Frequently Asked Questions & Answers

Yes. You don't need to anything to keep using WhatsApp with your Australian number. You'll keep your number, contacts and all your conversations. People in Australia will still keep messaging you on WhatsApp as normal.

Prefer an eSIM to a physical SIM? No worries, check out our eSIMs here for the UK, Europe and Turkey.

eSIM is the latest technology found in many newer model mobile phones. An eSIM (embedded SIM) is a digital SIM already installed inside the circuitry of mobile phones. The eSIM can then be used by any mobile network, by simply downloading an eSIM.

If your phone has eSIM it means you can buy and download our UK & Europe eSIM without the need to insert a physical SIM card into your phone. No more waiting for the SIM Card to arrive by Australia Post. Instead you can now set everything up and be ready to go in the comfort of your own home. Or from your favourite cafe. Or at work. Or even at the airport if you've left it late! Then when your plane touches down in the UK or Europe you’re instantly connected to 5G/4G.

But I'm already using an eSIM from Telstra, Optus or Vodafone!

No problem! Our UK & Europe eSIM works alongside your existing eSIM. eSIM compatible phones let you install multiple eSIMs on your phone without having to uninstall or delete your existing eSIM. And some phones (e.g., iPhone 12 onwards) let you have two eSIMs active at the same time (just like having a dual SIM phone) so if you want you can have your Australian eSIM and your UK & Europe eSIM turned on at the same time. The UK & Europe eSIM will be the "active" line for data, but you can still receive calls and texts to your Australian eSIM (really useful to get one time passwords from your bank/credit card).

Keep your Australian number when you're in the UK and Europe

With eSIM you can keep your Australian number when you're in the UK and Europe. Because you don't need to remove your Australian SIM Card from your phone (or delete your Australian eSIM), you can keep it turned on, alongside your UK & Europe eSIM. (You'll need to have international roaming activated to be able to receive incoming calls and/or SMS to your Australian number).

This is perfect for receiving important calls or texts (such as one-time passwords from your bank). Or if you want you can remove your Australian physical SIM Card or turn off your Australian eSIM for the duration of your trip.

Important: eSIM doesn't have a phone number

Currently our UK & Europe eSIM does NOT have a phone number. This means you can't make or receive calls/SMS text messages. For some people this won't matter because they'll just use WhatsApp, Messenger, FaceTime etc for calling and messaging. But if having a UK phone number is important for you, then buy our regular UK & Europe Phone SIM Card.

eSIM is very easy to set-up!

Don't worry you don't need a PhD in mobile phones to use eSIM! If you can open the Settings App on your phone, then you can use eSIM.

After you place an eSIM order, check your order confirmation email for your eSIM QR code. Then scan it when you're ready to install your eSIM (just remember that your 30 days starts when you scan the QR code).

eSIM is better for the environment

There’s no packaging, no plastic, and no petrol used to transport your letter in the post to you.

What phones use eSIM?

Here's a list of the most popular phones that use eSIM:

Apple

• iPhone XS
• iPhone XS Max
• iPhone XR
• iPhone 11
• iPhone 11 Pro
• iPhone 11 Pro Max
• iPhone SE
• iPhone 12
• iPhone 12 Pro
• iPhone 12 Mini
• iPhone 12 Pro Max
• iPhone 13
• iPhone 13 Mini
• iPhone 13 Pro
• iPhone 13 Pro Max
• iPhone 14
• iPhone 14 Plus
• iPhone 14 Pro
• iPhone 14 Pro Max
• iPhone 15 (all models)

Samsung

• Galaxy S20 5G
• Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G
• Galaxy S20+ 5G
• Galaxy S21 5G
• Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G
• Galaxy S21+ 5G
• Galaxy S22
• Galaxy S22+
• Galaxy S22 Ultra
• Galaxy Note 20
• Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G
• Galaxy Fold
• Galaxy Z Fold2 5G
• Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
• Galaxy Z Fold4
• Galaxy Z Flip
• Galaxy Z Flip3 5G
• Galaxy Z Flip4
• Galaxy Z Fold5
• Galaxy Z Flip5
• Galaxy S23
• Galaxy S23+
• Galaxy S23 Ultra
• Galaxy S24
• Galaxy S24+
• Galaxy S24 Ultra
• NOT COMPATIBLE: Galaxy S20 FE 4G/5G, S20/S21 (US versions), Z Flip 5G (US versions), Note 20 Ultra (Versions from the US and Hong Kong), Galaxy Z Fold 2 (Versions from the US and Hong Kong).

