Roaming
This will be possible with an extension of the so-called roaming, for which the EU countries have cleared the way, as they announced on Monday. The EU Parliament and the individual governments had also agreed on the design of free roaming. After the MEPs had already agreed, the official approval of the EU states was still missing for the regulation to take effect.
It will enter into force on 1 July and will replace the existing requirements. Roaming charges have been waived in the 27 EU countries as well as in Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway since 15 June 2017. The agreement also provides for changes to the existing rules. In this way, the same quality of services should be available to consumers abroad whenever possible.
Ursula Pachl from the European consumer association Beuc said that one of the biggest success stories for consumers in the EU continues with this expansion and improvement. She expressed criticism that messages and phone calls between EU countries can still lead to high fees if they are not covered by the roaming regulation. This can be the case, for example, if you use a mobile phone with a German number to call a line in another EU country.
