Ireland’s communications networks are moving away from traditional copper-based services towards modern digital alternatives. For businesses, that change could affect more than the office phone: alarms, payment terminals and other equipment may also depend on legacy phone lines.
As of September 2026, there is no single nationwide switch-off date for Ireland. The transition is expected to happen in stages, so the timing can vary by location and service. The best time to check what your business relies on is before a change is announced in your area.
What is the copper switch-off?
The copper switch-off is the gradual retirement of services that use Ireland’s traditional copper network. These include older landline technologies such as PSTN and ISDN, as well as some broadband services.
As providers move towards fibre and IP-based networks, equipment that depends on copper lines may need to be upgraded or connected in a different way. The exact impact will depend on the services available at your premises and how your systems are configured.
Why is the network changing?
Copper networks have supported homes and businesses for decades, but communications technology and the way organisations work have changed. Digital services can support modern voice, data and collaboration requirements, while providers are investing in newer network infrastructure.
For businesses, the transition is an opportunity to review whether existing phone and connectivity services still meet operational needs—not simply to replace like with like.
What could be affected?
Start by checking any service or device that uses a traditional phone line or dial-up connection. This may include:
- Desk phones and legacy phone systems
- PSTN or ISDN lines
- Alarm and monitoring systems
- Lift emergency phones and door-entry systems
- Card payment terminals and point-of-sale equipment
- Fax machines and other specialist devices
Some systems may be less obvious than a phone plugged into a wall socket. Contact the suppliers responsible for alarms, lifts, payment equipment and building systems to confirm how they connect and what alternatives they support.
How can businesses prepare?
A few practical steps can help you plan a managed transition:
- Make an inventory. List your phone lines, phone system and any equipment that may use them.
- Check what is available at each site. Find out which broadband and voice services can be supplied to your premises.
- Speak with equipment providers. Ask whether alarms, lifts, payment terminals and other connected devices need an upgrade or alternative connection.
- Review your phone system. Consider whether a cloud phone system, VoIP or SIP trunking could suit your requirements.
- Plan continuity. Check power, internet resilience and backup arrangements for essential communications.
- Allow time to test and train. Give your team time to become familiar with any new system before relying on it day to day.
Moving business calls to IP
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services like IP Telecom's carries calls over an internet connection rather than a traditional copper phone line. Depending on your requirements, an IP-based solution can support features such as calls on desktop and mobile devices, flexible call routing and integration with other business tools.
A reliable voice service also depends on having an internet connection suited to your needs. Before making a change, consider connectivity, expected call volumes, emergency calling, number portability and what should happen if power or internet service is disrupted.
PSTN stands for Public Switched Telephone Network (Sometimes called POTS – Plain Old Telephone Service). It is the traditional fixed-line telephone network that has historically delivered landline voice services to homes and businesses in Ireland.
The technology, along with ISDN, is being replaced by newer fibre and IP-based communications technologies, including VoIP services like our Essentials Phone System.
Yes. Ireland, along with the rest of the EU is moving away from legacy copper-based telecommunications infrastructure towards modern fibre networks and IP-based services. It’s envisaged that under EU directive 2018/1972 all copper-based networks across the EU (and EEA) will be shut down by 2035.
However, most countries are not waiting until that time to close their copper networks, with many having shuttered them since 2020.
With the UK (and therefore Northern Ireland) setting 31 January 2027 as their final shutdown date, it is envisaged that the rest of Ireland will follow shortly after that (Northern Ireland having passed the 95% level of Gigabit availability in 2026). Since the rollout of NBI has brought fibre to most parts of the country at this point (mid 2026) it’s envisaged that exchanges will be switching off copper from 2027, with an early 2028 completion date.
However, it is important to understand that there is not currently one single nationwide PSTN switch-off date for every business in Ireland. Rather, ComReg's migration framework provides for copper switch-off to take place progressively, on an exchange-area-by-exchange-area basis, following an approved switch-off proposal.
