What is the PSTN switch off deadline for businesses?
The PSTN switch off deadline is 31 January 2027. That is the date Openreach says the old analogue phone network, the Public Switched Telephone Network, will be permanently decommissioned. On 30 October 2026 Openreach warned businesses that fewer than 100 days remained.
Openreach says the majority of UK organisations have already moved to digital services. About one million copper based lines are still active, including 300,000 in business premises. Those remaining lines are, in Openreach’s words, among the most complex to migrate.
Putting this off is the Do-Nothing Default, and this is one deadline where doing nothing has a real cost. Here is what Openreach said, what depends on those lines, and the checks worth making now.
Key takeaways
- The PSTN switch off is due on 31 January 2027, and Openreach says there are about 300,000 business premises still on copper based lines.
- Standard business phone lines are straightforward to upgrade, but systems wired to them can be much harder.
- Card machines, lift phones, alarms and door entry units are among the systems Openreach says may still rely on the old network.
- Openreach says rental prices for legacy lines doubled in October 2026 compared with 2025, with more rises due from February 2027.
What does the PSTN switch off mean for business systems?
It means any equipment that relies on an analogue phone line could stop working once the PSTN switch off happens. Openreach lists payment terminals and cash handling systems, lift emergency telephones and auto diallers, fire alarm communication panels and security monitoring, building access controls, automated gates and door entry units, and industrial telemetry and building energy management systems.
Openreach says failing to migrate these systems before 31 January 2027 poses severe operational, safety and compliance risks. It adds that unmigrated building systems could trigger immediate commercial building closures and supply chain delays if safety critical systems stop working.
That is Openreach’s warning, and it is worth taking at face value without panicking. The practical point is simple: a landline is often connected to more than a phone. List everything plugged into one before you speak to your provider.
How many business lines are still on the old network?
Openreach says about one million copper based lines remain active across the UK, including 300,000 in business premises. That is down from the 1.5 million Openreach warned about in July 2026.
Openreach also gave a regional breakdown of the legacy lines still in use. London and the South East has the most, at 250,473, followed by Wales and the Midlands at 233,033 and Northern England at 207,135. Wessex has 156,141, Scotland 112,794 and East Anglia 99,050. Northern Ireland has the fewest, at 32,809.
Openreach says standard business phone lines are straightforward to upgrade. What is left tends to be harder, for example legacy circuits connected to specialist equipment, which Openreach says need deeper investigation, testing and possibly new equipment. Large multi site organisations may have several suppliers and undocumented circuits. James Lilley, Openreach’s Director of All-IP, puts it plainly: the straightforward migrations have largely been completed.
What happens if you miss the PSTN switch off?
Missing the PSTN switch off is not a clean cut off, according to Openreach. It says that from 31 January 2027, customers who have not moved may be transferred automatically to EVAc. It describes EVAc as a limited, temporary, last resort phone service designed only to keep access to essential calls.
Where it is technically possible, Openreach says it will keep linked broadband services running. It also says EVAc is a temporary safety net with limited capacity and is significantly more expensive than the digital alternatives already available.
Waiting is costly in other ways too. Openreach says the final phase of its announced rental price rises for WLR basic, other WLR products and legacy ISDN services took effect on 1 October 2026, doubling the 2025 rental price for legacy lines. It says further rises are due from February 2027.
On the other side, Openreach says it has launched migration offers, including free or discounted connections for communication providers upgrading customers to SOGEA, a broadband only service, or migrating legacy voice only lines.
What should your business check before the PSTN switch off?
Start with a list, because the PSTN switch off will not wait for a slow audit. Walk round the premises and note every device that uses a phone line: card machines, alarms, lift phones, door entry, gates, monitoring equipment and anything else that dials out. Openreach urges businesses to audit their remaining analogue services and agree a migration plan with their communications provider now.
Then ask each supplier of those systems whether their equipment works over a digital line. Ask your phone and broadband provider when the migration will happen and what happens to your numbers. If you have more than one site or more than one supplier, someone needs to own the whole picture.
Finally, check what you pay today ahead of the PSTN switch off. If you are still on a legacy line, Openreach says the rental price has risen sharply, so ask what a digital service would cost instead. Our business landline switch off guide explains the basics, our guide to business broadband rights covers contracts and notice, and our business broadband plans guide compares what is on offer.
You can read the full announcement on Openreach’s website.
Frequently asked questions about the PSTN switch off
- When is the PSTN switch off?
- Openreach says the PSTN will be permanently decommissioned on 31 January 2027.
- How many businesses are still on the old network?
- Openreach says about one million copper based lines are still active in the UK, including 300,000 within business premises.
- Will my card machine stop working after the PSTN switch off?
- Openreach lists payment terminals among the systems that may still rely on the old network. Ask your payment provider whether yours works over a digital connection.
- What is EVAc?
- Openreach describes EVAc as a limited, temporary, last resort phone service that keeps access to essential calls for customers who have not moved. It says it is significantly more expensive than digital alternatives.
- Will I be cut off on 31 January 2027?
- Openreach says customers who have not moved may be transferred automatically to EVAc, and that it will keep linked broadband running where it is technically possible.
Sources
- Openreach: fewer than 100 days left to move off the old analogue phone network (30 October 2026). Source for the 31 January 2027 decommissioning date, the one million copper lines and 300,000 business premises, the full regional breakdown, the list of affected systems, the risk warnings, EVAc, the 1 October 2026 rental price rises and further rises from February 2027, the SOGEA and voice only migration offers, and the James Lilley quote.
- ISPreview: Openreach warn 1.5 million UK analogue phone lines yet to make digital switch (July 2026). Source for the 1.5 million figure Openreach gave in July 2026, used here only for the direction of travel.
Checked 3 November 2026. Openreach’s figures are a snapshot and will keep falling before the deadline.
