Mobile roaming charges in EU to end on June 15

There is nothing worse than returning from a relaxing holiday or visit to friends and family in Spain than to be hit with a hefty mobile phone bill.

While it is true that costs for using your mobile abroad have fallen sharply over the past few years, the very notion of being charged more simply for crossing country boundaries – particularly in a continent as interconnected as Europe – has always felt slightly opportunistic on the part of mobile service providers…

For years now, however, the EU has been trying to end this practice, and on June 15 it will come to an end for good, meaning that you can use any EU-registered mobile phone in any EU country for no extra cost.

The ‘Roam at Home’ program has been introduced to levelise charges, and also means that your provider will not levy any additional fees even if you were to visit non-EU countries that are part of the European Economic Area (EEA), such as Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

Thoughts among Brits will obviously turn to the thorny issue of Brexit, and whether – come March 2019 – UK-based mobile service providers will also offer the same service.

It is too early to say for sure exactly what deal the British government will strike with the EU on this issue, or whether companies such as O2 or Vodafone have any leverage, but until that point Brits abroad can, from June 15, use their phone as they wish, confident that there will be no painful bill pushed through their letterbox upon their return home.

One slight fly in the ointment could be the confirmation of planned price hikes among some EU service operators in order to offset this loss in income. Reports suggest that Spanish provider Movistar will increase its tariffs at home to compensate the EU ruling, while Vodafone and Orange have also made noises in this direction.