Amateur radio call signs

Formation of an amateur radio call sign

A unique international prefix

• When a 1-letter prefix is enough This is possible only when the whole letter range is assigned to one jurisdiction. For example, KAA–KZZ is assigned to the United States. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission can assign a single letter 'K' prefix as the US is assigned the whole 'K' block. As numbers warrant the US can also assign prefixes 'KA', 'KB', 'KC' and so forth as needed. A single-letter prefix is also possible for block ranges beginning with B, F, G, I, K, M, N, R or W as each are also assigned by the ITU to single jurisdictions
• * When assigning from the KAA–KZZ block, the FCC could assign three letter prefixes but this produces cumbersome call signs, and one- and two-letter prefixes produce more than enough than needed as it is.
• * None of the B, F, G, I, K, M, N, R, and W ranges are issued with a numeral as a second character, so the first digit in a call in those ranges is always the separating numeral.
• When 2-characters are needed Two character prefixes are needed when the letter range is divided among two or more jurisdictions. For instance, AAA–ALZ is assigned to the USA; but Spain, Pakistan, India and Australia are assigned other portions of the 'A' block, so at least two characters from the left need to be assigned by each country to produce unique call signs. Letter-number prefixes 'A2' through 'A9' are also assigned to eight other jurisdictions, so a callsign prefix with a single 'A' does not uniquely distinguish any of them.
• * Korea has issued a special event callsign of D9K. The 'D9' is the ITU prefix for South Korea, so they have issued a call with no separating numeral.
• * Bahamas issues call signs without a separating numeral. They are assigned the C6A–C6Z block, and the '6' is part of the 2-character prefix. Examples are as found on QRZ.COM.
• * Cyprus has issued H2T as a special event call sign. Whereas Cyprus is assigned the H2A–H2Z block, there is then no numeral separator, just a one-letter suffix.
• When a 3-character prefix is needed This is an unusual situation and occurs with callsigns in the 3DA–3DZ block range. Fiji and Swaziland are assigned 3DN–3DZ and 3DA–3DM respectively, so they should choose also the third character from the left to produce unique call signs, but in practise do not.
• * Fiji has issued many call signs with a '3D' prefix and a '2' numeral separator. In theory this does not distinguish their call signs from Swaziland which is issued the 3DA–3DM block.
• Jurisdictions frequently adopt one or only a few of the prefixes allowed to them within a block-range, reserving the others for other occasions. Canada has 24 possible, two-letter prefixes from its assigned ranges, but assigns only CY, VA, VE, VO, and VY for normal operation.

  A unique internal numeral and suffix

General formats

• P prefix character. Prefixes can be formed using one-letter, two-letters, a digit and a letter, a letter and a digit, or in rare cases a digit and two letters. There is no ITU allocation of digit-only prefixes. Letter-digit-letter prefixes are possible but there are no known cases of them being issued by national bodies.
• N a single numeral which separates prefix from suffix. Often a cross-hatched Ø is used for the numeral zero to distinguish it from the letter O.
• S suffix character. Digits are in practise used sparingly in suffixes and almost always for special events. This avoids confusion with separating numerals and digits in prefixes in regularly issued call signs.

• PNS, 1x1 call sign
• * usually for a special event, the prefix is always a single letter character, as is the suffix. Can only be assigned in the B, F, G, I, K, M, N, R or W prefix range. '
• PPNS, 2x1 call sign
• * prefix can be letter-letter, letter-digit, or digit-letter. A call sign composed of a letter, two digits, and one-letter is always a 2x1 call sign, meaning it has a letter-digit prefix and a single-letter suffix.
• * for all letter-digit-digit-letter callsigns, if the first character is other than B, F, G, I, K, M, N, R or W then it is a 2x1 call sign
• PNSS, 1x2 call sign
• * prefix always a letter, suffix almost always two letters to avoid confusion with 2x1 call signs.
• * As a precaution, the ITU has issued no prefixes in the B, F, G, I, K, M, N, R or W block ranges with letter-number possibilities, meaning that the first digit would have to be the separating numeral anyway.
• * for all letter-digit-digit-letter callsigns, if the first character is B, F, G, I, K, M, N, R or W then it is a 1x2 call sign
• PNSSS, 1x3 call sign
• * these have the same precautions as 1x2 call signs to prevent confusion with 2x2 format
• PPNSS, 2x2 call sign
• * these have the same precautions as 2x1 call signs to prevent confusion with 1x3 format
• * confusion might seem to arise with letter-digit-digit-digit-letter call signs, however in that case the second digit would be the numeral separator. '
• PPNSSS, 2x3 call sign
• * by far the most common format
• PPNSSSS, 2x4 call sign, or more
• * four-character suffix assigned by some countries, or 5 or more characters for special events. In New Zealand the first character of the SSSS suffix is sometimes a digit for special events
• PPPNSS or PPPNSSS, 3x2, 3x3 or more
• * assigned when two characters of the prefix are not enough to distinguish jurisdiction

