When call restrictions are enabled, certain contact numbers cannot be dialed by the person that has enabled this feature.
Also, this can prevent the restricted contact or contacts from calling the individual with call restrictions enabled.
There are common and understandable reasons why some consumers utilize this feature. Let’s take a glimpse at some of these reasons in this useful guide.
What Does ‘The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions’ Mean?
This means that the caller has disabled or blocked certain numbers, particularly for incoming calls.
Does Calling Restrictions Mean Blocked?
Yes, this means that your contact is blocked. But on the contrary, this can also be a no.
You may be thinking that if you are trying to call someone and when you call them, you are met with a message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions,” you may have been blocked by that person.
While there is a real possibility that they have blocked you, that is not the only answer. There are tons of different reasons why this message is playing.
Maybe the person you are trying to call has changed their number, changed their carrier, is in an area with a poor network connection, forgot to pay their bill, have specific settings activated, so they do not receive any calls, or their SIM card is broken, you typed their number in the wrong, or maybe their phone is just temporarily disconnected.
All of these possibilities are a great explanation as to why you are hearing the audible error echoing “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” when you try to call them, but remember, you could potentially also be blocked.
If you want to know if you’ve been blocked, check how many times the call rings when you call them.
You can also attempt to send a text message to them. If your message goes through right away, this means you are not blocked, and there is just something wrong or disabled with their phone calls right now.
However, if your message does not go through and still has not after a couple of days, this could be caused by other things, but it could also be due to you being blocked by the person you are trying to contact.
Why Does It Say ‘The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions’?
1. You Have Set Up Restrictions on Specific Numbers, So You’re Unable to Call Them
As it was stated earlier in this guide, when a consumer sets up restrictions for certain numbers for inbound calls, the individual with the restricted number will not be able to make phone calls to the person that has placed the restriction on their phone number.
When some people set up this feature, they can often forget to disable it when it has served its’ purpose.
Some people forget they have left the feature enabled intentionally. Meaning there are someone people who would restrict a phone number from an ex or someone they have dated in the past or a number that is connected to a debt collector.
And sometimes, some people can forget those calls are restricted.
So, if you have this feature activated on certain numbers, and you are trying to make a phone call and you can’t, you might want to check your device settings to see if you need to disable Calling Restrictions. This could be a simple case of human error.
2. You Have Typed In The Incorrect Number
If you are typing in a number that you thought you remembered of an old friend from the past, but when you dial them and hear the message “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” instead of your call going through, there is a chance you may have just typed in the wrong number.
The person you are trying to contact number may still be in service and totally working, but you have just typed it in the wrong way. With ten numbers having to be dialed, it is effortless to accidentally mix two of them or even just press a completely different number.
Double-check to ensure you have typed everything in correctly, including the area code.
If you accidentally mess up the area code, it is the same as messing up their actual number, and you can hear the message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions”.
Once you have double-checked the number if you find that you accidentally did miss type one of their numbers, or maybe even a couple of them, call back the correct number.
If you are still hearing the message “The Number, You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” when you are positive it is the correct number that you are dialing, then you are hearing this message for a different reason.
We all have experienced accidentally typing in the wrong number. And it is perfectly normal.
So, before you have a fit and throw a tantrum, please don’t send an agitating message to their Facebook Messenger ranting about how you’re trying to call them.
It would be essential to take your time to ensure that you are putting in the correct phone number as you are typing it in.
3. They Have Changed Carriers
There are varieties of different carriers out there, such as Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and so many others. Each carrier offers different prices and deals.
If you are trying to call someone and hear a message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions,” this could be because the person you are trying to reach has decided to switch carriers.
Maybe a different carrier offered a free phone upgrade if they switched and they were desperately in need of a new phone.
Maybe they realized this other carry is way cheaper, or perhaps they got a new job, and at this new place of employment, their phone plan is covered, so they had to switch.
Whatever the reason, know you may be getting the message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions”, it’s because you are trying to call someone who has recently changed their carrier.
