To forward calls from a US Cellular line that is now on T-Mobile service, dial **21*1, the 10-digit number, then #. To turn forwarding off, dial ##21#. Those come from T-Mobile's own list. US Cellular no longer has support pages of its own: its support addresses now open on T-Mobile's site.
T-Mobile closed its purchase of UScellular's wireless operations on August 1, 2025. Not every account moved over by itself, though. T-Mobile's page for UScellular customers gives no year, but it says an account that won't move automatically is canceled on September 1, and that the line's network connection ends after September 30. If forwarding stopped on a line that never switched, read the line check below the table before you try another code.
T-Mobile's forwarding codes, for a US Cellular line on T-Mobile
T-Mobile lists four kinds of forwarding. Each has a code that turns it on and a code that turns it off, and one more code resets them all. Our T-Mobile call forwarding page covers the same codes in more depth, including how to set the ring time before no-answer forwarding.
| What it does | Dial |
|---|---|
| Send every call to another number, on a line that is on T-Mobile service. Calls stop reaching your phone. | **21*1NUMBER# |
| Switch off forward-all. | ##21# |
| Send the calls you don't answer to another number. | **61*1NUMBER# |
| Switch off no-answer forwarding. | ##61# |
| Send calls to another number while your line is busy. | **67*1NUMBER# |
| Switch off busy forwarding. | ##67# |
| Send calls to another number when your phone is off or has no signal. | **62*1NUMBER# |
| Switch off forwarding for a phone that is off or out of range. | ##62# |
| Reset the busy, unreachable and no-reply settings to T-Mobile's default (forward-all needs ##21#). | ##004# |
Type the 10-digit number right after the 1, so a no-answer code reads **61*1, ten digits, then #. T-Mobile says forwarding works only for 10- or 11-digit numbers, never for international ones. T-Mobile's short-code list doesn't say how these codes behave on a line that is still on UScellular's old network. If one does nothing, start with the line check and the list at the bottom of this page.
Check that your US Cellular line is still active
T-Mobile's page for UScellular customers explains the cancellation letter some of them received. The account won't move to T-Mobile on its own, it is canceled on September 1, and the customer has to switch to T-Mobile or another provider to keep the phone number. The line keeps its network connection for up to 30 days after the cancellation, at no charge. After September 30 it has no regular talk, text or data, and the phone can call only 911.
So if forwarding quietly stopped, or the phone shows no service at all, the line may be the problem and not the code. T-Mobile says that within 60 days of the September 1 cancellation date you can contact it to restart service, then keep the number on T-Mobile or port it to another provider. After those 60 days the number is permanently lost. While the temporary network access lasts, Customer Care is 611 from the phone.
US Cellular call forwarding on an iPhone
Open Settings, tap Apps, tap Phone, tap Call Forwarding and turn it on. On an iPhone with Dual SIM, choose the line next. Then tap Forward To, type the number and tap Back. A forwarding icon sits in the status bar while it's on.
Apple's page covers this switch for GSM service and tells CDMA customers to contact their carrier. Apple names no carriers, so its page can't tell you which kind a US Cellular line is. If the row isn't in your Settings and your line is on T-Mobile service, the keypad codes in the table are the other route. Either way, set it where the phone has cellular coverage: Apple says calls won't forward if the iPhone is out of range of the cellular network when you set it.
Apple also blocks links that try to switch call forwarding on, whether they come in a message, an email, a webpage or an app, since scammers use them. Type the code yourself.
US Cellular forwarding on Galaxy and other Android phones
On a Galaxy, start in the Phone app: tap More options (the three vertical dots), then Settings, then Supplementary services, then Call forwarding. Your four choices are Always forward, Forward when unanswered, Forward when busy and Forward when unreachable; pick one, type the number you're forwarding to and tap Enable. Samsung's page names no phone models and says availability may vary by carrier and phone model, so it doesn't confirm that an older Galaxy such as the S8 uses the same menu names. If yours doesn't, the codes in the table do the same job from the keypad.
Google's Phone app help gives no forwarding steps, so on a Pixel or any other Android phone, use the keypad codes in the table.
Turning US Cellular forwarding off
Dial ##21# to stop forwarding every call, or ##61#, ##67# or ##62# for the other three kinds. ##004# resets those three kinds to T-Mobile's default but leaves forward-all alone. If you switched it on in the iPhone's Settings or on the Galaxy screen, go back to that same screen and switch it off there.
When US Cellular call forwarding is not working
- The phone shows no service. After September 30, a line that was never switched can call only 911. The line check above covers the 60 days T-Mobile gives you to restart it.
- Calls go straight to voicemail. T-Mobile's troubleshooting page for that problem says to dial
##004#and press Send, which resets the busy, unreachable and no-reply settings, and##21#for forward-all. - The code seems to do nothing. Count the digits after the
1: there should be ten. International numbers can't be forwarded to at all, and abroad T-Mobile says it comes down to what the host country's network supports. - Forwarding set on the iPhone never kicks in. Set it again where the phone has cellular signal, as the iPhone section above explains.
- Your Galaxy has no Call forwarding screen. Samsung says that varies by carrier and model, so dial the code instead.
- Still stuck. T-Mobile keeps a forwarding tutorial for each phone on its Devices page, under Calling & Contacts.
Forwarding a US Cellular line to VettedCalls
For US Cellular, setup Step 4 gives you **21*NUMBER#, with NUMBER being your VettedCalls number, to dial from the phone's regular keypad, and ##21# to turn it off later. The welcome email fills in your VettedCalls number with a leading 1, which makes it the same code as the forward-every-call row in the table. With it on, every call comes to us first and your cell shouldn't ring on its own. The calls that pass screening ring you in the Cloud Softphone app, with the caller's number showing. Some prepaid and MVNO plans can't forward at all, and if your carrier can't forward your calls we refund everything you paid within your first 14 days. Go through setup.