Huawei

• P40
• P40 Pro
• Mate 40 Pro
• NOT COMPATIBLE: P40 Pro+ and P50 Pro are not compatible with eSIM

Google

• Pixel 4a
• Pixel 4XL
• Pixel 5
• Pixel 5a
• Pixel 6
• Pixel 6a
• Pixel 6 Pro
• Pixel 7
• Pixel 7 Pro
• Pixel 8
• Pixel 8 Pro

Oppo

• Find X3 Pro 5G
• Reno 5A
• Find X5
• Find X5 Pro
• NOT COMPATIBLE: Oppo Find X5 Lite is not compatible.

This isn’t necessarily an exhaustive list, so if your phone isn’t listed, then check with your device manufacturer to see if eSIM can be used.

Our UK & Europe SIM Card lasts for 1 month from activation. (1 month means the period from a particular date in one month to the same date in the next month, for example from April 4th to May 4th. If you activate the SIM Card on January 29th, 30th or 31st, it will expire on February 28th or February 29th if it's a leap year).

If you're staying longer than 1 continuous month in Europe you can't recharge the SIM Card. So just buy two, or multiple SIM Cards. The network limits roaming in Europe to a maximum of 1 continuous month. 

If you're not staying longer than 1 continuous month in Europe (for example, you're staying 3 weeks in Europe, and then going to the UK for 3 weeks) then you can recharge the SIM Card at the end of your month.

And if you go back to Europe after visiting the UK, then being in the UK "resets" the 1 continuous month limit in Europe and you can recharge the SIM Card at the end of your month. 

It's a little confusing so here's some examples to help explain: 

John is going to France for two weeks, Italy for three weeks and Spain for one week. He's not visiting the UK at all.

John is in Europe for more than 1 continuous month. He'll need to buy two (2) SIM Cards. The first SIM Card will work for 1 month (and cover him for his France trip and two weeks of his Italy trip). And his second SIM Card will cover the remainder of his time in Italy and Spain.

Tabitha is going to France for three weeks, UK for one week, and Spain for three weeks.

Tabitha isn't ever in Europe for more than 1 continuous month she can recharge her SIM Card when it expires after 1 month. Because she's going to the UK in the middle of her trip this "resets" the 1 month Europe limit, and she can recharge after 1 month to continue using the SIM Card in Europe.

5G/4G data

Choose 10GB, 30GB, 60GB or UNLIMITED GB.

With our SIM Cards you can only use a portion of the data in Europe due to network roaming restrictions. This is called the "Roaming Limit":

• 10GB SIM Card: 6GB Roaming Limit in Europe
• 30GB SIM Card: 12GB Roaming Limit in Europe
• 60GB SIM Card: 18GB Roaming Limit in Europe
• UNLIMITED GB SIM Card: 30GB Roaming Limit in Europe

The Roaming Limit isn't an additional amount of data to use in Europe, it comes from your total data amount. For example, if you buy the 10GB SIM Card, you can 6GB in Europe (the Roaming Limit), leaving you with 4GB use in the UK (if you're going there). The Roaming Limit is fixed--sorry but there's no way to remove it or add more data to the Roaming Limit.

The Roaming Limit doesn't apply in Republic of Ireland. e.g., buy the 30 GB SIM Card and you get 30GB data to use in Republic of Ireland.

And of course the Roaming Limit doesn't apply in the UK (because you're not roaming).

Need more data to use in Europe? The solution is to buy multiple SIM Cards.