Changing carriers is pretty standard. Although this can contribute to this error, it is unexpected for this occurrence to happen. This means that when someone changes their carrier, not everyone in that person’s contact is going to be aware.
As it turns out, the only time that you are aware of this instance is if you attempt to call the person and you receive the “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions”.
4. They Did Not Pay Their Bill
We know how pricey phone bills can become and how important it is to pay them to keep your device in operation. These bills seem to get more and more expensive every single month, and it can be hard to make the payment sometimes.
If you are calling someone and hearing a message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions,” it could be because the person you are trying to reach did not pay their bill.
There are various instances why someone may not have paid their bill, such as they were unable to afford it, forgot, did not see the charge, and various others.
However, phone companies can be pretty brutal, and if they have not received payments even just the day after payment was due, this can result in whoever has the unpaid bill’s phone being completely cut off from service.
If you have a smartphone and do not pay your bill, you will still be able to utilize certain features, but anything that directly requires your phone company, such as calling and texting, will no longer be in service until the bill is paid.
While you can still play games, go on social media, and do anything else that does not require your phone to have service, any calls that are made to someone with an unpaid bill will result in the caller hearing a message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions”.
Just as it is vital for the person you are trying to call to keep it with their bill, you need to do the same to avoid others getting the “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” error when they attempt to call you.
5. They Have Changed Their Number
Another reason you are getting a message saying “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” when trying to call someone is that they have decided to change their number.
If they have changed their number and no one has started to use their old number, that means the number has no provider or person attached to it, so the number will no longer be in service.
You can try to reach out in other ways to the person you were trying to call. Maybe you can message them on some social media platform, or if you know them in person, go and ask them directly what their new number is.
Until you can get their new number or someone decides to use that number as theirs, you will be met with the message saying “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” every time you try to call that number.
Just as it is unexpected for someone to change that carrier, it is also unexpected for someone to change that number.
And as it was stated earlier for the carrier accusation, when someone changes their number, not everyone in that person’s contact will be aware.
The only timeframe you would be mindful of is if you attempt to make a phone call and receive the “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” error.
6. Their Phone is Temporarily Disconnected
You may also be getting the message “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” when you try to call someone instead of being able to call them because their phone is temporarily disconnected.
Again, there could be a lot of potential reasons why someone has their phone temporarily disconnected.
If you are trying to reach your best friend, maybe they got grounded for something, so their parents took away their lifeline and decided the best possible punishment was temporarily disconnecting their phone until they learned their lesson.
Or maybe you are trying to call a buddy who had your favorite recipe written down, and you lost the card, but they decided they were too addicted to their phone, so they temporarily disconnected it so that they could cleanse their soul from being so heavily consumed by technology.
There are various instances as to why someone has decided to disconnect their phone temporarily, but you will continue to hear the message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” until they choose to connect their phone again.
Sometimes, when someone’s device is disconnected, there could be an issue with their Network settings. This is a typical common occurrence with Android and iPhone / iOS devices.
If someone has turned off their network settings, they will not be able to receive phone calls.
And sometimes, the issue can happen unexpectedly. However the issue may precede itself, it is essential to consider that network settings can play a part and why their devices disconnected.
7. They Have Spoofed Their Number, So When You Call Them, It Doesn’t Work
Someone might just be pulling a quick prank, or maybe even no longer wants you to contact them if you are met with the message saying “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” when you try to call someone.
One potential explanation for why you are receiving this message instead of being able to call them is because they have spoofed their number so that when you call them, you are meant to believe their number is no longer in service.
This person could have virtually any motive for doing this. Maybe they think it is funny and are just trying to pull a quick prank before they unspoof your number. Perhaps they no longer wanted you to call them and decided to block you.
Maybe they accidentally mixed up numbers and thought your number was a scammer, so they decided to spoof your number on accident to avoid any more unwanted scam calls.
Whatever the reason, the only way for your call to go through and for you to stop getting a message saying “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” when you try to call them is for them to un-spoof your number.
