The need-to-know of NBN cut-off dates in your suburb

The NBN cut-off date for phone and internet services varies suburb to suburb. If you’re already connected to the NBN, there’s no easy way to find your cut-off date, but nor do you have to worry about the NBN cut-off date. If you’re not connected to the NBN and your home is ready to connect, the best way to check your cut-off date is inputting your address on the NBN website, clicking ‘Check residential’ or ‘Check business’, then scrolling down to the ‘Disconnection information’ section to view your NBN cut-off date.

The rollout of the NBN is pretty much done and dusted, which is why the focus is now on upgrading the network. If you already have NBN, you can see a round-up of our best NBN plans here. If you’re not connected to the NBN and are still using traditional copper-based phone and internet services, you’ll be impacted by the NBN cut-off date that’s specific to your area, unless you’re in an area serviced by NBN Fixed Wireless or NBN satellite internet.

Here’s everything you need to know about NBN cut-off dates.

Homes and businesses are able to connect to the NBN after their suburb has been connected. You should receive a letter and/or an email letting you know you’re ready to connect. Approximately 18 months after a suburb is connected to the NBN, though, the traditional copper-based network is usually disconnected.

This means that landline phone and copper-based internet services like ADSL2+ will no longer function. If you want to continue to use a landline phone or internet, you’ll either need to reach out to reach out to your current or a new NBN provider to sign up for a plan, or use another form of internet.

NBN Standard is a popular kind of connection, which offers download speeds of up to 50Mbps and upload speeds of up to 20Mbps. Here’s a look at some of the most popular NBN Standard plans.

NBN Fast is a great choice for those who do a little more streaming, gaming and downloading than the usual household. It offers download speeds of up to 100Mbps and upload speeds of up to 20Mbps (or 40Mbps, depending on your chosen plan). Here’s a look at some of the most popular NBN 100 plans.

Here’s a list of everything that will be turned off, according to NBN.

• Telstra Home/landline phone services (except for some Telstra Velocity lines)
• Home and landline phone services from other telcos that offer landline services via Telstra’s copper phone lines
• All ADSL, ADSL2 and ADSL2+ internet services (from all providers)
• Telstra BigPond cable internet services
• Optus cable internet services and cable phone services

Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer for when the NBN will be cut off in your suburb. If you’re already connected to the NBN, you don’t have to worry about this. If you’re not connected to the NBN, your existing home phone and internet services will likely be impacted. There is a relatively straightforward way to check your suburb’s NBN cut-off date, though:

• Step 1: Visit the NBN website.
• Step 2: Type your address in the search bar, then click on ‘Check residential’ or ‘Check business’.
• Step 3: If the results page indicates your address is ready to connect, scroll down to ‘Disconnect information’.
• Step 4: This section lists an anticipated month and year for disconnection.
• Step 5: Plan your phone and internet needs before the cut-off date.

It doesn’t matter which provider you’re currently with or one you want to shift to for the NBN. If, for instance, you’re with Telstra, your suburb’s NBN cut-off date will be the same if you’re with Optus or any other NBN provider.

Not all suburbs have NBN cut-off dates. For instance, those areas serviced by Fixed Wireless or NBN satellite internet don’t have to worry about being disconnected from the existing phone and internet services.

Similarly, certain areas that are serviced by alternative fibre providers will not have internet services disconnected, but landline phone lines likely will be disconnected, and people in these areas can use these alternative fibre providers instead of the NBN. There’s a list of alternative fibre providers and suburb availability on this NBN page, but note that even if your postcode is listed, it may not mean the service is available to your premises.

If you want home internet or a landline phone service, you need to switch to the NBN prior to your suburb’s switch-off date. For those homes that no longer use a landline phone, though, you can always tether off mobile internet if your data needs aren’t great or make use of Home Wireless Broadband.

Mobile data plans tend to be data-capped and may be slower than an NBN connection, unless you’re using 5G. Plus, tethering from a mobile phone isn’t the most viable alternative for home use. If you’d like to give it a shot anyway, here’s a look at 10 SIM Only plans with a fair chunk of monthly data.

Compared to Home Wireless Broadband, NBN plans have the potential to be faster, more reliable, and cheaper, plus there’s a better chance of dealing with no-contract and unlimited-data options.

Here’s a look at some of the most popular Home Wireless Broadband plans.

It’s important to remember that switching to the NBN isn’t an automatic process. Pick a plan from a provider you want to be with and get in touch with them to organise connection to the NBN. Your provider will tell you everything you need to know about the connection process, and what equipment is required to get you online. You will, for instance, need a modem and a router or a modem-router to get your home online, but all of the NBN equipment will already be installed, either externally or by appointment inside your home (if your area is connected). If you’re already connected to the NBN and want to switch providers, have a look at our guide on how easy that is.

Check out 10 of the most popular NBN plans across different speeds below.