Calling a toll free/freephone number from abroad
Dialing a toll free number from abroad may not work
Calls to a toll free (also known as freephone/freecall) number are paid for by the receiver of the call, making them free for you, the caller. However, when dialing such a number from another country, you (the caller) will be charged international rates. So the call is no longer free when dialed from abroad. This is the reason why some long distance carriers/toll free number owners choose to block receiving international calls and generally advise their international callers to contact them on a regular telephone number.
Calls to a toll free number are not free when dialed from abroad
If the call goes through you will incur regular (or sometimes higher) international charges. So, if the company/person you want to reach also has a regular telephone number it is better to dial the latter when calling from another country
Universal International Freephone Numbers
International Freephone Numbers are an exception to the rules above. These numbers are assigned a separate country code which is 800. Calls to these numbers are free when dialed from certain countries that have adopted this system. Not many companies have an International Freephone # due to high costs involved with subscribing to this service.
Dialing an international toll free number is the same as placing an international call to a country with country code 800. For example, dialing from the US you would enter: 011 + 800 + ???? ????.