Calling to Afghanistan
- Do not include a leading ‘0’ is not included in the sequence – it is only used in Afghanistan for domestic long distance calls and domestic calls to a mobile phone.
- A leading '+' in the phone number means 'dial your country's exit code'.
- Calling from a mobile phone: dial from on the country where you're currently located.
- Calling from a VoIP or satellite phone: dial from on the country where the phone is registered.
… to a mobile (cellular) phone or text (SMS)
Use the same call sequence.
Mobile phone numbers start with a three-digit carrier code that begins with a ‘7’. Sometimes the carrier code is listed in four digits starting with a leading ‘0.’ Do not dial the leading ‘0’ when calling from outside the country.
To call a mobile phone user, call to the country where the mobile phone is registered, regardless of where the person is currently roaming.
… to a VoIP phone
Use the same call sequence.
To call a VoIP phone user, call to the country where the VoIP phone is registered, regardless of where the person is currently roaming.
… to a satellite phone
Afghanistan does not have a country-specific satellite phone system.
Most satellite phones operate on their country code – calls to these satellite phones follow their call sequence.
… sending a fax
Use the same call sequence.
Calling within Afghanistan (domestic dialing)
‘0’ is used as a trunk prefix to dial to a different area code or a mobile phone in Afghanistan.
Local calling (within the same area code)
To call a phone within the same area code dial only the local phone number. Do not dial the trunk prefix ‘0’ or the area code.
| seven digits |
| local phone number |
Long distance calling (to a different area code or from a mobile phone)
To call to a phone number in a different area code dial the trunk prefix ‘0’, then the area code, then the local phone number.
| 0 | two digits | seven digits |
| trunk prefix | local phone number | thirdtwo |
Mobile calling (to a mobile phone)
To call to a mobile phone number dial the trunk prefix ‘0’, then the carrier code, then the subscriber phone number.
| 0 | three digits | six digits |
| trunk prefix | local phone number | thirdtwo |
Afghanistan’s phone numbers explained
Number details
Afghan phone numbers are nine digits.
With landline (fixed line) phone numbers, the first two digits are an area code.
With mobile numbers, the first three digits are a carrier code beginning with the number ‘7’.
An example of an Afghan phone number
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists its phone number in Kabul as 0093 (0) 20 2100372.
Number explanation
| 93 | 20 | 2100372 |
| country code for Afghanistan | geographic (area) code for Kabul | remainder of the phone number |
Local example – calling from another location in Kabul
To call within the same area code, dial only the local phone number. Do not dial the trunk prefix ‘0’ or the area code.
| 2100372 |
| local phone number in Kabul |
Long distance example – calling from Herat, Afghanistan (on the other side of the country)
To call to a different area code, dial the trunk prefix ‘0’, then the area code, then the local phone number
| 0 | 20 | 2100372 |
| trunk prefix | geographic (area) code for Kabul | remainder of the phone number |
Mobile phone example – calling from a mobile phone (including a foreign mobile roaming in Afghanistan)
To call from a mobile phone, dial the trunk prefix ‘0’, then the area code, then the local phone number
| 0 | 20 | 2100372 |
| trunk prefix | geographic (area) code for Kabul | remainder of the phone number |
International example – calling from outside Afghanistan
To call from outside Afghanistan, dial the exit code of the country the call is dialed from, followed by Afghanistan’s country code of ’93’, followed by the local phone number.
Do not include a leading ‘0’ in the call when calling from outside Afghanistan.
| exit code | 93 | 20 | 2100372 |
| exit code of the country the call is dialed from | country code for Afghanistan | geographic (area) code for Kabul | remainder of the phone number |
Calling from Afghanistan
’00’ is used as an exit code when dialing an international phone call from Afghanistan.
Sources and more resources
- Afghanistan Telecom Regulatory Authority – Afghanistan’s telephone systems regulator.
- ITU (International Telecommunications Union) – United Nations specialized agency for information and communications technologies.
- International Telecommunications Union – DIALLING PROCEDURES (INTERNATIONAL PREFIX, NATIONAL (TRUNK) PREFIX AND NATIONAL (SIGNIFICANT) NUMBER) (IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITU-T RECOMMENDATION E.164 (11/2010)) – A collection of dialing procedures for all countries and regions of the world. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
- International Telecommunications Union – Afghanistan (country code +93) Communication of 13.I.2015 National Numbering Plan – details of Afghanistan’s telephone numbering plan as submitted to the ITU. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
- Wikipedia – Telephone numbers in Afghanistan – Wikipedia entry for telephone number data for Afghanistan. Includes specific number ranges for each city as well as detail on calling procedures.
- BT – The Phonebook – Afghanistan – entry for Afghanistan in the British Telecom international directory.