Middle East Country Codes & International Dialing Guide
Browse country codes across the Middle East — from the Gulf states to the Levant and Eastern Mediterranean — with their international dialing prefixes, ISO 2/3 codes and primary time zones. Use the smart filters below to quickly locate the correct country code before calling business partners, family or customers in the region.
| Country / Territory | Sub-region | Calling Code | ISO 2 | ISO 3 | Main Time Zone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bahrain | Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) | +973 | BH | BHR | UTC+3 |
| Cyprus | Eastern Mediterranean | +357 | CY | CYP | UTC+2 / UTC+3 (DST) |
| Egypt | North Africa & Middle East bridge | +20 | EG | EGY | UTC+2 |
| Iran (Islamic Republic of) | Iran & Persian Gulf | +98 | IR | IRN | UTC+3:30 |
| Iraq | Mesopotamia | +964 | IQ | IRQ | UTC+3 |
| Israel | Levant | +972 | IL | ISR | UTC+2 / UTC+3 (DST) |
| Jordan | Levant | +962 | JO | JOR | UTC+2 / UTC+3 (DST) |
| Kuwait | Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) | +965 | KW | KWT | UTC+3 |
| Lebanon | Levant | +961 | LB | LBN | UTC+2 / UTC+3 (DST) |
| Oman | Arabian Peninsula (Gulf) | +968 | OM | OMN | UTC+4 |
| State of Palestine | Levant | +970 | PS | PSE | UTC+2 / UTC+3 (DST) |
| Qatar | Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) | +974 | QA | QAT | UTC+3 |
| Saudi Arabia | Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) | +966 | SA | SAU | UTC+3 |
| Syrian Arab Republic | Levant | +963 | SY | SYR | UTC+2 / UTC+3 (DST) |
| Türkiye (Turkey) | Anatolia & Eastern Mediterranean | +90 | TR | TUR | UTC+3 |
| United Arab Emirates | Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) | +971 | AE | ARE | UTC+4 |
| Yemen | Arabian Peninsula | +967 | YE | YEM | UTC+3 |
Middle East region overview
The Middle East sits at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa, linking major trade routes, aviation hubs and energy corridors. The region includes advanced telecom markets such as the Gulf states and Israel, as well as large population centers in Egypt, Turkey and Iran.
Every Middle Eastern country has its own international country code – for example +971 for the United Arab Emirates, +966 for Saudi Arabia, +20 for Egypt and +90 for Türkiye. Number formats, mobile prefixes and trunk codes differ from market to market, so accurate reference data is essential for call centers, roaming platforms and CRM systems.
By centralizing country codes, ISO codes and time-zone information, CountryCode.online helps you reduce mis-dialling, respect local working hours and design communication flows that match the business culture of each Middle Eastern market.
Practical Middle East sub-regions for telecom planning
For routing, regulatory compliance and language support, it is often helpful to divide the Middle East into a few practical sub-regions.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
Bahrain · Kuwait · Oman · Qatar · Saudi Arabia · UAEThe GCC forms a tightly connected sub-region with high mobile penetration, strong roaming traffic and modern telecom infrastructure. Many multinational companies base their regional headquarters in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh or Doha, and expect reliable voice, SMS and data connectivity.
All GCC states use Arabic as an official language and share similar working weeks and time zones around UTC+3/UTC+4.
Levant & Eastern Mediterranean
Cyprus · Israel · Jordan · Lebanon · State of Palestine · SyriaThe Levant and Eastern Mediterranean combine coastal hubs and inland cities, with a mix of Arabic, Hebrew, Greek and other languages. Telecom routes here support tourism, logistics, financial services and regional technology ecosystems.
Time zones cluster around UTC+2 with daylight saving in many markets. Weekend patterns and public holidays can differ from the GCC, which is relevant for large outbound campaigns.
Iran, Iraq & neighboring hubs
Iran · Iraq · TürkiyeIran, Iraq and Türkiye form a strategic corridor between the Middle East, the Caucasus and Europe. These markets host large domestic populations, important industrial bases and major logistics routes including pipelines, highways and air corridors.
Time zones range from UTC+3:30 in Iran to UTC+3 in Iraq and Türkiye. Numbering plans and regulatory rules are distinct and should be handled with dedicated routing and compliance policies.
North Africa & Southern Peninsula
Egypt · YemenEgypt and Yemen link the Middle East to North and East Africa and the Red Sea. Egypt is a major hub for undersea cables and international voice traffic, while Yemen’s numbering plan mainly supports domestic communication, humanitarian operations and diaspora links.
Both countries operate near UTC+2/UTC+3. For sensitive operations, especially in fragile contexts, it is important to verify current routing availability and security advisories.
Time zones across the Middle East
Compared with regions like Asia or the Americas, the Middle East spans a relatively narrow band of time zones, typically between UTC+2 and UTC+4, with Iran using a half-hour offset. This simplifies regional scheduling, but you still need to be aware of local daylight saving and weekend patterns.
