@Cosmicspaceman wrote:
Hi! I had this same problem. I was told by an agent that call forwarding doesn’t work unless you are in the US, have purchased a roaming package, and are forwarding to a Canadian number. I asked them when this change happened (since like you I’ve been able to forward to a Fongo number in a non US country until recently). Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but thought you’d want to know !
I'm sorry I have a hard time understanding what you are saying.
The following is based on how things worked 'til the end of February 2023. I'm not sure if/how the "reset" after the voice problems last week is affecting things and if the previous options will be available again to all down the line.
Historically, Public Mobile only allows / has allowed call forwarding to Canadian numbers, even if you have an international or US calling add-on. *
You are forwarding to a Canadian Fongo** number. What happens to the call at the Fongo account is past Public Mobile's control.
The call could be going to the Fongo voice mail, or picked up (wherever you are in the world, as long as you are connected to data or WiFi), or you might even find a way to forward out of Fongo to yet another provider, all PM "sees" is that your call was routed to your Fongo number, and how long it lasted (deducting the minutes as outgoing minutes on a limited feature plan)
To set up call forwarding, the SIM needs to connect to the Public Mobile network, so you need to set it up from your phone while you are still in Canada. Once it's set up the call forwarding is handled on the network level, so you can put your SIM in your wallet or wherever you'll find it again on your return. The account needs to be active for call forwarding to work, but you don't need a roaming package.
You could use forwarding to Fongo (instead of your voice mail number) while roaming (which is only available in the US). So technically, if you are not in reach of T-Mobile's 2G network and therefore can't get calls directly to your PM number, but are connected to T-Mobile's 4G network for data (or a local data SIM or WiFi), you could get the call on your Fongo number.
The OP is accessing their Canadian Fongo account from a data or WiFi connection somewhere else in the world - the Public Mobile system only sees the Canadian number.
* There was a recent report of forwarding to a particular US toll free number being previously possible. I believe this number was recognized by the system as a Canadian number, but obviously I don't know the details.
** or a VoIP provider of your choice, of course - as long as it's a Canadian number
