WhatsApp calls are blocked or heavily restricted in the UAE, Qatar, China, North Korea, Russia and Iran as of October 2026, with partial restrictions in Jordan and Egypt. In the first two, texting still works and only calls are cut. In the rest, the whole app is blocked, so calls go with it.
Calls only
- United Arab Emirates: voice and video calls blocked; texting works. The regulator says VoIP is reserved for licensed providers, so use BOTIM, Zoom or Teams.
- Qatar: calls have been unreliable or blocked since 2017 even though no law bans VoIP outright.
- Jordan and Egypt: VoIP restrictions or throttling rather than a clean block, according to a Reuters factbox.
Whole app blocked
- Russia: started blocking WhatsApp calls in August 2025, and the Moscow Times reported further restrictions that November, with a full block attempt following in February 2026.
- China, North Korea and Iran: the app itself is blocked, so calls are off too.
Countries that changed course
Several Gulf states have relaxed. Saudi Arabia lifted its ban on internet calling apps in 2017, and WhatsApp calls work there today. In Oman, users reported calls working without a VPN from December 2024, though the regulator never formally announced a change, so treat it as working but unofficial.
Before you travel
Download a licensed local calling app or set up Zoom, and ask your US carrier if its roaming routes data home, which sometimes lets calls through. Where VPNs are legal, one can help on restrictive networks, but in the UAE using one to reach blocked services can bring heavy fines.