Representative Middle East time zones
| Zone | UTC offset | Example destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Mediterranean | UTC+2 / UTC+3 | Cyprus, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Egypt | Many of these markets observe daylight saving; check current rules before scheduling. |
| Arabian Standard Time | UTC+3 | Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, Yemen | A common reference zone for pan-GCC and wider Middle East operations. |
| Gulf Standard Time | UTC+4 | United Arab Emirates, Oman | Popular hosting location for regional cloud and data center services. |
| Iran Standard Time | UTC+3:30 | Iran (Islamic Republic of) | Half-hour offset; important to handle correctly in APIs and contact-center systems. |
Weekend days (Friday–Saturday or Saturday–Sunday) can vary by country. Consider local weekends and religious holidays when planning outbound campaigns or live support coverage.
Suggested calling windows into the Middle East
The best time to call depends on your own location and the specific cluster (GCC, Levant, etc.) you are targeting. The suggestions below assume standard office hours (roughly 09:00–17:00 local time).
- From Europe: Late morning to early afternoon in central Europe (10:00–15:00 CET/CEST) typically overlaps with the working day across most of the Middle East, including GCC and Levant markets.
- From North America: For US and Canadian East Coast teams, early morning (around 06:00–09:00 EST/EDT) reaches late business hours in the Gulf and Levant. West Coast teams may need earlier slots or asynchronous channels such as email/SMS.
- Within Asia: Businesses in South Asia or East Asia can connect conveniently with the Middle East using mid-morning to mid-afternoon, thanks to relatively small time differences (from UTC+2 to UTC+4).
- Ramadan & local holidays: Many countries adjust working hours during Ramadan and on religious/public holidays. For high-value engagements, confirm local business hours with your counterpart.
Dialing patterns & example calls into the Middle East
Middle Eastern numbering plans generally follow the standard international structure, but trunk prefixes, area codes and mobile ranges differ across markets. The generic pattern is:
Generic dialing format
Example: calling a landline in Dubai (United Arab Emirates) from Germany: 00 971 4 xxx xxxx – where 00 is Germany’s exit code, 971 is the UAE’s country code and 4 is the area code for Dubai.
Trunk prefixes and mobile ranges
Many Middle Eastern countries use a trunk prefix “0” before domestic long-distance or mobile numbers (for example 05x… for mobiles in some GCC states). When dialing internationally you normally drop this leading “0” and use the full country code instead. Mobile ranges are often grouped (for example 5xx in Saudi Arabia, 5x in the UAE, 5x in Jordan), and fixed lines have geographic area codes.
United States → Saudi Arabia (mobile)
011 966 5x xxx xxxx
011 (US exit code) + 966 (Saudi Arabia) + mobile prefix (5x) + subscriber number. Exact digits depend on the mobile operator and plan.
United Kingdom → Israel (landline)
00 972 3 xxx xxxx
00 (UK exit code) + 972 (Israel) + area code (for example 3 for Tel Aviv area) + local number. Different cities use different area codes (2, 4, 8, etc.).
France → United Arab Emirates (mobile)
00 971 5x xxx xxxx
00 (France exit code) + 971 (UAE) + mobile prefix (50, 52, 54, etc.) + subscriber number. Mobile prefixes indicate the operator (Etisalat, du and others).
FAQ: Calling Middle Eastern countries
Is there a single regional country code for the Middle East? +
No. Every Middle Eastern country has its own international country code, such as +966 for Saudi Arabia, +971 for the UAE, +20 for Egypt or +98 for Iran. There is no shared regional code equivalent to the North American +1 system.
How should I store Middle East phone numbers in my CRM? +
Use full international format starting with “+”, followed by the country code, area or mobile prefix and the subscriber number. Example: +971 50 xxx xxxx (UAE mobile) or +962 6 xxx xxxx (Amman, Jordan). Avoid storing numbers with only local formats (like “050…”) if you work with international contacts.
Do all Middle Eastern countries use the same weekend days? +
No. Many countries use Friday–Saturday or Saturday–Sunday as their weekend, and some have recently adjusted their official weekend to align better with global markets. When planning outbound campaigns or live support, it is best to check the current working-week model and public holidays for each country.
Why are some Middle Eastern numbers written with Arabic digits? +
In Arabic-speaking countries, local publications may show phone numbers using Eastern Arabic numerals (٠١٢٣٤٥٦٧٨٩). When dialing internationally, you can convert them into Western digits (0–9) and use the same country codes and formats. For example, a number printed as “٠٥٠…” in Arabic typically corresponds to “050…” in Western digits.
Where can I find more detailed rules (emergency numbers, trunk prefixes, etc.)? +
Each destination listed in the table has its own page on CountryCode.online with example numbers, emergency services, trunk prefixes, mobile ranges and time-zone information. Use the Countries directory or search on the homepage to jump to specific pages such as Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates or Egypt.
Need all Middle East country codes in one file?
Export the full Middle East list (country, dialing code, ISO codes) as CSV or Excel and import it to your CRM, dialer or marketing automation platform.