An exit code, or international direct dialing prefix, tells the local telephone exchange that the following digits represent an international destination. In the North American Numbering Plan, this is 011, while much of Europe uses 00. Dialing this sequence breaks the call out of the domestic routing tables before applying the country code.
You need to hit the exit code first, so dial 011, then the country code for Japan, then the local number.
Mobile phones bypass exit codes by using the plus symbol (+) before the country code, which the cellular network automatically translates into the correct local exit code.
Also heard as
- international access code
- IDD prefix
- international direct dialing prefix
Related terms
Prefix
The initial digits of a telephone number that route the call to a specific geographic region or service type.
PSTN
The global infrastructure of circuit-switched telephone networks operated by national and regional carriers.
STD
Subscriber trunk dialling, the historic system allowing callers to route long-distance calls without an operator.