Does your AU voicemail diversion stop working when your phone is off-AU-network?

[aspro2]

So this question is kind of the opposite of what this subforum is about, but about the best place for it:

Once upon a time, when I was travelling I would have a non-AU SIM/eSIM, with my Aussie SIM just there for receiving SMSes without needing any sort of international roaming setup. (And yes, we can remember the time before that when you couldn't get SMSes overseas, but I'm not meaning that far back.) If an Australian caller tried to reach me, their call would divert to voicemail. All good... just check messages when you get back home

I am now with Amaysim for my domestic service. I am travelling and my voicemail no longer works. Australian callers to my phone receive a "phone is switched off" message with no diversion to voicemail. That is not the way things used to work with every other provider in the preceding 10+ years. Amaysim support claims that I have to pay for an international roaming add-on in order for domestic callers to be able to reach my voicemail while I'm outside of AU networks ("because of the way voicemail routing works"). WTF. This seems suspicious to me, not least because if you just switch off your phone in AU, it should presumably have the same effect!

Can AFF members confirm this is actually the case for them too if they have no international roaming add-on/pack for whatever domestic provider they use?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Watching this thread to see the outcome. Although I have purchased a roaming pack, so maybe the voicemail still works. Of course, if no one could leave me a message, I’d never know they tried to call!

 

[aspro2]

Watching this thread to see the outcome. Although I have purchased a roaming pack, so maybe the voicemail still works. Of course, if no one could leave me a message, I’d never know they tried to call!

Yes, it was only after a friend alerted me that I then had the joy of sitting in slow-as-tortoise online chat with Amaysim.

 

[Aeryn]

Back in the day you used to have to call a 3 digit number to pick up your voicemails from a server, meaning the recordings were hosted by the telco or VMNO (Amaysim is a VMNO).

But about 10 years ago this changed and now voice mails seem to be recorded then pushed straight to your phone as an audio attachment via mms. I'm guessing this means they arent retained on telco/VMNO server for more than the time it takes to send the attachment to you ( a few seconds).

There are two ways to receive sms (text) that is via telco network or via data network (you control this by a setting in your phone, but most handsets default this to data these days unless you have a voice only plan). But mms always requires a data service.

This may explain why when you are roaming and you have Aus data turned off the mms voicemails don't get to you; and why the telco defaults to not allowing them to be recorded because they don't want to (or dont have mechanism to) store them.

Not sure if there are differences between the Telcos (Optus, Telstra, Vodafone) and the VMNOs (Amaysim, Boost, Aldi etc).

Out of curiosity what happens if you turn your mobile off (as oposed to it being on but not answering the call) whilst in Aus and someone calls, are they still getting VM option?

 

[aspro2]

Back in the day you used to have to call a 3 digit number to pick up your voicemails from a server, meaning the recordings were hosted by the telco or VMNO (Amaysim is a VMNO).
[...]

Out of curiosity what happens if you turn your mobile off (as oposed to it being on but not answering the call) whilst in Aus and someone calls, are they still getting VM option?

The voicemail-to-MMS functionality is a separate option on most services, so is different from the basic voicemail service from all providers. (But I guess if you have no data, the MMS wouldn't arrive.)

Basic voicemail has to be stored on telco servers, and that's what I'm referring to. Note also that Amaysim claims it is about "how voicemail is routed".

And yes, phone off in Australia has completely normal diversions to voicemail. Overseas, SIM/phone off or on makes no difference - no voicemail diversion. This is not what used to happen.