Voicemail Transcription Not Working iOS 16 Issue? (Fix?)

Last updated on January 18th, 2023 at 02:15 am

Posted in Errors and Issues, Bug Fixes by Mary on November 21, 2022

voicemail transcription not working ios 16

Voicemail transcription not working iOS 16


Voicemail transcriptions not working after iOS 16 update? Transcripts not showing on iPhone even after the iOS 16.1 and 16.1.1 iterations? Previous voicemails greyed out are displayed instead? You’re not alone.

Voicemail Transcription Not Working iOS 16

This issue has been reported by Pauline (iPhone 8, iOS 16.1.1):

“Voicemail is not showing transcription section. Instead, in its place is the previous voicemail greyed out, from yesterday.”

We’ve found similar complaints on Reddit:

“My visual voicemail in the native iOS app works fine, and I do see new voicemail messages there, as expected, but I do not see the transcriptions for any of them.”

and Apple’s Discussion Forums (1, 2 and 3):

“Transcription not working on iOS 16.1 voicemail.”

Voicemail Transcriptions Not Available On iPhone?

Before, you start troubleshooting please be aware that the Visual Voicemail and Voicemail transcription features are available from select carriers in select countries or regions.

More, Voicemail transcription is limited to voice messages in English language. (Source: Apple.com)

How To Fix Voicemail Transcription Not Showing Up

However, if voicemail worked on your iPhone before and transcripts are missing since one of the iOS 16 updates you should try the following fixes:

1. Restart iPhone

As usual, you should start with a reboot. A fresh start could flush potential glitches that might stop voicemail transcripts from working.

We recommend you to use the force restart combo for quicker results.

2. Remove AdBlocker or Similar Profiles

Voicemail transcriptions could be blocked by profiles installed by third-party ad blocking apps on your device:

  • Open Settings and tap on General.
  • Scroll for VPN & Device Management.
  • Remove any Profile that could block Voicemail transcriptions.

    • Fact: Voicemail transcription is a default built-in feature that’s handled by Apple directly as long as Visual Voicemail is available. That’s why the device needs to be able to connect to Apple’s servers.

3. Reset Siri Voice Recognition

  • Go for Settings -> Siri & Search and turn Off ‘Hey Siri’.
  • Wait a couple of seconds and turn it back On.
  • Follow the on-screen prompts to reconfigure the feature.

    • Tip: For Voicemail transcriptions to work you need Siri Language set to English (United States) or English (Canada).

(Update, January 18)

4. Record Voicemail Messages

Try to record a new custom voicemail message and voicemail transcription should get fixed:

  • 1. Open Phone app and tap on Voicemail bottom-right corner.
  • 2. Tap Greeting in the top-left corner of the screen.
  • 3. Go for Custom, if it’s not already selected.
  • 4. Tap Record and speak your voicemail greeting out.
  • 5. Tap Stop to finish and Play to review it.
  • 6. Tap Save and test if voicemail transcription is fixed!

Thanks Lisa for sharing this tip.

Have you managed to fix voicemail transcriptions not available on iPhone in iOS 16? Do you have a better solution or some other problem to report? Share your feedback in the comments.

Related: For more iOS 16.1.1 bugs and their available workarounds please check our detailed review.

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