By Alpit Patel and the aibrevo team · October 12, 2026 · Updated October 13, 2026 · 6 min read
Can GoHighLevel Send SMS Outside the US? Country Permissions, Prices and Bundles
Quick answer
Yes, but each destination country has to be enabled for SMS first, and international texts are billed at the recipient country's rate: about $0.0515 per segment to Australia against $0.0083 list for the US and Canada. Non-US numbers need regulatory bundles, Australian local numbers need an approved business bundle from July 1, 2026, and alphanumeric sender IDs aren't supported natively.
Part of the guide: GoHighLevel compliance
Key takeaways
- Yes, once the destination country is enabled for SMS. Texting a country that isn't enabled fails with error 21408, region not enabled.
- Voice and SMS permissions are separate: enabling a country for calls doesn't enable it for texts. Request countries through HighLevel support with your Location ID.
- International texts are billed at the recipient country's rate. HighLevel's example: about $0.0515 per segment to Australia, roughly 6.5 times the $0.0083 US and Canada list rate.
- Non-US numbers need address and regulatory bundles. From July 1, 2026, every Australian local number must be tied to an approved business bundle or it stops working.
- Alphanumeric sender IDs aren't supported natively. For international customers, WhatsApp ($10 a month per sub-account plus per-message fees) is often the better channel.
Yes, but not by default. GoHighLevel’s LC Phone can text numbers in other countries once each destination country is enabled for SMS on the account. Texting a country that isn’t enabled fails with error 21408 (“region not enabled”). International texts are billed at the recipient country’s rate, which can be several times the US rate. And if you want a local number in another country, you’ll need to file regulatory paperwork first.
Checked on October 12, 2026 against HighLevel’s geo-permissions article (modified September 3, 2026), its error code dictionary (September 8, 2026), its message segments article (July 23, 2026), its regulatory bundle articles and its WhatsApp pricing article (September 22, 2026).
How do you enable texting to another country?
HighLevel’s geo-permissions article sets the rules:
- Voice and SMS are separate. A country enabled for calls is not enabled for texts.
- For voice, LC Phone enables the US and Canada, the business’s registered country and the country of any number you buy. Higher-risk countries need manual approval.
- To add countries, open a support chat with the sub-account’s Location ID and the list of countries, for SMS, voice or both.
- If the account runs on its own Twilio, set geo permissions in the Twilio Console instead; see Twilio vs LC Phone.
HighLevel’s error code dictionary also notes that since March 15, 2025, LC Phone blocks voice, messaging and email to Iran, including +98 numbers on WhatsApp and RCS.
How much do international texts cost?
Texts to numbers outside the US and Canada are billed at the recipient country’s rate. HighLevel’s message segments article gives one comparison:
| Destination | Price per segment | Relative cost |
|---|---|---|
| US and Canada (list rate) | about $0.0083 | 1x |
| Australia | about $0.0515 | about 6.5x |
HighLevel’s pricing guide lists US and Canada SMS at $0.00747 after its discount. Rates for every other country are in the messaging pricing file attached to HighLevel’s pricing and billing guide (updated September 29, 2026); check it for your destinations.
Segments multiply the price. A segment holds 160 standard characters, or 70 if the message contains an emoji or other special characters. Multi-part messages drop to 153 and 67 characters per segment. A 300-character reminder with one emoji is 5 segments: to Australia, about $0.26 per text. Our SMS error code guide explains segments and encoding in more detail.
Can you get a local number in another country?
Yes, in the countries LC Phone supports. HighLevel’s 2025 number availability update added French local, Australian mobile, Malaysian local and toll-free, Italian toll-free, Chilean local, German mobile and Japanese local numbers. HighLevel doesn’t publish one complete list of countries that support both numbers and SMS, so check availability for your country in the number purchase screen, and confirm the number type supports texting before you buy.
Most non-US numbers need paperwork first. HighLevel’s regulatory bundle article (modified September 4, 2026) describes the order:
- Go to Settings > Phone System and create an address bundle for the business.
- Create a regulatory bundle for the country and number type, with the documents the country requires.
- Wait for approval. There’s no fixed review time.
- Attach the bundle when you buy the number.
Australia has a hard deadline. HighLevel’s Australian bundle article says that from July 1, 2026, every Australian local number must be linked to an approved business bundle; individual bundles aren’t accepted. Each sub-account needs its own bundle, agencies must use the client’s business details, review takes 1 to 3 business days, and numbers without a bundle stop working with no grace period.
What about alphanumeric sender IDs?
They aren’t supported natively. A request for alphanumeric sender IDs on HighLevel’s ideas board was posted in April 2020 and had about 160 votes, with no status, when we checked. Texts from GoHighLevel go out from a phone number. That matters in markets such as the UK and parts of Europe where businesses often text from a brand name.
When is WhatsApp the better channel?
For many international customers, WhatsApp is both more familiar and cheaper to run than SMS. HighLevel’s WhatsApp pricing article (modified September 22, 2026) lists:
- $10 a month per sub-account, billed to the agency
- per-message fees in four categories: Marketing, Utility, Authentication and Service
- Service conversations free up to 1,000 per number per month
- from October 1, 2026, Utility messages inside the 24-hour customer service window are billable
Our WhatsApp FAQ covers setup and template approval. A common international setup is WhatsApp as the main channel, with SMS only for countries and contacts where WhatsApp isn’t used.
Running GoHighLevel for clients outside the US?
aibrevo sets up international GoHighLevel accounts: country permissions, regulatory bundles, Australian business bundles, WhatsApp and message templates sized to avoid extra segments, as part of its GoHighLevel implementation service. Book a 30-minute call and bring the list of countries you text.
Sources
- HighLevel Support, Geo permissions for voice and messaging, modified September 3, 2026.
- HighLevel Support, Error code dictionary, modified September 8, 2026.
- HighLevel Support, Message segments and pricing, modified July 23, 2026.
- HighLevel Support, Phone system pricing and billing guide, updated September 29, 2026.
- HighLevel Support, Regulatory bundles, modified September 4, 2026.
- HighLevel Support, Australian business bundle requirement, modified June 2, 2026.
- HighLevel changelog, New phone number availability across key countries (2025).
- HighLevel ideas board, Twilio alphanumeric sender ID, checked October 12, 2026.
- HighLevel Support, WhatsApp pricing, modified September 22, 2026.