# Forward Incoming Calls to an External Number via IVR

An **Interactive Voice Response (IVR)** menu (the automated "press 1 for sales" system) can route a caller to a phone number outside your system rather than to an internal extension or other in-system destination. This is useful whenever a call needs to reach a line that lives beyond Cloud Voice, and it matters most for services that must answer around the clock.

Two common examples:

- **Answering services.** A medical practice can let patients press a key from the main menu to reach an after-hours answering service, where they can book an appointment or ask a nurse a health question.
- **After-hours support.** An office menu can offer an emergency option that connects callers straight to an engineer's mobile phone when the team is unavailable.

## Before you begin

The caller needs to know which key to press, so update the IVR greeting to announce the option before you wire it up. See [Set Up IVR Prompts](/pbx/administrator-guide/set-up-ivr-prompts/) for how to record or upload the prompt.

:::note
The prompt and the key press event are set separately. If you skip updating the greeting, the forwarding key will still work, but callers will not know it exists because nothing tells them to press it.
:::

## Configure the key press event

1. Sign in to the Cloud Voice management portal and go to **Call Features > IVR**, then open the IVR you want to change.
2. From the **Prompt** drop-down list, choose the greeting you updated with the new option.
3. Open the **Key Press Event** tab.
4. Pick the key you want to use and set its event to **External Number**.
5. Optional: In the **Prefix** field, add the [outbound route prefix](/pbx/administrator-guide/outbound-dial-pattern/#topic_p2b_hfg_2mb__section_gwj_bjc_fmb) that lets the system match and send the call out.
   - Leave **Prefix** empty if the outbound route has no **Strip** value set.
   - If the outbound route uses a **Strip** value, set **Prefix** to match the route's **Patterns**.
6. Enter the destination number, such as the answering service line or a mobile number.
7. Click **Save**, then **Apply**.

:::note
The **External Number** event sends the caller out through one of your outbound routes to a number outside Cloud Voice (a mobile, a landline, or another company's line), instead of ringing an internal extension, ring group, or voicemail.
:::

:::caution
The **Prefix** you enter must line up with the chosen outbound route, or the call will fail to connect. A route's **Strip** setting drops leading digits before dialing; when it does, add those digits back in **Prefix** so the number the system actually dials still matches the route's **Patterns**. If they do not match, the caller hears a failure instead of reaching the external number.
:::

:::tip
This pattern pairs well with time-based routing: point your after-hours condition at an IVR whose menu key forwards to an on-call number, and callers always reach someone even when the office is closed.
:::