Unlimited calls and texts

When you’re in the UK: you can use your unlimited calls and texts to UK landlines (starting with 01 and 02), national numbers (starting with 03), free call numbers (0800) and UK mobiles (starting with 07), and you get unlimited calls and texts to other people who are using our SIM Card.

When you’re in the included European countries: you can use your unlimited calls and texts to local landlines and mobiles in the same country (eg when in France call and text French numbers), landlines and mobile in other European countries (eg when in France call and text German numbers), UK landlines (starting with 01 and 02) and UK mobiles (starting with 07), and other people who are using our SIM Card. For example, when you’re in France you can call a local Paris restaurant, text someone in Germany, call your airline in the UK and text someone else who is using our SIM Card.

Unlimited calls and texts are subject to a Fair Use Policy of 43,200 minutes of calls (yes, that's 720 hours of calls) and 43,200 texts.

Incoming calls and texts are free for you

It's free for you to receive calls and texts from anyone anywhere in the world. So if someone in Australia calls or texts you in doesn't cost you anything (the person calling will pay whatever it costs them to call or text a UK number).

A local UK mobile number

The SIM Card has a local UK mobile number which you can write on baggage labels, government forms, and give to family and friends.

Free unlimited wi-fi on the London Underground

You get free unlimited high speed fibre optic Wi-Fi at over 250 London Underground stations. Connect once, register, and then your phone will automatically connect (just like how your phone auto-connects each time to your home Wi-Fi).

There’s no mobile coverage at London Underground stations (many are very deep underground), so being able to connect to free Wi-Fi is a great feature.

Running late? Send a Whatsapp message. Keep in touch on Instagram and Facebook. Plan your journey, check train times, directions and connections. Stay up to date with the news, sports scores and the latest updates from your friends.

Access to exclusive UK cinema, cafe and restaurant offers through the Three+ rewards app

With our UK SIM Card you get exclusive offers from the Three + rewards app. This includes Cineworld, Caffe Nero, Frankie & Benny's, Uber Eats + more.

Use your phone as a hotspot and share the data

Our SIM Card comes pre-loaded with high speed 5G/4G data, unlimited calls and texts, and lasts for 1 month from activation. Simply take out your normal Australian SIM Card and insert our SIM Card into your phone on arrival in the UK or Europe. Within minutes the SIM Card will self activate and your phone will be ready with data, calling and texting.

With our SIM Card you'll be able to stay connected using all your apps (WhatsApp, Facebook, Google Maps etc), and you'll be able to make and receive phone calls, and send and receive SMS text messages.

When you're in the UK you can (i) use your data for all your favourite apps such as (but not limited to) Whatsapp, Google Maps, Facebook, Instagram, Email + all your other apps (ii) hotspot your phone and share the data and (iii) use your unlimited calls to call UK landline numbers (beginning with 01 and 02), UK mobile numbers (beginning with 07), UK national numbers (beginning with 03), UK freephone numbers (beginning with 0800), and other people using our SIM Card (iv) use your unlimited texts to text UK mobiles and other people using our SIM Card. For example, suppose you're walking along Oxford Street in London. You could use Google Maps to find directions, take some photos and send them on Facebook Messenger to your friend in Australia, make a call to a restaurant in Manchester to make a reservation, send a text to your friend in Glasgow, and call your traveling companion who is also using our SIM Card.

When you're in the European countries: you can (i) you can use some of your data^ (ii) hotspot your phone and share the data (iii) use your unlimited calls to call UK landline numbers (beginning with 01 and 02), UK mobile numbers (beginning with 07), UK national numbers (beginning with 03), UK freephone numbers (beginning with 0800), other people using our SIM Card, local landline and mobiles numbers in the same country, and landline and mobile numbers in other European countries (v) use your unlimited texts to text UK mobiles, other people using our SIM Card, local mobile numbers and mobile numbers in other European countries. For example, suppose you're doing a cruise on the River Seine in Paris. You could take a selfie and send it on WhatsApp to your friend in Australia, make a call to your cousin in London, send a text to your traveling companion who is also using our SIM Card, call a restaurant in Paris to make a lunch reservation, and call your tour company in Germany.