  Suffix assignment

Call signs with more than one digit

Exclusions

Secondary prefix or suffix types

Callsigns within a country

General issuing practices

Allocation options within a country

• The most common suffix has three characters. The ITU requires only that the last suffix-character be a letter, although with XE21 Mexico broke this rule in 1995, as did Spain in 2014 when it issued EF6 to commemorate the ascension to the throne of King Felipe VI, and Canada in 2017 with VX7150 to commemorate its 150th anniversary. In practice except for the U.S. suffixes are frequently composed of two or three letters. Australia requires its Foundation Class of operators to have a four-letter suffix. Portugal uses four-character suffixes for repeater stations. Long ones have also been used for commemorative events, such as Canada's VE9COAL.
• Most countries select permanent or renewable calls from a narrow, specific range of possible assigned prefix alternatives. For instance The Philippines is allocated the DUZ–DZZ and 4DA–4IZ blocks 12 possible two-character prefixes in all but almost all Philippine amateur callsigns are issued with the DU prefix.
• Some countries add or reserve an allowable second-character letter to the prefix to indicate the internal region of the operator.
• Some countries reserve their separating numeral to indicate the internal region in which the individual operator resides. Callsigns may also indicate where within a country a person is operating; thus a VE3 operator would add "/VE4" to the callsign when transmitting from Manitoba.
• Some countries reserve the first letter of the suffix to indicate the internal region in which the individual operator resides.
• Some countries issue call signs meant for use in Antarctica.
• Canada is the only jurisdiction which issues a call sign prefix for use in International Waters VE0, although Panama has allowed "HP/" without a district number to be temporarily used by persons on cruise ships registered in that country.
• Some countries reserve allowable prefixes to indicate the operating class of the amateur.
• Some countries limit 2- or 1-letter suffixes to operators with advanced privileges. As noted above, beginning in 1977 this was generally the practice in the United States, and many operators holding the highest class license took 2x1 or 1x2 calls.
• Some countries reserve allowable prefixes for foreigners licensed in their jurisdiction.
• Malta reserves the 9H5 prefix for VHF-use and up.
• Some countries reserve amateur radio prefixes for shortwave listeners.
• Belarus reserves some of its prefixes for WWII veterans.
• Belarus reserves suffixes YAA–YZZ for female operators.

  Rare ITU prefixes/DXCC Entities

• North Korea The ITU-issued P5 prefix is rare, as North Korea does not issue amateur call signs to its citizens, and very rarely to foreign nationals.
• Yemen The ITU-issued 7O prefix is rare as Yemen does not issue amateur call signs to its citizens, and rarely to foreign nationals.
• Eritrea E3 prefix.
• Myanmar XZ prefix.
• Bangladesh S2 prefix.
• Iran EP prefix.
• Nauru C2 prefix, an island nation in Micronesia in the South Pacific.
• Equatorial Guinea 3C prefix.
• Somalia T5 prefix.
• Nepal 9N prefix.
• Bhutan A5 prefix.

• Bouvet Island 3Y/B, uninhabited Antarctic volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean, Norwegian dependency.
• Navassa Island KP1, uninhabited island in the Caribbean Sea, claimed as an unorganized unincorporated territory of the United States, Haiti also claims the island
• Prince Edward Islands ZS8, Antarctic islands of South Africa. The only human inhabitants of the islands are the staff of a meteorological and biological research station run by the South African National Antarctic Programme on Marion Island.
• Heard Island or Macquarie Island VK0, Australian possession, among the most remote places on Earth between Australia and South Africa, but closer to Antarctica.
• Île Saint-Paul FT5Z, part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the Indian Ocean.
• Timor 4W prefix, belonging to the state of East Timor.