Essentially, legacy copper systems will be switched off on a case-by-case basis. So, if fibre penetration in your area has reached the tipping point for switch-off, then your area could get shut down with just a few months' warning.
For your business, especially those where fibre penetration is now commonplace, you may only have a few months to find and switch providers.
The transition is already underway, but there is no single date on which every Irish PSTN connection will stop working. However, as the Jan 31st, 2027, shutdown in Northern Ireland looms, it’s envisaged that the rest of the island will follow shortly, especially now that NBI coverage has brought fibre into the hard-to-reach parts of the country
Businesses should therefore consider the switch-off as a progressive migration rather than a single deadline.
The ultimate retirement of legacy copper infrastructure is being driven by the increasing availability of fibre and other modern technologies. ComReg notes that copper networks are gradually being replaced by newer technologies.
Not exactly. 2028 has previously been referenced in relation to the expected phase-out of eir's copper network, but it should not be interpreted as a single national date when every PSTN service in Ireland will be disconnected.
Indeed, even Government TDs have been asking the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport about a timeline and any upcoming information campaigns – Oireachtas 11 June 2026. But there is no set timeline referenced by the Minister. However in his answer the Minister said “The Government’s Digital Connectivity Strategy aims to have all Irish households and businesses covered by a gigabit network by 2028.” As such, it can be assumed that as we head towards that date the copper switch off will take place.
The current ComReg framework envisages copper switch-off taking place progressively on an exchange-by-exchange area. So, if your business is not using a VoIP based system like IP Telecom Essentials at this point, you may only have a few months to get ready for the switch.
It could, particularly if your business still uses traditional copper or analogue telephone services.
Businesses should review not only their telephone system, but any equipment connected to their telephone lines.
This could include:
- Traditional PBX systems
- Analogue phones
- Fax machines
- Alarm systems
- Lift emergency phones
- Door entry systems
- Payment terminals
- Monitoring equipment
- Other analogue devices
Some of these devices may need to be replaced or reconfigured when moving to modern IP-based services.
The replacement technology is primarily fibre connectivity and IP-based voice services.
VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, allows telephone calls to be transmitted over an internet connection rather than a traditional telephone line.
For businesses, this can mean moving from a traditional PBX to a hosted or cloud-based business phone system.
VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol.
Instead of transmitting a telephone call across a traditional telephone network, VoIP converts the call into data and sends it over an IP network.
Modern business VoIP systems such as IP Telecom’s Essentials Phone System can provide features including:
- Call routing
- Auto attendants
- Call queues
- Voicemail
- Call recording
- Mobile applications
- Desktop softphones
- Call analytics
- Microsoft Teams integration
- CRM integration
Not necessarily, but you should have it assessed (pretty much now if you have any doubts).
If your existing PBX relies on traditional PSTN, analogue or ISDN services, you will need to migrate to a modern IP-based solution.
This is also an opportunity to review whether your existing system still provides the features and flexibility your business needs.
In most cases, yes.
Number portability allows businesses to retain existing numbers when changing providers or technologies, subject to the relevant porting arrangements.
For most businesses, retaining established numbers is an important part of the migration planning process.
Not necessarily. If your existing numbers can be ported to your new service, your customers can continue using the numbers they already know.
This means the underlying technology can change without necessarily changing the way customers contact your business.
A properly designed business VoIP system like IP Telecom’s Essentials Phone System will provide your business with high-quality calls, especially when coupled with our business only broadband and connectivity solutions – in fact HD Calling becomes available.
That’s why your internet connection has become a vital part of your voice infrastructure.
Businesses should therefore consider the quality, capacity and resilience of their connectivity when moving from traditional telephone services to VoIP.
This is an important question for any business considering VoIP. If your phone system depends on a single internet connection, an outage could affect your ability to make or receive calls.