^ buy the 10GB SIM Card and you can only use 6GB in Europe; buy the 30GB SIM Card and use 12GB in Europe; buy the 60GB SIM Card and use 18GB in Europe; buy the UNLIMITED GB SIM Card and use 30GB in Europe.

The SIM Card is posted from Sydney which means you'll have it before you leave. You can choose Regular Post (4-7 business days) or you can choose Express Post if you need your SIM Card urgently. There are no pick up options and we don't sell our SIM Card in any shops.

All iPhones are compatible with the SIM Card and most other mobile phones are also compatible (if you've got a 10 year old dinosaur phone it probably won't work).

Keep reading the FAQs below for answers to more frequently asked questions.

All our physical SIM Cards last for 1 month.

"1 month" means 1 calendar month. For example, if you activate the SIM Card on 28 January at 6am, it will expire after 6am on 28 February. Or if you activate the SIM Card on 27 February at 1pm, it will expire after 1pm on 27 March.

After expiry you can recharge on our website, or it might be easier for you to buy two (2) or multiple SIM Cards and use each after expiry.

Yes. Once you receive your SIM Card, simply email us quoting the SIM Card serial number and we'll be able to tell you your UK mobile number so you'll know it before you leave to the UK/Europe. This way you can tell your family and friends, include the number on your baggage labels, on government forms etc.

The SIM Card has a UK mobile number (the format is 07XXX-XXX-XXX, for example 07100200300). This is a standard regular UK mobile number--the same mobile number format as every other mobile number in the UK. Think of it like as if you were a tourist to Australia and your mobile number was 0404 123 456.

You can easily keep an eye on your data balance by logging into your account at Three.co.uk.

When you log in you'll see that you cash credit balance is £0. This is normal. Your SIM Card does NOT have £ cash money on it - instead it has a 30 day pack of unlimited calls & texts + data.

And remember that when you're in Europe you can only use up to 12GB of your data. You can of course use the remaining data balance in the UK.

Yes. We have a dedicated Rapid Response Support Team based in London you can call, email or WhatsApp message, whether it's at 5am when your plane lands at Heathrow, or at 10pm when you're at dinner in Madrid.

Travel is stressful enough, and after flying for almost 24 hours you want to know that you can speak to someone if you have a problem or question. That's why we have a dedicated UK based Support Team available by phone, email and WhatsApp message.

You activate your SIM Card on our website before you leave to the UK and Europe. It doesn't matter if you first use the SIM Card in the UK or Europe.

Yes. Be a savvy traveler and plan everything well in advance so you’re the envy of your traveling companions. You can buy the SIM Card now and activate it at anytime up to 24 months from the date of purchase. But don’t worry because the 30 days only starts from the date you select when you activate it.

All iPhones are compatible with the UK & Europe SIM Card and that includes the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro.

Samsung, Huawei, Oppo, Google, Xiaomi, Motorola, Nokia, LG + others are also compatible with the UK & Europe SIM Card.

If you’re unsure, just email us at info@ukprepaidsimcard.com.au or or send us a WhatsApp message to +447882165545.

You can hotspot your phone and share data with your laptop, iPad, tablet, games console etc.

With our SIM Card you get free unlimited 100Mbps wi-fi at over 250 London Underground stations. Many stations are deep underground with no 3G/4G/5G service, so having free wi-fi is really helpful to stay connected. You can check train times and plan your journey, keep in touch on WhatsApp etc, and check the latest news.

Once you're at an Underground Station, switch on Wi-Fi and connect to Three_WIFI.

Full details can be found here.

Your UK SIM Card can be used across the UK. The UK comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (but not the Republic of Ireland).  So this means when you are in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland you can use your data, unlimited minutes to UK landlines and UK mobiles (including other people using our SIM Card) and unlimited texts to UK mobiles (including other people using our SIM Card).

