Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS): The Types, How a Relay Call Works, and Why Not to Hang Up

By Web Asset House Studio · October 29, 2026

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How we wrote this: A plain-English summary of the FCC's consumer guides on Telecommunications Relay Service and 711, checked October 29, 2026.

Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) lets people with hearing or speech disabilities place and receive phone calls. A trained communications assistant (CA) relays the conversation. TRS is available in all 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. territories, and is paid for by state or federal funds, not by callers.

The main types

Type	How it works
TTY-based (text-to-voice)	The user types on a TTY. The CA speaks it to the other person and types back the replies
Voice Carry Over / Hearing Carry Over	Speak in your own voice and read replies (VCO), or listen and type your side (HCO)
Speech-to-Speech (STS)	A CA trained to understand speech disabilities repeats the caller's words clearly. No special phone is needed
Captioned telephone (CTS)	A phone with a screen shows captions of what the other person says
IP Captioned Telephone (IP CTS)	Captions delivered over the internet
IP Relay	Text relay over the internet from a computer or other device
Video Relay (VRS)	The user signs in American Sign Language over video, and the CA voices the call

There's also Spanish-to-Spanish relay for interstate calls.

Standards the FCC sets

CAs stay on a call at least 10 minutes (20 for STS) before handing off.
Most forms run 24/7. Providers must answer 85% of calls within 10 seconds (VRS has its own rules).
Calls are relayed in real time and word for word unless the user asks for a summary. CAs can't alter or disclose a conversation, and generally can't keep records of what was said.
Most forms must be able to handle 911 calls.

For businesses: don't hang up

The FCC notes that some people hang up on relay calls because they think the CA is a telemarketer. If you hear "Hello, this is the relay service…", stay on the line. A customer with a hearing or speech disability is calling you through a relay provider. Train whoever answers your phones (see after-hours calls).

Dialing 711

Dial 711 from any phone to reach a TTY-based relay center, without remembering state numbers. 711 doesn't work for VRS, IP Relay, CTS or IP CTS. For those, call the user's number directly. See 711 on business phone systems.