The New York State Department of Public Service announced that customers in the 516-area code region requesting new mobile or landline telephone service, an additional line, or a move in the location of their service, may be assigned a number in the new 363-area code. The new area code will provide additional much-needed phone numbers for residents and businesses in the existing 516-area code region.
The new 363-area code will be superimposed over the same geographical area as the existing 516-area code. The 516-area code is located within the boundaries of Nassau County and includes the city of Long Beach, and the towns of Hempstead, North Hempstead and Oyster Bay.
The area code overlay requires consumers to continue to dial 10 digits for local calls (area code + 7-digit telephone number) in the 516/363 area or 1 + 10 digits for calls to other area code regions. Customers in the 516-area code have already been completing local calls by dialing 10 digits since the July 16, 2022, national implementation of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
Important facts to know about the new area code:
• Current phone numbers’ area codes will not change
• All calls within and between 516/363 must be dialed with 10 digits
• Consumers will continue to dial 1+ area code + telephone number for all calls to other area codes
• The price of a call, and the price of other telephone services, will not change due to the new overlay area code and what is a local call will remain a local call
• Calls to reach 911 Emergency Service will remain three digits
• If 211, 311, 411, 511, 611, 711, or 811 services are currently available in the community, consumers will still dial these codes with just three digits
• Numbers in the 363-area code will not be available for assignment until remaining numbers in the 516-area code are exhausted.
Customers should ensure that all services, automatic dialing equipment, applications, software, or other types of equipment recognize the new 363-area code as a valid area code. Some examples include life safety systems, fax machines, Internet dial-up numbers, alarm and security systems, gates, speed dialers, mobile phone contact lists, call forwarding settings, voicemail services, and similar functions.
Business stationery, advertising materials, personal checks, and personal or pet ID tags should be updated as necessary to ensure each includes the 363-area code. All automatically dialed calls within the 516/363 area must be programmed to dial using 10-digits and the digit prefix “1” must be included for all calls to other area codes.
—New York State Department of Public Services