The sheet to print
The 112 number: the sheet to keep
Six reflexes, to know before you need them. Each one carries the text it stands on.
File EU 2018/1972
This page is made to be printed: when printing, the whole screen around it disappears.
Law as verified onJuly 29, 2026
- 01
Dial 112, in any EU country
112 can be dialled free of charge from a fixed or mobile phone, wherever you are in the EU, and it puts you straight through to the police, the ambulance or the fire brigade. It is the only number valid in every country of the Union.
Section “112: the single European emergency number” · Emergencies: 112, the single European emergency number · europa.eu - 02
Expect no credit check, no card, no payment
Access to 112 is free of charge and cannot require any means of payment, even from public pay telephones. A phone with no credit is still an emergency phone.
Article 109(1) · Directive (EU) 2018/1972 (European Electronic Communications Code), Article 109, paragraph 1 · eur-lex.europa.eu - 03
Stay on the line, even without knowing where you are
Your location is made available to the emergency centre without delay after the communication is set up, from the network and from the handset where possible, free of charge. Describe what you see to sharpen the picture, and never hang up to look for a sign.
Article 109(6) · Directive (EU) 2018/1972, Article 109, paragraph 6 · eur-lex.europa.eu - 04
Do not be diverted to a “faster number”
National numbers coexist with 112 in some countries, but the text requires 112 calls to be handled at least as expeditiously and effectively. There is no slow lane for visitors.
Article 109(3) · Directive (EU) 2018/1972, Article 109, paragraph 3 · eur-lex.europa.eu - 05
Disability: equivalent access is owed, including when travelling
End-users with disabilities have access to emergency services equivalent to that of other users, including in another Member State, where feasible without any pre-registration. Check before leaving what channel the country you visit provides.
Article 109(5) · Directive (EU) 2018/1972, Article 109, paragraph 5 · eur-lex.europa.eu - 06
Missing child: dial 116 000, without waiting
The 116 000 hotline is available in all EU countries to report a missing child and get guidance and support. No waiting period appears on the official page.
Section “116 000: the hotline for missing children” · Emergencies: 116 000, the missing children hotline · europa.eu
General information on the European baseline, not legal advice on your case. Independent educational site, unconnected to the institutions of the European Union. The redress links in this file point only to official bodies.
Sources checked on July 29, 2026. · https://depleindroit.odersa.org/en/fiches/le-112-partout-en-europe · Content licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What the law owes you
Every right with its amount or its deadline, the extract of the official text it rests on, and its address.
One single emergency number for the whole Union
112
112 can be dialled free of charge, from a fixed or mobile phone, wherever you are in the EU, and it puts you straight through to the emergency services: police, ambulance and fire brigade. It is the only number that works in every EU country.
The official text · Section “112: the single European emergency number”
Your Europe · European Union · https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/security-and-emergencies/emergency/index_en.htm“112 is the European emergency number you can dial free of charge from fixed and mobile phones everywhere in the EU. It will get you straight through to the emergency services – police, ambulance, fire brigade.”
Free, with no credit and no means of payment required
Access to the emergency services through 112 is free of charge and cannot require any means of payment. The text covers even the users of public pay telephones: calling for help is never a purchase.
The official text · Article 109(1)
Official Journal of the European Union · EUR-Lex · https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:02018L1972-20241018“Member States shall ensure that all end-users of the services referred to in paragraph 2, including users of public pay telephones, are able to access the emergency services through emergency communications free of charge and without having to use any means of payment, by using the single European emergency number ‘112’ and any national emergency number specified by Member States.”
Your location travels with the call, at no cost and with no option
Caller location information is made available to the emergency centre without delay after the communication is set up, from the network and, where available, from the handset. Its establishment and transmission are free of charge for the caller.
The official text · Article 109(6)
Official Journal of the European Union · EUR-Lex · https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:02018L1972-20241018“Member States shall ensure that caller location information is made available to the most appropriate PSAP without delay after the emergency communication is set up. This shall include network-based location information and, where available, handset-derived caller location information. Member States shall ensure that the establishment and the transmission of the caller location information are free of charge for the end-user and the PSAP with regard to all emergency communications to the single European emergency number ‘112’.”
Handled at least as fast as the national number
Calls to 112 are appropriately answered, within the national organisation of the emergency services, and handled at least as expeditiously and effectively as calls to national emergency numbers where those are still in use.
The official text · Article 109(3)
Official Journal of the European Union · EUR-Lex · https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:02018L1972-20241018“Member States shall ensure that all emergency communications to the single European emergency number ‘112’ are appropriately answered and handled in the manner best suited to the national organisation of emergency systems. Such emergency communications shall be answered and handled at least as expeditiously and effectively as emergency communications to the national emergency number or numbers, where those continue to be in use.”
Equivalent access for users with disabilities
End-users with disabilities have access to emergency services equivalent to that enjoyed by other users, including while travelling in another Member State, where feasible without any pre-registration.
The official text · Article 109(5)
Official Journal of the European Union · EUR-Lex · https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:02018L1972-20241018“Member States shall ensure that access for end-users with disabilities to emergency services is available through emergency communications and is equivalent to that enjoyed by other end-users, in accordance with Union law harmonising accessibility requirements for products and services. The Commission and the national regulatory or other competent authorities shall take appropriate measures to ensure that, whilst travelling in another Member State, end-users with disabilities can access emergency services on an equivalent basis with other end-users, where feasible without any pre-registration.”
116 000 for a missing child, in every EU country
If a child goes missing, at home or elsewhere in the EU, 116 000 takes the report and provides guidance and support. In line with EU rules, the hotline is available in all EU countries.
The official text · Section “116 000: the hotline for missing children”
Your Europe · European Union · https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/security-and-emergencies/emergency/index_en.htm“If your child goes missing, either at home or in another EU country, you can call 116 000, the hotline for missing children. In line with EU rules, the 116 000 hotline is available in all EU countries. […] You can use the hotline to report a missing child; it also provides guidance and support to the families of missing children.”
This site is educational and independent: it is not an official site of the European Union, and this verdict is not legal advice on your case. The wordings quoted are copied from the official text and the official page, whose link appears under each right.
File EU 2018/1972
The items in this file
Every item has its own page. The situation is played here; what you keep, what you send and what you re-read live next door.