# Reserve and release numbers

> Give free phone numbers to a customer with Add reservation, take numbers back with Release, and know what blocks a release.

- URL: https://kb.voipcloud.online/au/partners/reserve-and-release-numbers/
- Section: Partners › All partners
- Type: guide
- Applies to: All countries
- Last reviewed: 2026-11-09

**Inbound DIDs** › **Inbound DIDs** lists the phone numbers (DIDs) you can work with. **Add reservation** gives free numbers to a customer, and **Release** takes numbers away from a customer.

| Partner type | Buttons |
| --- | --- |
| Channel partner | **Add reservation**, **Release**, **Email CSV Report**. |
| White-label partner | The same, plus **Migrate** to move numbers between customers. See [Move numbers between customers](https://kb.voipcloud.online/au/partners/whitelabel/move-numbers-between-customers/). |

## Find numbers

The list shows **ID**, **DID Number**, **Destination**, **Status**, **Account** and **Customer**. Filter it by:

- **Status**: **All**, **Available**, **Being ported** or **Reserved**.
- **Country** and **City**.
- **DID**: part of the number.
- **Source** and customer.

**Email CSV Report** emails you the filtered list.

## Give free numbers to a customer

1. Go to **Inbound DIDs** › **Inbound DIDs** and set **Status** to **Available**.
2. Select one or more numbers. You can select several only if they share the same pricing.
3. Click **Add reservation**.
4. In **Link selected free DID Numbers to customer**, start typing the customer's name or company name and select them.
5. Check the pricing. **Pricing Type** is **Automatic pricing**: the system creates the inbound rates and the monthly service from the number's DID pricing, and the customer can unsubscribe in their portal. **Assign pricing** is filled in from the number. If the pricing has a choice of **Plan**, choose one.
6. Check the **Buying Rate** and **Selling Rates** for the number.
7. Click **Create**.

The portal confirms how many numbers were assigned. The numbers move to **Reserved** and appear on the customer's **DIDs** tab, and the monthly fee is added to the customer's **Subscriptions**. The number's activation fee is charged to the customer when you reserve it.

You can also reserve numbers that are **Being ported**.

## Take numbers back from a customer

1. Go to **Inbound DIDs** › **Inbound DIDs** and filter by the customer.
2. Select the numbers. They must all belong to the same account.
3. Click **Release** and confirm.

The portal asks you to confirm, and for some numbers warns a second time that they can't be restored. Confirm only if you're sure.

After a release, the portal says "Please make sure Recurrent services are modified to reflect this change." Check the customer's **Subscriptions** tab and remove any service you added yourself for the number.

**Warning:** A released number is gone for good: neither you nor your provider can get it back for the customer. Check with the customer before you release a number they still use.

## Why a release can fail

The portal releases the numbers it can and lists the rest with a reason:

| Reason | Fix |
| --- | --- |
| The number was submitted for porting. | To cancel the port, add a comment to the porting application on the **Porting** tab. |
| The number is linked to a Microsoft Teams user. | Remove the number from the Teams user first. |
| The number is used by an **Inbound number** object in the customer's PBX. | In the PBX, open the [Inbound number](https://kb.voipcloud.online/au/pbx/receive-calls/inbound-number/) object's settings and move the number from **Included numbers** to **Available numbers**. Then release it. |

## Check it works

- After a reservation, the number shows **Reserved** with the customer's account.
- After a release, the number is gone from the customer's **DIDs** tab.

## Next steps

- [Numbers and porting for customers](https://kb.voipcloud.online/au/partners/numbers-and-porting-for-customers/)
- [Move numbers between customers](https://kb.voipcloud.online/au/partners/whitelabel/move-numbers-between-customers/)
- [Emergency services and IPND](https://kb.voipcloud.online/au/partners/whitelabel/emergency-services-ipnd/)