Three roaming explained for international & EU countries

By Adrian Vincent - 30 Oct 2023, 18:07 Three roaming - International roaming with Three explained

You can roam in most countries around the world with Three, however since 23 May 2022, free roaming no longer exists for most customers.

If you're a Pay as you go customer, or if you joined Three before 1 October 2021 and you haven’t upgraded or renewed since, Go Roam is still free and included in your plan. Go Roam allows you to use your allowance in 71 European and worldwide destinations.

If you joined or upgraded on or after 1 October 2021, you must pay a daily charge for roaming. The cost is £2 per day for Go Roam in Europe, and £5 per day for Go Roam Around the World.

What's the best Three SIM Only plan for roaming?

You can roam in the EU with a Three SIM from £2 per day.

You can find the best Three SIM Only deals by using our comparison tools. Three SIMs will work with all phones, including the latest Samsung Galaxy S24 and Apple iPhone 16.

Go Roam in Europe - after Brexit

From 23rd May 2022, most Three customers can no longer roam for free in Europe.

Instead, will now have to pay £2 per day in order to get Go Roam in Europe, which lets you use your allowance in 49 European destinations.

However, for customers who joined Three before 1 October 2021, free EU roaming will continue as long as you don't upgrade, renew or change your plan.

Pay as you go customers can also continue to enjoy Go Roam without paying an additional charge.

Regardless of when you joined Three, if your plan's allowance is greater than 12GB, you cannot use more than 12GB per month with Go Roam in Europe. If you go over the 12GB limit, but you remain within your plan's regular allowance, there will be a 0.3p / MB surcharge (equivalent to £3 per 1GB) to use your remaining data allowance.

There are no limits for making calls and sending texts. You can call and text to other Go Roam In Europe destinations and back to the UK, within your regular allowance.

You don't need to activate or purchase Go Roam in Europe. As soon as you use data, make a call or send a text, you'll automatically be charged £2 for Go Roam in Europe, which lasts for 24 hours.

Go Roam in Europe includes the following 49 European destinations:

  1. Aland Islands
  2. Austria
  3. Azores
  4. Balearic Islands
  5. Belgium
  6. Bulgaria
  7. Canary Islands
  8. Croatia
  9. Cyprus
  10. Czech Republic
  11. Denmark
  12. Estonia
  13. Finland
  14. France (Inc Corsica, Mayotte & Reunion )
  15. French Guiana
  16. Germany
  17. Gibraltar
  18. Greece (Inc Crete & Rhodes)
  19. Guadeloupe
  20. Guernsey
  21. Hungary
  22. Iceland
  23. Ireland
  24. Isle of Man
  25. Italy (Inc Sardinia & Sicily)
  26. Jersey
  27. Latvia
  28. Liechtenstein
  29. Lithuania
  30. Luxembourg
  31. Maderia
  32. Malta
  33. Martinique
  34. Mayotte
  35. Netherlands
  36. Norway
  37. Poland
  38. Portugal
  39. Republic of Ireland
  40. Reunion
  41. Romania
  42. Saint Martin
  43. San Marino
  44. Slovakia
  45. Slovenia
  46. Spain
  47. Sweden
  48. Switzerland
  49. Vatican City

What is Go Roam?

Three Go Roam - what is it?

With Go Roam, you can use your allowance in 73 international destinations. It's made up of 2 parts:

  1. Go Roam in Europe
  2. Go Roam Around the World

From 23rd May 2022, Go Roam will no longer be free for most customers. Instead, you are required to pay £5 per day to use Go Roam.

However, for customers who joined Three before 1 October 2021, Go Roam will continue to be free as long as you don't upgrade, renew or change your plan. It's also still available to pay as you go customers, with no additional charge.

Regardless of when you joined Three, if your plan's allowance is greater than 12GB, you cannot use more than 12GB per month with Go Roam. If you go over the 12GB limit, but you remain within your plan's regular allowance, there will be a 0.3p / MB surcharge (equivalent to £3 per 1GB) to use your remaining data allowance.

You can only use your minutes to make calls back to the UK. You cannot use your minutes within or to other Go Roam destinations. In addition, for plans with 3000 or more minutes, you can only use 3000 minutes to call back to the UK.

