The Texto SMS Gratuit team
19 July 2026 · 8 min read
On 29 June 2026, Arcep published a press release officially opening, as of 1 July 2026, a new tranche of 06 and 07 mobile numbers in mainland France. For the general public, the news may look anecdotal — after all, a mobile number is just a mobile number. For operators, for businesses that manage phone fleets, and for services that rely on SMS (like ours), it is actually a meaningful technical and economic signal. Here is what you need to understand.
Photo: Unsplash — a mobile number is first and foremost a scarce resource, allocated by the State.
Quick reminder: how mobile numbering works in France
The national numbering plan is set by Arcep. It divides the 10 billion theoretical combinations offered by 10-digit numbers into ranges, each dedicated to a specific use:
- 01 to 05: geographic fixed-line numbers, by area (Paris, North-West, South-East, etc.);
- 06 and 07: mobile telephony for personal and professional use;
- 08: special-rate numbers (services, hotlines, premium-rate 08 10, 08 11…);
- 09: VoIP numbers and some online services;
- 3 and 10: short codes (directory enquiries, emergencies, public services).
06 and 07 are not interchangeable from a historical standpoint: the 06 range was opened to competition in 1996 (when GSM licences were granted to second operators), while 07 was introduced later to absorb the growth in mobile subscriptions. Since then, both prefixes coexist and are allocated in blocks to operators, who then distribute them to their customers.
Why open a new range
Opening a new range is neither rare nor trivial. Arcep allocates numbers in blocks of several million to each operator, according to their forecast needs. When an operator runs out of numbers in its block, it requests a new allocation.
Three reasons explain the decision published on 29 June 2026:
- The continued growth in active SIM cards: despite the widespread adoption of eSIM (which we will come back to), the number of active mobile lines in France keeps growing, driven by connected objects, second lines for children, corporate fleets and professional use (service lines, payment terminals, etc.).
- The progressive saturation of some ranges: the first blocks allocated in the 2010s, particularly in the 07 60 XX XX XX range, are running out at several operators. Without a new allocation, some would no longer be able to provide new numbers to their new customers.
- Anticipation linked to eSIM and IoT: eSIM makes it possible to activate several lines on the same device, and the Internet of Things (IoT) — connected meters, alarms, vehicles, agricultural sensors — keeps consuming more and more numbering resources.
The 29 June press release specifies that operators may begin to allocate the new numbers to their subscribers as of 1 July 2026, according to their needs and deployment plans.
What changes for the average subscriber
Honestly: very little in daily life. If you take out a new mobile plan after 1 July 2026, you are slightly more likely to receive a number starting with a 06 or 07 combination that was previously unused. But:
- your plan stays the same;
- your contacts can call or text you exactly as before;
- number portability (keeping your number when you switch operator) is not affected by the new range — it continues to work for all numbers, old or new.
On the other hand, if you have a number range reserved for your company (call centre, technician fleet, customer service), your operator may now offer you numbers from the new tranche. It is a good time to check, in your internal numbering plan, that your tools (CRM, call routing, SMS platforms) accept all 06 and 07 prefixes without any filter or exception.
The consequences for SMS services
For SMS-sending platforms such as Texto SMS Gratuit, the opening of a new range is in practice transparent: a French number remains a French number, whether it starts with 06, 07 or a previously unused combination. No configuration change is required.
There are however two points we are monitoring closely:
- Anti-fraud systems: some filters rely on the prefix of a number to distinguish mobile numbers from fixed or premium-rate numbers. A brand-new range can, in the first few weeks, trigger false positives at some operators or short-code providers. That is why we continuously test the new ranges as soon as they are published by Arcep.
- Recipient documentation: services that process contact lists must make sure their tools accept all 10-digit French numbers in their entirety, including recently opened prefixes. It is a classic pitfall: a simple filter on "old" prefixes may wrongly reject perfectly valid numbers.
For occasional use, nothing changes: you keep sending a free SMS from your browser by typing the number in 06 XX XX XX XX or 07 XX XX XX XX format, as you have always done.
The technical detail: who gets which blocks
Arcep publishes, in its numbering resource allocation decisions, the list of blocks granted to each operator. Without going into the full details of the 29 June 2026 decision (which covers several pages of numbers), the broad outlines are as follows:
- the four historical operators (Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom, Free Mobile) each receive new 06 and 07 blocks, sized according to their market share and forecast needs;
- MVNOs (La Poste Mobile, NRJ Mobile, CIC Mobile, Crédit Mutuel Mobile, Prixtel, etc.) also receive allocations, either directly or through their host operator;
- IoT operators (LoRa, LTE-M, NB-IoT) continue to use the ranges reserved for them in short codes and 09 numbers, which are not concerned by this decision.
If you are curious, the allocation decisions are available on Arcep's website, in the "Numérotation" section.
One number, several uses: a useful reminder
On the occasion of this opening, here is a small useful reminder — especially in summer, when SMS scams multiply (our SMS scams and smishing in France feature remains relevant):
| Prefix | Use | Report to 33700? |
|---|---|---|
| 06 / 07 | Personal or professional mobile | Yes if fraudulent SMS |
| 09 | VoIP, online services | Yes if fraudulent SMS |
| 08 10 / 08 11 | Premium-rate (price displayed) | Yes if abusive service |
| 3-digit (e.g. 33 700) | Public service short code | No |
| 15, 17, 18, 112, 115 | Emergency services | Do not divert |
33700 remains the national platform for reporting fraudulent SMS and calls. The more you report, the faster Arcep and operators can act on smishing campaigns, which we have already covered on the blog.
And eSIM in all this?
You may wonder why we keep opening new number ranges while eSIM is becoming mainstream. The answer is simple: eSIM does not reduce the need for numbers, it multiplies it. A single phone can today host several active lines simultaneously (work line + personal line, for example), and connected objects — watches, cars, sensors — each have their own identifier. The opening of the new range is therefore not at odds with the eSIM dynamic: it supports it.
To dig deeper, you can re-read our dedicated article on eSIM in France in 2026, which lists the operators that offer it and the concrete use cases. And to understand how numbering, eSIM and IoT fit together, our overview of the mobile retail market in Q1 2026 gives you the current volumes and trends.
Recap timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 29 June 2026 | Arcep press release officially opening the new 06/07 tranche |
| 1 July 2026 | Effective opening: operators may allocate the new numbers |
| 2026 - 2027 | Progressive distribution according to operators' needs |
| Ongoing | Publication of individual allocation decisions per operator |
For any practical question about sending SMS, check our FAQ or write to us via the contact page. And if you want to test sending an SMS to a new number, the home form is, as always, free and without registration.
In short: the new 06/07 tranche opened by Arcep on 1 July 2026 is a scarce-resource management decision, made necessary by the continued growth of the mobile base and the explosion of IoT. For the subscriber, nothing changes in daily life; for operators and SMS services, it is a signal to integrate into their numbering plans and anti-fraud tools. Behind those 10 digits, it is the whole technical architecture of French telephony that keeps adapting — and that is also why Texto SMS Gratuit stays attentive to every change, to guarantee you a simple, reliable and sovereign service.