Playing a good cell phone prank is common among many people who use technology. Once you learn how to manipulate specific settings on your device, you would want to take advantage of it to disguise your phone number possibly.
Also, as stated earlier, sometimes, it is essential to consider that it’s not always a prank based on why they spoofed their phone number. It may be a mechanism to prevent you from calling them rather than blocking you.
And to add, sometimes, they have spoofed their phone number to prevent other contacts from reaching them. And there may be a possibility they forgot to forewarn you about the number being spoofed. Just a couple of things to consider if you encounter this error.
8. They Have Set Their Number Up, So They Do Not Receive Incoming Calls
When you are calling someone and you are met with a message on your phone, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions”, there is a possibility that you are hearing this because they have set their number up, so they do not receive any incoming calls for the time being.
There are different reasons why someone would do this to their phones and lots of durations that this setting may be set for.
For example, someone may have this setting on for a week or two because they have left their home country for a nice vacation and do not want phone calls constantly, nor do they want to get charged a fee for being out of the country needing phone service.
Or maybe, you are trying to call a fellow college student for some homework assistance, and when you call them, you will receive a message saying, “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions”.
The other student may have disabled incoming phone calls for a couple of hours so they can study distraction-free.
There are various instances why someone might want their phone disabled from receiving any incoming calls, so know this can be a cause for why you are hearing that their number is out of service.
9. Poor Network Reception
If you are trying to call someone and instead of your phone dialing them, you hear a message echoing “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” over your speakers, it may be because the person you are trying to reach is in an area with poor network reception.
Anyone who lives in small, rural areas understands this struggle all too well. Phone towers are heavily placed in areas of high population, but not so much in areas where only one family takes up five hundred acres for themselves.
If you are trying to reach someone who lives in these areas, the lack of phone towers makes it incredibly hard to have fast and reliable network reception.
You may also be trying to contact someone who happens to be driving through or visiting one of these areas with minimal phone service.
If they are located in these spots with sparse cell phone towers, you run a high chance of hearing “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” when you try to call them.
You can wait for them to leave the area or drive through it until you call them next.
Suppose you keep trying to contact them constantly when they are in these areas of limited service. In that case, your calls will all drop, and you will continue to be told that “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” until the person you are trying to reach has moved to an area with better network service.
The network reception is what allows people to make and receive phone calls. For you or anyone that is experiencing this error, and people are getting the “The Number You Have Dialed Has Calling Restrictions” error, you may want to attempt to reset your network settings.
To reset the device network settings on your Android device, you will proceed with these steps:
1. First, you will open the Settings app on your Android device.
2. Next, tap on the General Management or System tab.
3. Now, proceed to select Reset or Reset Options.
4. From here, you will tap on Reset Network Settings.
5. Finally, you will have access to the reset button. Tap on Reset to begin the process.
To begin the process of resetting the network settings on an iPhone / iOS device, you will proceed with the following steps:
1. First, you will open your Settings.
2. Next, tap on General and then select Transfer or Reset.
3. Tap on the Reset option and then tap on Reset Network Settings.
Final Thoughts
Restricting phone calls is an intentional choice. There are various reasons why someone would restrict certain numbers from calling them.
Imagine making a phone call to someone who is considered to be a best friend, and you get the message that the number you have dialed has calling restrictions. Your first initial instinct is to ponder on what is happening at that moment.
One of the common questions that someone would ask themselves is, did the caller block me? Although that is a possibility that if you receive that error that the caller did block you, that isn’t the only instance that contributes to this.
Sometimes, it could mean that you have simply typed in the wrong number or they have changed carriers.
Also, it could be a contributing factor that they didn’t pay their bill, or the phone number has temporarily been disconnected.
And other times, it could be due to the fact they have changed their number or may have spoofed their number to prank their contacts or to go off the radar. And finally, sometimes it’s as simple as a poor reception.
If you find yourself getting this error again, remember this information before reacting.