Navigating the Short Code Registry

Note: This is only a courtesy guide. The website interface and steps described below are subject to change at any time at the discretion of the Short Code Registry (SCR).

This article goes over the process of purchasing and/or migrating your short code lease. Please note that before you can associate a campaign to a short code, you must first purchase and/or migrate a short code to your SCR account. If you’ve never leased a short code with the SCR before, please follow the steps below to create a new account. If you already have an account, feel free to skip down to the Purchasing a short code section.

Creating an account with the SCR

1. Head to the SCR website and click Login at the top right of the page. 

2. Click Create one here.

3. Complete the fields marked with an asterisk (*). Once finished, click Create Account.

Purchasing a short code

1. Head to the SCR website and click Find a Short Code at the top right of the page.

2. There are three ways to search for a short code:

• • Use the Search for a Custom Code option to search for any combination of letters and numbers. When you search for your 5-6 character custom short code, the search engine will advise whether or not the code is available and also show similar codes. Click on the short code to add it to your cart.

Note: If you’re using an ad blocker and don’t see any search results, please disable it and try again. 

• • Use the Find a Memorable Code section if you want to search for a vanity short code that will be easier for your customers to remember. Select an option from the drop-down menu that best describes the short code you’re looking for and click Next.

• • Use the Generate a Random Short Code option if you want the search engine to generate a random short code sequence. Choose how many short codes you need, select Add to Cart, and click Next.

3. Enter applicant details. The applicant is the person/business/entity requesting the short code(s). Complete the fields marked with an asterisk (*) and continue to the next section.

4. Enter content provider details. The content provider is the business/entity responsible for crafting the content that will be used in the SMS campaign. Content providers may utilize a third-party application or service provider (i.e., a Bandwidth customer and/or Bandwidth) to support delivery of messages to end users.

5. Indicate whether the short code(s) will be used for political campaigns.

6. Confirm requested short codes.

• • If you used the Search for a Custom Code or Find a Memorable Code options, please ensure the correct short code(s) are listed under the Selected header.

• • If you used the Generate a Random Short Code option, please ensure the correct quantity of short code(s) is listed under the Random header.

7. Once finished, click Submit to complete the short code lease application.

Transferring a short code

To transfer the short code ownership from one SCR account to another:

1. The end user/business that currently holds the short code lease should contact their current provider (either via a phone call or an appropriate ticketing system) and advise that they would like to initiate a lease transfer to another account.
2. As a Bandwidth customer, you should provide your Account ID to the end user/business, so they can inform their current provider where to transfer the lease. You can find the Account ID on the Account Summary page of your account. 

3. Once the current provider has confirmed that they’ve transferred the lease, select My Short Codes and click Pending Transfers.

4. When a pending transfer is available, you’ll see an option to accept the transfer request.
5. Next, you’ll see a pop-up with the details of the transfer. Select a prepayment option under the Transfer Type and then click the checkbox under Acceptance (if you agree with the terms and conditions) to complete the short code transfer.