The E.U. has now reached an agreement with the companies to abolish these added fees by June 2017.
The European Union has managed to reach an agreement with its mobile networks to do away with roaming charges, in a move that will go into effect in two years’ time, in June 2017.
The official agreement between the E.U. and the companies remains in its preliminary form.
While the first stage of the agreement with the mobile networks is complete, it must still receive the approval of the European Parliament as well as other E.U. governments before it can be officially signed into a law. However, it is believed that this process will be completed without any notable hiccups. When the law is implemented, it means that travelers who use their mobile phones in any of the 28 countries of the European Union will pay the same amount for the calls, texts, and data that they use as they would if they had remained within their own home country.
Before the June 2017 law goes into effect, mobile networks will have their roaming charges capped.
This will keep the upper possible limit charged to smartphone customers at €0.05 per minute of talk, and per megabyte of data. That cap will go into effect as of April 2016. This is a massive reduction from the current cap of €0.19 and €0.20, respectively.
Cell phone networks will still be able to adopt a fair use policy, which will mean that it will not be possible for an individual to register and pay for a mobile phone outside of their country of residence so that they can use it at home. This stops people from paying for cellular service in a country that offers cheaper rates than their own home nation.
The law will also feature a clause that will make it possible for the networks to be able to “impose minimal surcharges”, should they be able to prove that their having to comply with the current system that blocks roaming fees would cause them to have to increase the prices on their domestic service contracts.
