Roaming in the EU

Some background

• The European Union implemented regulations to prevent networks charging for short-term use in the EU on 15 June 2017
• From 1 January 2021, the guarantee of free roaming in the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway will end but there will be a new cap of £45 before your network must ask for permission to charge you more.
• giffgaff have not announced whether free EU roaming will continue, so it's still just a case of playing the waiting game.

Things to note

• You can only use 'roam like at home' for up to 63 days in any 4 month period.
• If you activate your SIM while abroad, you'll only get 14 days of free EU roaming unless you use your giffgaff SIM in the UK, or provide proof of residency.
• Some countries, while being within Europe, aren't in the EU, such as Monaco, Andorra, and Switzerland. These are charged at their own roaming rates.

Before you go

Before you head off on your trip, you should double-check a few things on your phone and giffgaff account to make sure your phone works without a hitch.

1. Make sure you've enabled data roaming on your phone in settings.
2. Check your giffgaff account to make sure you're eligible for EU roaming. Make sure it says On underneath Roaming status. If it doesn't, see further down for fixes.
3. Make sure your APN settings match the ones shown below.

APN settings

APN settings are the details your phone uses to connect to the giffgaff network and use data. These are sometimes set incorrectly by default which means that they happen to work in the UK, but won't work when abroad.

To change these settings on an iPhone, open Settings, then tap Mobile Data. Tap Mobile Data Options and fill in the settings below.

To change these settings on an Android device, open Settings, then tap Mobile Network. If prompted, choose your giffgaff SIM. Tap Access Point Name (or APN) and fill in the settings below.

Not all devices will have every setting shown below, so don't worry if a setting isn't on your phone.

Make sure not to confuse the fields proxy and MMS proxy. MMS proxy should be 82.132.254.1 and proxy should be left blank.

While you're there

Before you head off on your trip, you should double-check a few things on your phone and giffgaff account to make sure your phone works without a hitch.

• When you arrive, restart your phone to make sure it connects to the local mobile network.
• If you're travelling via a ship, make sure to switch to airplane mode to make sure your device doesn't connect to the ship's own network, which can charge extortionate rates. Try using WiFi on board, if there is any.
• If you're travelling somewhere near to the border of a non inclusive country (such as near the Swiss border, the channel islands, or Monaco) make sure you're connected to the right EU network so you don't get any unexpected charges.