Forward the office phone tonight. Then decide who answers.

The shop phone rings at 7:40 pm and nobody's there. You want it ringing somewhere someone will pick up, and back to normal in the morning.

The short answer

On Bell, Rogers and Telus office and home lines, dial *72 and the number to forward every call, and *73 to stop¹²³.

Rogers, TELUS and Bell's home lines want the other phone answered²³⁴.
It has to be held about five seconds before the forward takes²³⁴.
Forwarding to a long-distance number is charged to your line²³.
The codes are the easy part; the decision is who picks up.

The codes, carrier by carrier

Read on each carrier's own help page, 27 October 2026. A dash means the page we read doesn't cover it.
Line	Every call	Off	Only when nobody answers	Only when busy
Bell Business (Local Link)¹	*72 + number, wait for two beeps¹	*73¹	92 + number, after 4 rings; 93 off¹	90, then the number; 91 off¹
Rogers Home Phone²	*72 + 10-digit number; answer and hold 5 seconds²	*73²	—	—
Rogers mobile⁵	21number#⁵	##21#⁵	61number#; ##61# off⁵	67number#; ##67# off⁵
TELUS Office Phone³	*72 or #72 + number; answer and hold 5 to 10 seconds³	*73 or #73³	92 on, 93 off, to a number TELUS sets up³	90 on, 91 off, to a number TELUS sets up³

Bell's business page was last updated in October 2014, and it's still the page Bell publishes¹.

The detail

If *72 gives you a busy signal, the line may already be forwarded: dial *73 and start again, or try 1172⁶. On TELUS, a forward to a fixed number can only be changed by calling TELUS³.

What your customer hears

With no-answer forwarding, a few rings first: 4 on Bell's business line¹.
The detail
On TELUS it's anywhere from 2 to 9, set with *94³.
On a Rogers home line, only one call forwards at a time. A second caller gets a busy signal².
On Rogers, your own desk phone rings briefly on each forwarded call to remind you forwarding is on².
The detail
You can't answer it there².
If nobody answers the phone you forwarded to, the caller ends up wherever that phone sends missed calls.
The detail
That's usually its own voicemail and its own greeting.

The voicemail catch

Forwarding and voicemail compete for the same missed call.

The detail

On a Rogers mobile, forwarding only when busy or unanswered won't work while voicemail is on⁵. On a Rogers home line, while calls are forwarded your voicemail takes no messages². Bell's busy-line forwarding works only on Local Link without voicemail, or with its programmable voicemail¹. Before you rely on it, call your own number from another phone and listen to what happens.

Voicemail, a person, or an agent

Voicemail, if most evening calls can wait until morning.
Leave the line alone and record a greeting that says when you'll call back.
The detail
Then call back when you said you would.
A person, if a missed call means a lost job or a flooded basement.
Forward to whoever is on call: your cell, a crew lead's, or an answering service.
The detail
Agree in advance who carries the phone each night.
An agent, if the calls are mostly the same few questions.
Software that answers routine questions in your name, with a person behind it for the rest.
The detail
What ours handles, and on which channels, is on the Otto page.

Before you dial *72 tonight

Test it from another phone
Call the office line once forwarding is on and make sure it rings where you think it does.
Check what it costs
Bell, Rogers and TELUS all charge long distance when the forward goes out of your calling area⁴²³.
The detail
On Bell, collect calls are billed to your line, not the one you forwarded to⁴. Rogers home lines forward only to Canadian and US numbers².
Write down the off code
Tape the off code by the phone, or put it on the morning opener's checklist.
The detail
That way the office line comes back in the morning.

All answers

Sources

How to use call forwarding (Bell Business Phone support), Bell Business. Read 2026-10-27.
How to use Call Forwarding on Rogers Home Phone, Rogers. Read 2026-10-27.
Call Forward on your Office Phone, TELUS Business. Read 2026-10-27.
How to use Call Forwarding on my Bell Home phone, Bell. Read 2026-10-27.
How to use wireless/mobile Call Forwarding, Rogers. Read 2026-10-27.
I'm having problems with Call Forwarding, Bell Business. Read 2026-10-27.

Checked on 2026-10-27.