A similar policy applies to texts. You can only text back to the UK, and not within or to other Go Roam destinations. If your plan has unlimited texts, you will be limited to 5000 texts back to the UK.

All Three customers can get Go Roam, except those on older Essential plans.

You'll automatically be charged £5 per day for Go Roam when you use data, make a call or send a text in a qualifying destination. You don't need to manually activate or purchase it.

The following 73 destinations are included with Three Go Roam:

  1. Aland Islands
  2. Australia
  3. Austria
  4. Azores
  5. Balearic Islands
  6. Belgium
  7. Brazil
  8. Bulgaria
  9. Canary Islands
  10. Chile
  11. Colombia
  12. Costa Rica
  13. Croatia
  14. Cyprus
  15. Czech Republic
  16. Denmark
  17. El Salvador
  18. Estonia
  19. Finland
  20. France (Inc Corsica, Mayotte & Reunion )
  21. French Guiana
  22. Germany
  23. Gibraltar
  24. Greece (Inc Crete & Rhodes)
  25. Guadeloupe
  26. Guatemala
  27. Guernsey
  28. Hong Kong
  29. Hungary
  30. Iceland
  31. Indonesia
  32. Ireland
  33. Isle of Man
  34. Israel
  35. Italy (Inc Sardinia & Sicily)
  36. Jersey
  37. Latvia
  38. Liechtenstein
  39. Lithuania
  40. Luxembourg
  41. Macau
  42. Maderia
  43. Malta
  44. Marie-Galante
  45. Martinique
  46. Mayotte
  47. Netherlands
  48. New Zealand
  49. Nicaragua
  50. Norway
  51. Panama
  52. Peru
  53. Poland
  54. Portugal
  55. Puerto Rico
  56. Republic of Ireland
  57. Reunion
  58. Romania
  59. Saint Barthélemy
  60. Saint Martin
  61. San Marino
  62. Singapore
  63. Slovakia
  64. Slovenia
  65. Spain
  66. Sri Lanka
  67. Sweden
  68. Switzerland
  69. United States (Inc Florida Keys)
  70. Uruguay
  71. US Virgin Islands
  72. Vatican City
  73. Vietnam

Does Three Go Roam have a fair usage policy?

If your plan's allowance is greater than 12GB, you cannot use more than 12GB per month with any Go Roam package. If you go over the 12GB limit, but you remain within your plan's regular allowance, there will be a 0.3p / MB surcharge (equivalent to £3 per 1GB) to use your remaining data allowance.

The data fair usage policy applies to all Go Roam packages:

  • Go Roam
  • Go Roam in Europe
  • Go Roam Around the World

There's no fair usage policy for calls and texts with Go Roam in Europe.

However, for Go Roam Around the World destinations, you cannot use more than 3000 minutes or 5000 texts per month. In addition, you can only make calls and send texts back to the UK, and not within the country you are in or to other Go Roam Around the World destinations. If you go over these limits within a 2 month period over 12 months, Three may limit your roaming capabilities.

Go Roam in only intended for holidays. You cannot stay in any Go Roam destination (including Europe and Around the World) for 2 complete months over a 12 month period. If you do, you'll likely be breaking Three's fair usage policy. You'll receive a warning if you're approaching this limit. If you continue to use your Three SIM or phone after exceeding the limit, Three may suspended your roaming services until you contact them and prove you are back in the UK.

Can I roam in countries not included with Three Go Roam?

Yes, you can still continue to roam in countries not covered by Go Roam, however you won’t be able to use your regular allowance.

Instead, you will be charged an out of tariff rate.

This out of tariff rate will also apply if you exceed your regular allowance when roaming in a qualifying Go Roam destination.

See Three roaming charges for full prices.

Three Data Passport - what is it?

Three Data Passport - what is it?

A Data Passport will allow you to use unlimited data in 89 international destinations.

It costs £5 per day, and lasts until midnight BST.

There are no limits on the amount of data you can use - it is truly unlimited. You can use it for tethering, streaming and even with VPNs.

It doesn’t include an allowance for calls and texts. Instead, you’ll be charged at a standard out of plan rate. However, if you’re in a qualifying Go Roam destination, you’ll automatically be charged £2 per day (Europe) or £5 per day (Around the World) when you make a call or send a text, which allows you to use your regular minutes and text allowances.

