SMS Guidelines for British Virgin Islands (UK) - sms-compliance -

Frequently Asked Questions

To send SMS messages to the BVI, understand their technical and regulatory landscape. The BVI uses the North American numbering plan with country code +1284 and follows regulations set by the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC). Two-way SMS is not supported, and number portability isn't available.
The country ISO code for the British Virgin Islands is "VG", and the Mobile Country Code (MCC) is 348. The international dialing code is +1284, aligning with the North American numbering plan.
The current infrastructure in the BVI does not support two-way SMS messaging. This means recipients cannot reply directly to SMS messages. Provide alternative feedback channels like website links or email addresses.
Adhere to business hours (8:00 AM - 9:00 PM local time, AST/UTC-4) when sending SMS messages in the BVI. Respect user preferences and implement frequency caps to avoid overwhelming recipients.
Traditional MMS is not directly supported. However, you can use an SMS-to-Web approach. Convert multimedia content to a web format, create a short URL, and include it in your SMS message.
The character limit depends on the encoding: GSM-7 allows 160 characters for single messages and 153 for concatenated segments, while Unicode/UCS-2 allows 70 and 67 characters, respectively. Using even one Unicode character forces the entire message into UCS-2 encoding.
Since two-way SMS is not supported, offer alternative opt-out methods like a web portal, customer service contact, or email unsubscribe option. Clearly communicate these options in every message.
The primary carriers are Flow (Cable & Wireless) and Digicel. Testing across both is crucial due to their unique message handling requirements. Digicel's presence is a result of deregulation and legal challenges.
Prioritize GSM-7 encoding to maximize character limits. Test special characters thoroughly and monitor segment counts to manage costs and avoid exceeding carrier limits.
The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) oversees all mobile communications in the BVI. Familiarize yourself with their guidelines (https://www.trc.vg/) to ensure compliance.
SMS messages cannot be sent to landline numbers in the BVI. A 400 response code with error code 21614 indicates this issue. Clean your contact list to remove landlines and prevent these failures; no charges are incurred for these attempts.
Standard delivery times are typically between 5 and 30 seconds, but delays can occur during peak hours or due to network congestion. Implementing robust monitoring is recommended.
Loading...