Businesses that rely heavily on their phones should consider connectivity resilience, such as:
- Secondary broadband
- 4G/5G failover
- Diverse connectivity
- Dedicated Internet Access
- Managed connectivity
The right solution will depend on the size and requirements of your organisation.
Cloud-based Phone Solutions such as IP Telecom’s allow for mobile phones to be added as devices to your phone system, so in the case that an office broadband connection becomes unavailable, calls will flow over to mobile devices – keeping your calls and your business flowing.
With IP Telecom, because your phone system is in the cloud calls will continue to route as they should, even if broadband is unavailable.
Yes. Modern cloud-based phone systems such as ours can allow employees to use a business phone application on smartphones, meaning they can make and receive business calls (from their business number) while away from their desk, especially when coupled with our Linkphone, softphone client.
This can be particularly useful for hybrid workers, sales teams and employees working across multiple locations.
Potentially, yes.
This is one of the most important areas for businesses to investigate.
ComReg specifically highlights devices such as care alarms, personal alarms, security alarms and fax machines as equipment that may need to be replaced or reconfigured when moving to VoIP.
Businesses should identify every device currently using a traditional telephone connection before migrating. At IP Telecom, as part of out telephony audit we'll run through all possible permutations around some of the non-telephony devices that may need to be considered - schedule a call with the team today via the contact us page
You don't necessarily need to change your phone system immediately, but you should understand what you currently have and what your future options are. Especially as you could only have months left before your local exchange switches off copper.
As well as contacting IP Telecom, you can start by:
- Identifying any PSTN, analogue, ISDN or copper-based services.
- Listing all equipment connected to those services.
- Checking whether fibre is available at your premises (get in touch with us - we can help with Broadband as well).
- Reviewing your existing business phone system.
- Considering whether a hosted VoIP system would provide additional benefits.
- Reviewing your internet connectivity and resilience.
- Developing a migration plan before your legacy service needs to be retired.
The best starting point is to establish what type of connectivity and voice services your business currently uses.
If you're unsure, your telecoms provider should be able to identify whether your service relies on legacy infrastructure and explain the migration options available.
Absolutely. The PSTN transition doesn't have to be viewed simply as a technology replacement.
Moving to a modern cloud phone system can give businesses access to functionality that wasn't available with traditional telephone systems, while supporting hybrid working, multiple offices and mobile employees.
It can also bring your voice and connectivity infrastructure together in a more flexible way.
Waiting until your existing service is approaching retirement can leave you with limited time to evaluate alternatives, migrate numbers and train staff. Also, if you leave it to the last minute, there’s a chance that some suppliers may take advantage of the last-minute rush to lock you into deals that may not be right for you and your business.
Planning early gives your business time to:
Assess → Plan → Test → Migrate → Optimise
Rather than:
Wait → Receive notification → Rush to replace → Struggle to switch on time and/or get ripped off
Yes. IP Telecom can assess your existing communications setup and help develop a migration plan towards a modern business phone system.
This can include reviewing your existing numbers, phone system, connectivity and requirements before planning the transition - we call this the Telephony Audit.
The objective is to make the move as straightforward and disruption-free as possible, while giving your business a communications platform that is ready for the future.
Part of the IP Telecom philosophy is to take the time to understand your current and future business needs, and rather than give you an off-the-shelf solution, we’ll give you a solution, bespoke to your business needs.
Because we take the time to build and test our solutions, when cutover takes place - everything works just as it should.
There is no single nationwide Irish PSTN switch-off date that businesses should be working towards.
Instead, Ireland is moving progressively from legacy copper infrastructure to modern fibre and IP-based services, with ComReg's framework providing for copper switch-off by exchange area.
The important question for your business isn't "When is the PSTN being switched off?"
It's: Are we ready to move away from our existing legacy phone and connectivity services when the time comes?
Planning now gives you the opportunity to choose the right solution rather than having to make a rushed decision when your existing service is due to be retired.
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