How to Cancel a Line on Verizon: Fees, Returns, and Porting

To cancel a line on Verizon, sign into My Verizon and start a chat by typing “Cancel,” or call 800-922-0204 (611 from a Verizon handset) and ask to disconnect service. The call itself is quick. The money part is not: canceling makes any remaining device payment due on your next bill, ends the monthly promotional credits that were offsetting that device, and still charges you through the end of the current billing cycle because Verizon does not prorate.

Check Three Things Before You Call

Pull up your account first. You need your Account PIN, your device payoff amount, and confirmation of whether any old contract still governs the line.

The Account PIN is a four-digit numeric code Verizon uses to verify identity on account changes. It is not your phone’s lock screen passcode. View or reset it in the security settings of My Verizon. Only the Account Owner can create or change it.¹

If you are still paying off a phone through a Device Payment Agreement, the remaining balance becomes due on your next bill when you cancel the line.² The exact figure sits in the billing section of My Verizon, labeled “Device Buyout” or “Payoff Amount.” A phone that retailed near $1,000 with twelve monthly payments left runs roughly $336 to clear. That number catches people off guard, especially when promotional credits have been hiding the real monthly cost.

Most Verizon customers are month-to-month at this point, but if you signed a two-year contract before Verizon phased them out, early termination fees could still apply. Legacy ETFs ran between $165 and $350 depending on the device and months remaining.³ Check the Documents section of My Verizon. If nothing contract-related appears there, you are almost certainly on month-to-month with no ETF exposure.

How to Cancel: Chat or Phone

Verizon’s support page directs customers to sign into My Verizon, select “Chat with us,” type “Cancel” into the question box, and follow the prompts to disconnect a line or connect with a live agent.⁴

To cancel by phone, dial 800-922-0204 or 611 from your Verizon handset and say “cancel a line” or “disconnect service” when prompted. You will be routed to a retention specialist who will likely offer discounted plans before processing the request, so expect a pitch. Account and billing phone support runs Monday through Friday 8 AM to 7 PM ET and Saturday 8 AM to 5 PM ET, with the line closed Sunday.

Either way, you need the Account Owner’s name, the phone number on the line, and the Account PIN.⁴ Get a confirmation number before you hang up or close the chat window. Write it down or screenshot it. If a charge later appears that should not be there, that number is your leverage.

Switching Carriers? Port the Number First

If you are leaving for another carrier, do not cancel the Verizon line yourself. Porting the number to the new carrier automatically closes the line. Cancel first and you lose the number permanently.

Porting requires a Number Transfer PIN. Generate one in the Number Transfer PIN section of My Verizon, or dial *#PORT# from the phone you are moving and Verizon will send you a link to create the PIN. It stays valid for seven days, so wait until your new carrier is ready. If Number Lock is on, turn it off first.⁵

Once the port completes, Verizon suspends the line until the billing cycle ends, then removes it from the account. No separate cancellation call is needed. One warning: connected devices paired with the ported line, such as a smartwatch or tablet, stay active and keep billing. Disconnect those individually if you no longer want them.

What Happens to Your Promotional Credits

This is where cancellation gets expensive in ways people do not anticipate. Monthly promotional credits from trade-in deals, buy-one-get-one offers, or loyalty discounts stop the moment the line is disconnected. The remaining device balance, now with nothing offsetting it, becomes due in full.⁴

A trade-in worth $800 spread over 36 months pays out roughly $22.22 a month, and only while the line stays active. Cancel at month 18 and you still owe about $400 on the phone, but the $400 in credits that would have covered those payments disappears. The final bill shows the full device balance with no offset. BOGO deals work the same way: the “free” phone was financed and covered by monthly credits tied to keeping the line active.

Paying the device off early triggers the same result. Once the payment agreement is satisfied, Verizon has no mechanism to keep issuing the credits, so the rest of the promotional value evaporates. If you are a few months from the end of a credit period, waiting it out almost always saves money.

Final Bill, Timing, and Equipment Returns

Verizon does not prorate your final month. Cancel on day five of your cycle and you still pay for the full cycle. The Customer Agreement makes you responsible for all fees through the end of the billing period in which you cancel.⁶ The practical move: cancel as close to the end of your cycle as you can.

Your final bill arrives during the next regular billing cycle and covers any outstanding device balance, the remaining monthly service charge, and applicable fees. Once the account is fully closed, My Verizon access may be restricted, so download anything you need beforehand.

Home Internet Equipment

If you have Verizon Home Internet (5G or LTE), the router and any extenders are Verizon’s property and must be returned within 30 days of disconnection. Unreturned equipment fees are steep:⁷

Internet gateways: up to $300 per unit
5G receivers: $300
Routers: $200
Wi-Fi extenders: $175

Verizon prefers you drop equipment at a participating UPS Store. No return label or QR code needed; the associate scans the serial numbers, packages the gear, and ships it at no cost. A Verizon Company Store also works, but authorized retailers do not. Make sure the line is fully disconnected before you return the hardware, and keep the receipt as proof if Verizon later claims the equipment never arrived.

Perks and Verizon Cloud

Add-on perks bundled through your plan, such as Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, Apple Music, or Netflix, stay active through the end of the current billing cycle and then stop. No partial refund. If you want to keep any of them, sign up directly with the provider before Verizon access ends.

Verizon Cloud content is archived for 30 days after the associated line is disconnected, then permanently deleted.⁸ Download photos, contacts, and other files before you cancel or inside that 30-day window.

Military Deployment and Deceased Account Holders

Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, active-duty military members can cancel a wireless contract without an early termination fee if they receive orders to relocate for at least 90 days to a location the contract does not support. The contract must have been signed before the relocation orders were issued.⁹

Give Verizon written or electronic notice of termination along with a copy of your orders and the date you want service to end. Verizon cannot charge an ETF but can collect any unpaid balance already due, and must refund fees paid in advance within 60 days of termination, minus the rest of the billing period in which you canceled. If the relocation is three years or shorter, you can reclaim your original number by resubscribing within 90 days of returning. Family members accompanying the service member to the new location can terminate their lines under the same protection.⁹

When someone on the account passes away, disconnect their line by calling Verizon or visiting a Verizon Company Store. Have the Account Owner’s name, the mobile number, and the Account PIN ready. If you are not the Account Owner, bring a death certificate or executor paperwork for verification. In some cases Verizon will ask you to upload the death certificate through an online form.¹⁰

1
Verizon. Verizon Mobile Account PIN FAQs
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Verizon Support. Device Payment Agreement FAQs
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Verizon Wireless. Verizon Wireless Customer Agreement
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Verizon. How to Disconnect a Mobile Line or Close Your Mobile Phone Account FAQs
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Verizon Support. Move Your Mobile Number to Another Carrier FAQs
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Verizon. Verizon Mobile Customer Agreement
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Verizon. Verizon Home Internet (Wireless) Equipment Return FAQs
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Verizon. Manage Verizon Cloud as a Non-Verizon Customer
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3956 – Termination of Certain Consumer Contracts
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Verizon Support. What to Do When Someone on Your Mobile Account Passes Away