Area Code 1542 – Choir, Govisumber

Geographic Overview

The 1542 area code is a geographic National Destination Code (NDC) assigned to Choir, the capital of Govisumber Province (aimag) in Mongolia. Choir serves as the administrative and economic hub of Govisumber, located approximately 230 kilometers southeast of Ulaanbaatar. The code covers the city itself and its immediate surrounding rural districts, including the sum centers of Bayantal, Shiveegovi, and Sumber. This numbering area is part of Mongolia's closed numbering plan, where the full national significant number (NSN) includes the area code and the subscriber number.

Dialing Formats

For local callers within Mongolia, dial the area code followed by the subscriber number: 1542 XXX XX (where X represents digits). For example, a local call to a subscriber number 12345 would be dialed as 1542 12345. For international callers, dial the Mongolian country code +976, then the area code without the leading '0', followed by the subscriber number: +976 1542 12345. Note that Mongolia uses a trunk prefix '0' for domestic long-distance calls, but this is omitted when dialing from abroad.

Numbering and Allocation

Subscriber numbers within the 1542 area code typically consist of 5 to 6 digits, resulting in a total NSN length of 8 to 9 digits (including the area code). The Communications Regulatory Commission of Mongolia (CRC) manages the allocation of these numbers to local fixed-line operators, primarily InfoCon and other licensed PSTN providers. As a geographic code, the number is tied to a physical location, and calls are routed via traditional circuit-switched networks or VoIP gateways that respect geographic routing.

Caller Instructions

For callers within Mongolia: To call Choir from another province or from Ulaanbaatar, dial 0 1542 followed by the subscriber number. For example, from Ulaanbaatar, dial 0 1542 12345. For callers outside Mongolia: Dial your international access prefix (e.g., 00 from most countries), then 976 1542 followed by the subscriber number. For instance, from the United States, dial 011 976 1542 12345. If you are physically in Choir, local calls may be made using only the subscriber number, depending on the operator's dialing plan, but the use of the full NSN is always safe.

Overlays and Future Considerations

Currently, there are no overlay codes in the Govisumber region, meaning 1542 is the sole area code for Choir. However, as Mongolia expands its telecommunications infrastructure, the CRC may introduce additional codes or migrate to a more flexible numbering scheme. For the time being, the 1542 code remains essential for routing calls to this growing regional center, which hosts the Choir Air Base and serves as a key logistics point on the Trans-Mongolian Railway.