy or all calls.
##61# cancels only the no-answer divert. ##002# cancels every divert on the line at once — no answer, busy, unreachable and all calls. Use ##002# when calls are behaving oddly and you are not sure what has been set.
Interrogate each condition separately: *#61# for no answer, *#21# for all calls, *#67# for busy and *#62# for unreachable. The network replies with the destination and, for the no-answer rule, usually the ring time as well.
They are the standard GSM codes and every UK network implements them, but behaviour varies at the edges. The custom ring-time form is the one most often rejected, and some MVNOs do not enable divert-to-external-number on every plan.
No. The interrogation codes beginning *# only ask a question. The ## codes cancel a divert, which at worst puts your calls back to voicemail. Nothing here can be charged for or leave your line in a state you cannot undo with ##002#.
Related guides
Setting it up on your network
The codes above are the standard GSM ones and work the same way everywhere. Where networks differ is in what they accept, what their handset menus are called, and what they do after a SIM swap.
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