Do we have ACS PSTN/telephony enabled for Saudi Arabia?

A Saudi ACS-provisioned number cannot originate the requested calls; implement the application with Teams Phone Extensibility (TPE) and carrier-backed PSTN connectivity, subject to a Saudi carrier confirming +966 mobile/landline termination, number presentation, and regulatory approval.

What is supported

The Saudi Arabia ACS offer currently lists only toll-free numbers with inbound calling; “Make Calls” is unavailable. The corresponding price table also marks outbound calling from Saudi toll-free numbers as N/A.^1^^2^

Therefore, purchasing an ACS Saudi number and using it as alternateCallerId does not satisfy this scenario.

Patients can nevertheless receive ordinary calls on their mobile or landline without Teams or another application when the application uses:

Application → ACS Call Automation/TPE → Teams Phone → PSTN provider → +966 patient

TPE supports three PSTN connectivity categories: Calling Plans, Operator Connect, and Direct Routing.^3^

For Saudi Arabia:

• Teams Direct Routing is the most controllable option when a Saudi carrier can supply a SIP trunk, authorized Saudi caller ID, and +966 termination. It requires a certified SBC and carrier configuration.
• Operator Connect is an option only if a participating operator explicitly supports the tenant, Saudi service numbers, application-originated calls, and the required destinations.
• Teams Calling Plan should be selected only after confirming Saudi service-number availability and tenant eligibility. The available documentation confirms Saudi Arabia as an outbound destination, but that does not by itself establish that Microsoft can issue the required Saudi originating number.^4^

Required provisioning sequence

1. Confirm the carrier design first
   • Obtain written confirmation for calls to Saudi mobile and landline numbers.
   • Confirm whether the carrier supplies the originating number, permits application-generated healthcare calls, and allows that number to be presented as caller ID.
   • Confirm any Saudi consent, identity, recording, or healthcare restrictions.
2. Provision Teams and Azure
   • Create the ACS resource used by Call Automation.
   • Create a Teams Resource Account.
   • Assign the Resource Account the required Teams Phone Resource Account licensing and its service number.
   • The retirement guidance identifies Teams and Teams Phone licensing, Resource Account configuration, and PSTN connectivity as requirements for TPE Call Automation.^5^
   The available documentation does not establish a complete SKU matrix for every tenant and connectivity option. Confirm the exact Teams base-license and Teams Phone SKU combination with Microsoft licensing before procurement; carrier, SBC, Azure, and PSTN usage charges are separate.
3. Connect the Resource Account to ACS
   • A Teams administrator associates it using Set-CsOnlineApplicationInstance -AcsResourceId.
   • Run Sync-CsOnlineApplicationInstance.
   • Association and authorization are separate: the ACS resource owner must also create the TPE access assignment.^6^

PUT /access/teamsExtension/tenants/[Tenant ID] ID]/assignments/{resourceAccountObjectId}?api-version=2025-06-30
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "principalType": "teamsResourceAccount"
}

Use the Resource Account’s Microsoft Entra object ID, not its UPN or application ID, and verify the assignment with the corresponding GET request.^6^

4. Configure PSTN connectivity
   • For Teams Direct Routing, the carrier/SBC operator must configure the SBC, Saudi trunk, and a voice route matching +966 destinations.
   • For Operator Connect or Calling Plan, assign an eligible service number and outbound routing entitlement to the Resource Account.
   • Configure Event Grid and the application’s HTTPS Call Automation callback, then test one Saudi mobile and one landline number.

Caller ID

Use only a number that the selected Saudi carrier has assigned to or authorized for the organization. The carrier must confirm:

• whether a Saudi geographic, national, mobile, or other service number may be presented;
• whether the same caller ID works for both mobile and landline destinations;
• whether the number must be sent through a Teams caller-ID policy, SBC SIP normalization, or carrier-side configuration.

The supplied Microsoft material does not document the exact Teams Direct Routing/TPE caller-ID policy and commands for this Saudi scenario, so the ACS Direct Routing alternateCallerId or ACS voice-route caller-ID override should not be treated as the configuration for the recommended Teams architecture. Caller-ID approval is a deployment dependency, not something guaranteed by TPE.

Finally, standalone ACS PSTN Direct Offer and ACS Direct Routing are being retired on September 30, 2028. New standalone onboarding is being restricted from October 23, 2026, while supported TPE scenarios remain available.^5^ Do not start a new Saudi design on standalone ACS Direct Routing.

References

1. Phone number management for Saudi Arabia
2. Telephony (PSTN) pricing
3. Cost and connectivity options for Teams Phone extensibility
4. Users can make outbound calls to these countries and regions
5. Retirement and breaking changes guide for Azure Communication Services
6. Teams Phone Extensibility (TPE) - Clarification on Resource Account, ACS Association, and Consent Flow - Microsoft Q&A