There are crossover destinations which are both eligible for the Data Passport and Go Roam. It’s possible to have a Data Passport and Go Roam activated at the same time.

You can buy a Data Passport in advance, or wait until you arrive in an eligible destination.

Purchasing a Data Passport can be done through your My3 account:

  1. Open the My3 app, or login to via the My3 website
  2. Select Manage services
  3. Switch to the Roaming tab
  4. Look for the section on Data Passport

The following 89 destinations are eligible for Data Passport:

  1. Aland Islands
  2. Australia
  3. Austria
  4. Azerbaijan
  5. Azores
  6. Balearic Islands
  7. Belgium
  8. Brazil
  9. Bulgaria
  10. Canada
  11. Canary Islands
  12. Chile
  13. Colombia
  14. Costa Rica
  15. Croatia
  16. Cyprus
  17. Czech Republic
  18. Denmark
  19. El Salvador
  20. Estonia
  21. Finland
  22. France
  23. French Guiana
  24. Germany
  25. Gibraltar
  26. Greece
  27. Guadeloupe
  28. Guatemala
  29. Guernsey
  30. Hong Kong
  31. Hungary
  32. Iceland
  33. Indonesia
  34. Ireland
  35. Isle of Man
  36. Israel
  37. Italy
  38. Jersey
  39. Latvia
  40. Liechtenstein
  41. Lithuania
  42. Luxembourg
  43. Macau
  44. Madeira
  45. Malaysia
  46. Malta
  47. Martinique
  48. Mayotte
  49. Mexico
  50. Moldova
  51. Montenegro
  52. Myanmar
  53. New Zealand
  54. Nicaragua
  55. Norway
  56. Pakistan
  57. Panama
  58. Peru
  59. Poland
  60. Portugal
  61. Puerto Rico
  62. Reunion
  63. Romania
  64. Russian Federation
  65. Saint Barthelemy
  66. Saint Martin
  67. San Marino
  68. Saudi Arabia
  69. Serbia
  70. Singapore
  71. Slovakia
  72. Slovenia
  73. South Korea
  74. Spain
  75. Sri Lanka
  76. Sweden
  77. Switzerland
  78. Taiwan
  79. Thailand
  80. The Netherlands
  81. Tunisia
  82. Turkey
  83. US Virgin Islands
  84. USA
  85. Ukraine
  86. United Arab Emirates
  87. Uruguay
  88. Vatican City
  89. Vietnam

Can I get 5G when roaming with Three?

Three 5G roaming

If you have a 5G phone, you may be able to receive a 5G signal when roaming with Three. However, it's up to the local carrier or network.

In most destinations, the minimum signal you should receive is 4G, however you might see this dip down to 3G in more remote locations.

FAQs

Can I roam for free in the EU with Three?

From 23rd May 2022, most Three customers can no longer roam for free in Europe with Go Roam in Europe. Instead, it will now cost your £2 per day to get Go Roam in Europe with Three, which you will automatically be charged when visiting a European destination.

However, if your Three plan started before 1 October 2021, and you haven't upgraded since, you will still be eligible for Go Roam for free, which includes Go Roam in Europe and Go Roam Around the World destinations.

Go Roam in still free for pay as you go customers - you'll just need to pay the standard UK pay as you go rate for the services you use.

How can I setup my phone to roam with Three?

You must enable roaming in your phone's settings in order to use your Three plan internationally.

For Android users:

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Go to Connections -> Mobile networks -> Roaming
  3. Enable Data roaming

For iPhone users:

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Go to Mobile data -> Mobile Data Options
  3. Enable Data Roaming

Will I be charged if I go over my allowance when roaming with Three?

When you're approaching your allowance, you'll receive a text from Three, with details on how much you'll be charged if you go over your allowance. The amount will be the standard roaming rate, which varies from country to country.

Can I tether to another device when roaming abroad with Three?

If you have an unlimited data plan and you're in a Go Roam in Europe destination, you can continue to tether and roam within the EU within the 12GB fair usage policy. Otherwise, roaming in Europe is not permitted.

Tethering within Go Roam Around the World destinations is not permitted, regardless of the plan you have.

You can tether if you have a Data Passport enabled and you're within a Data Passport destination, without any limits.