  Prefix reassignment

• the block range VRA–VRZ was reassigned to China from Britain in 1999 following the end of the UK's lease over the territory.
• VTA–VZZ once was a range meant for use in the British Empire now VTA–VWZ is assigned to India, VXA–VYZ to Canada, and VZA–VZZ to Australia. Because of the influence of Great Britain throughout the Mediterranean, Middle East and Pacific regions, there have been many call sign adjustments since WWII.
• In 1947 the Soviet Union was assigned the whole U-block. Upon the USSR's break-up in 1991 the block was reassigned UAA–UIZ, UJA–UMZ, UNA–UQZ, and URA–UZZ.
• prefix 8Z used to be used for the Iraq/Saudi Neutral Zone and the Kuwait/Saudi Neutral Zone, both of which no longer exist so the prefixes were withdrawn.
• San Marino dropped prefix 9A and M1 and was assigned T7.
• Sikkim used to use AC3 but when the country became a state of India in 1975 it adopted VU.
• East Timor under Portugal used CR8 or CR10; when part of Indonesia had the prefix YB9; and, as noted above, as the independent state of Timor-Leste has the prefix 4W. 4W was formerly allocated to the Yemen Arab Republic before its 1990 merger with the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen to form the Republic of Yemen.
• The Canal Zone in Panama used NY1, NY2, K4 or KZ5 when it was a territory of the United States, but now uses a Panama prefix based on HO or HP.
• US Military personnel in Greenland used to use prefix KG1 and XP1, but now use OX.
• Americans at Guantánamo Bay Naval Base used to use prefix NY4, now use KG4, followed by a two letter suffix
• For various nations the Amateur radio call signs of Antarctica are frequently differentiated from those used in their parent countries. For example, American stations in Antarctica are assigned the prefix KC4, and suffix blocks of three letters beginning with "A" or "U".
• The Territory of New Guinea used to use VK9 and now uses P2.
• British Honduras used to use VP1 and now uses V3 as Belize.
• VX9 used to designate both Sable Island and St. Paul Island in Canada.
• YZA–YZZ and 4N–4O used to belong to Yugoslavia before its break-up in 1992, Serbia is now YT–YU and other successor countries have their own prefixes.
• Canada inherited the Dominion of Newfoundland VO prefix on April 1, 1949, when Newfoundland and Labrador joined Canada. The Canadian government continues to assign VO1 and VO2 to Newfoundland and Labrador.
• After their annexation in 1940 the Soviet Union inherited the respective prefixes of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, LY, YL, and ES. Following their independence fifty years later these countries resumed these calls.

  Call signs used in unassigned ITU block ranges

• 1A is used by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, a Roman Catholic order based in Rome, Italy. This entity is recognized by ARRL for the DXCC program.
• 1B is used by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a de facto country recognized internationally only by Turkey.
• 1C and 1X are occasionally used by separatists in the Chechnya, a federal subject of Russia.
• 1L is being issued by Liberland Amateur Radio Association and is referred to as temporary prefix of Liberland.
• 1S is sometimes used on the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, as the islands are the subject of international dispute over ownership. Without taking a position on the claims involved, this entity is recognized by ARRL for the DXCC program, although prefixes from claimant nations are often used instead.
• 1Z has been used in Kawthoolei, an unrecognized breakaway region of Myanmar.
• D0 and 1C were used in 2014, allegedly from the unrecognized Donetsk People's Republic. D1 has also been used on occasion.
• O19 was used in 2015 by an operator showing a license from unrecognized South Ossetia.
• S0 is a prefix used in the Western Sahara note that the unofficial issuer has used 0 as a prefix-character contrary to ITU practice. Without taking a position on the claims involved, this entity is recognized by ARRL for the DXCC program.
• S1A is used by the Principality of Sealand six miles off the eastern shores of Britain.
• T1 has appeared as a callsign from Transnistria, a breakaway region of Moldova.
• T0, as well as 0S, 1P, and T89, have occasionally been used by operators in the Principality of Seborga, an unrecognized micronation.
• Z6 was chosen by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of the Republic of Kosovo as an international prefix in September 2012. The assignment is not currently approved by the ITU.

• H5 for Bophutatswana
• S4 for Ciskei
• S8 for Transkei
• T4 and V9 for Venda

  DXCC entities and IOTA

Vanity call signs

Callbooks