Your remote user dials 911 in Teams, but the call routes without a registered emergency address. The dispatcher cannot identify the caller’s location, which delays help. This failure usually happens because the user’s network connection does not match the emergency location policy you assigned. This article explains why Teams fails to detect the location and shows you how to fix it in the Teams admin center and through client-side checks.
Teams relies on the combination of a calling policy, an emergency policy, and the user’s IP subnet to map a call to a physical address. When a user works remotely, their IP address changes constantly, so the static subnet match fails. You need to configure dynamic emergency calling, verify the policy assignments, and test the client settings on the remote device.
Key Takeaways: Restore Emergency Location Detection for Remote Users
- Teams admin center > Locations > Emergency policies: Assign the correct emergency call routing policy that includes the PSTN usage for dynamic locations.
- Teams admin center > Locations > Emergency call routing policies: Ensure the policy has a PSTN usage linked to a voice route that uses the emergency location.
- Teams client > Settings > Calls > Emergency address: Verify the client shows a detected address and test with the emergency test service if available.
Why Teams Cannot Detect the Emergency Location for a Remote User
Teams determines the emergency location from the network subnet that the user’s device is connected to. In a normal office, the subnet is static, so the admin maps that subnet to a physical address. A remote user connects from home, a coffee shop, or a hotel, so the subnet is dynamic and not in the network configuration. Without a matching subnet, Teams falls back to the user’s registered location in the phone number assignment, which may be outdated or empty.
The root cause is that the emergency call routing policy does not include the dynamic emergency location usage. The policy must reference a PSTN usage that points to a voice route with an emergency location. If the policy is missing that usage, the client cannot retrieve any location data, and the call proceeds without an address.
How Dynamic Emergency Calling Works
Dynamic emergency calling uses the user’s IP subnet to select an emergency location. The admin defines network subnets in the Teams admin center and assigns each subnet to a location. When a user calls 911, Teams looks up the current subnet and sends the associated address to the emergency service. For remote users, the subnet is not defined, so the lookup fails. You must either assign a static location to the user’s phone number or configure a fallback location in the emergency policy.
Prerequisites for Remote Emergency Location Detection
- A valid emergency call routing policy assigned to the user.
- A PSTN usage in that policy that references a voice route with an emergency location.
- A phone number assigned to the user with a registered emergency address.
- The Teams client must have network connectivity that allows the location service to respond.
Steps to Fix Emergency Location Detection for a Remote User
- Check the user’s policy assignments
Sign in to the Teams admin center and go to Users > Manage users. Select the remote user, then open the Policies tab. Verify that the user has an emergency call routing policy assigned. If the policy is not assigned, assign the default or a custom policy that has the correct PSTN usage. - Verify the emergency call routing policy
Go to Locations > Emergency call routing policies. Open the policy assigned to the user. Under PSTN usage, confirm that the usage matches the one used in your voice routing. If the usage is missing, click Edit and add the correct usage. Save the policy. - Confirm the voice route has an emergency location
Go to Voice > Routing rules and open the voice route that uses the PSTN usage from the emergency policy. Under Emergency location, verify that a location is selected. If no location is set, choose the appropriate one and save. - Assign a static emergency location to the user’s phone number
Go to Voice > Phone numbers. Find the user’s number and select Assign emergency location. Choose a location or create a new one that matches the user’s home address. This provides a fallback when dynamic detection fails. - Test the client-side detection
On the remote user’s device, open Teams and go to Settings > Calls. Under Emergency address, check if a location appears. If the address shows, the detection works. If it shows No location, the client cannot reach the location service. - Run the emergency test service
In the Teams client, go to Settings > Calls and look for the test emergency call option if your tenant has it enabled. Place a test call to confirm that the location is transmitted. This does not dispatch real emergency services.
If Teams Still Does Not Detect the Emergency Location
Teams Shows No Location for the Remote User
This means the client cannot retrieve any location data. Check that the user’s device has internet access and that the Teams service is reachable. Also confirm that the user is signed in with the correct account that has the emergency policy.
The User Is on a VPN and the Subnet Is Not Recognized
A VPN masks the user’s real IP address, so Teams sees the VPN subnet, which is not in your network configuration. Disable the VPN for the emergency call or add the VPN subnet to the network settings in the Teams admin center. You can also assign a static location to the user’s phone number to bypass dynamic detection.
The Emergency Location Is Outdated
If the user moved, the registered address may be old. Update the location in the Teams admin center under Locations > Emergency locations. Then reassign the location to the user’s phone number and the voice route.
Teams Emergency Location Detection: Static vs Dynamic
| Item | Static Location | Dynamic Location |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Address assigned directly to a phone number | Address determined by the IP subnet |
| Best for | Remote users with a fixed home address | Office users with stable network segments |
| Configuration | Assign in Phone numbers | Map subnets in Network settings |
| Failure mode | Old address if the user moves | No address if the subnet is unknown |
| Remote user fix | Update the location on the number | Add the subnet or use a fallback |
Use static locations for remote users who work from one place. Use dynamic locations for office users. For users who travel, assign a static location to their phone number and keep it updated.
After you apply the fixes, test the emergency call from the remote device to confirm the location appears. Check the Teams admin center activity log to see if the call routed with the location. If the issue persists, contact your telephony provider to verify that the emergency service receives the address correctly.
You can now ensure that every remote user has a valid emergency location. Start by auditing your emergency call routing policies and assigning static locations to all remote users. Then enable the test emergency call feature in your tenant to validate the setup monthly.