Fix “Voice input is failing repeatedly and has been paused” in Claude Code.

1. Make sure the machine Claude Code runs on has a microphone. Over SSH, in a container or in a cloud session there isn’t one.
2. Allow your terminal under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone.
3. Wait ten seconds and try /voice again once the cause is fixed.

1. Claude Code is running on a machine without a microphone

   Voice records on the machine Claude Code runs on. It isn’t available over SSH, in VS Code Remote (SSH, Dev Containers, Codespaces), in cloud sessions or on a headless server. Run Claude Code locally, or use a microphone that isn’t tied to that machine.

   From the Claude Code docs.

2. Microphone access is denied

   macOS: turn on your terminal in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone, or reset it so macOS asks again. Windows: Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone, allow desktop apps.

   # Terminal: com.apple.Terminal · iTerm2: com.googlecode.iterm2
   # Ghostty: com.mitchellh.ghostty · Warp: dev.warp.Warp-Stable · VS Code: com.microsoft.VSCode
   tccutil reset Microphone com.apple.Terminal
   
   # Not sure of the bundle ID? Ask macOS:
   osascript -e 'id of app "iTerm"'

   From the Claude Code docs.

3. Linux or WSL without a working recorder

   On Linux, if the built-in audio module can’t load, Claude Code needs arecord or SoX. On WSL it needs WSLg plus the PulseAudio format for SoX.

   # Linux
   sudo apt-get install sox
   
   # WSL (with WSLg)
   sudo apt install sox libsox-fmt-pulse

   From the Claude Code docs.

As of October 2026. From Claude Code’s docs and its GitHub issues.

Can I use Claude Code voice over SSH?

No. Voice records on the machine Claude Code runs on, and it isn’t available in SSH sessions, VS Code Remote or cloud sessions. Copy That works there: it pastes into the terminal on your Mac, whatever that terminal is connected to.

How long does the pause last?

Claude Code allows voice again ten seconds after the first of the three failures. It will pause again if the cause isn’t fixed.

Is there a way to avoid this entirely?

Use a microphone that isn’t the Mac’s. Copy That records on your iPhone or Apple Watch, transcribes on your Mac with Whisper and pastes into Claude Code, so input devices, lids and microphone permissions on the Mac don’t matter.