Short Code Holiday Freeze

The lengthy certification process which short codes undergo is annually put on hold during specific windows of time which may differ from carrier to carrier. The holiday freeze dates for the current season can be found below once they have been announced. Please bear in mind that additional dates may be added as carriers announce their holiday freeze periods, so be sure to check back here again for updates nearer to the holiday season.

U.S. Holiday Freeze Timeline

To accommodate the holiday activities, new certifications routing through i2SMS and Aerialink SC route 1 will undergo a freeze from November 21st, 2025 through January 12th 2026. 

U.S. Carriers will be implementing a freeze at the following times:

Canadian Freeze Timeline

Canadian carriers will be implementing a hard brownout during which new short code certifications, migrations and amendments will not occur. In order to obtain a 2025 provisioning date, all applications must be submitted prior to the deadline of October 23, 2025 at 1:00pm ET. Applications submitted prior to the October 23rd deadline will be eligible for provisioning by participating carriers between November 11th and November 17th, 2025.

Note that the CWTA continues to meet throughout the remainder of the year to review applications for provisioning following the brownout period, which will conclude January 5th, 2026, with Bell, Freedom, Rogers, and TELUS concluding January 13th, 2026.