Yes. Also, the data Roaming Limit does NOT apply when you're in the Republic of Ireland.

With our SIM Cards you can only use a portion of the data in Europe due to network roaming restrictions. This is called the "Roaming Limit":

• 20GB SIM Card: 6GB Roaming Limit in Europe
• 30GB SIM Card: 12GB Roaming Limit in Europe
• 60GB SIM Card: 18GB Roaming Limit in Europe
• UNLIMITED GB SIM Card: 30GB Roaming Limit in Europe

The Roaming Limit isn't an additional amount of data to use in Europe, it comes from your total data amount. For example, if you buy the 20GB SIM Card, you can 6GB in Europe (the Roaming Limit), leaving you with 14GB use in the UK (if you're going there). The Roaming Limit is fixed--sorry but there's no way to remove it or add more data to the Roaming Limit.

The Roaming Limit doesn't apply in Republic of Ireland. e.g., buy the 30 GB SIM Card and you get 30GB data to use in Republic of Ireland.

And of course the Roaming Limit doesn't apply in the UK (because you're not roaming).

Need more data to use in Europe? The solution is to buy multiple SIM Cards.

The SIM Card doesn’t work on a cruise ship when you’re traveling in open waters. It would only work when you are very close to shore or docked.

You can hotspot your phone and share data with your laptop, iPad, tablet, games console etc. 

Calling and texting to Australian landline and mobile numbers is not included and costs extra: you can add extra cash money to your UK SIM Card by purchasing a recharge voucher on our website. You can buy the voucher with your Australian credit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, or with Paypal (wait until you receive your SIM Card and then buy the voucher).

You only need to buy a voucher if you want to make traditional phone calls/texts through the mobile network. Less than 1% of customers buy a voucher because they use apps like WhatsApp, FaceTime, Facebook Messenger, etc to call/text family and friends in Australia.

If your family member or friend traveling with you is using international roaming with Telstra, Optus or Vodafone etc, then they still have an Australian phone number, so it will cost extra to call or text them. But if they're also using our SIM Card, then you'll both get unlimited calls and texts to each other!

Calling & texting Australian numbers when you’re in the UK: £0.03/minute (3p/minute) to call, £0.25 (25p) to text and £0.40 (40p) to MMS picture message.

Calling & texting Australian numbers when you’re in Europe: £1.40/minute to call, £0.35 (35p) to text and £0.40 (40p) to MMS picture message.

Most customers have told us they use free voice and messaging apps such as WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger to call and text family and friends in Australia. These apps are free because they use your data to make the call or send the text.

To add extra credit to your UK & Europe SIM Card, wait until you receive it from us, then purchase a recharge voucher on our website with your Australian credit card. Full details will come with your sim card about how to do this but you can also read more about how to add extra credit on your UK SIM Card.

Your mobile phone must be network unlocked to use the UK & Europe SIM Card.

If you’ve got an iPhone you can easily check if it’s unlocked by going to Settings > General > About. If “No SIM restrictions” appears next to Network Provider Lock, your iPhone is unlocked.

If you don’t have an iPhone then an easy way to check if your phone is unlocked is to insert another SIM Card into your phone from a different provider, restart your phone, and if the different provider name appears in the status bar, then your phone is unlocked. If your phone is locked you’ll get an error message saying you need to insert a valid SIM Card, in which case contact your network provider and request an unlock.

Need to unlock your phone? If you have an iPhone then the Apple website provides handy information about how to unlock your iPhone. Additionally you can also check out the Telstra website, Optus website and Vodafone website for more information about unlocking your phone.

All orders are dispatched from our Sydney office on the next business day after you order. For example, if you ordered on Friday it would get posted on Monday. Order on Tuesday it will post out on Wednesday.

You can choose standard delivery (2-5 days) or express delivery. You can read more here about our delivery options.

Yes! Head on over to our home page here, scroll down and you'll see reviews from our Google Business page and our Trustindex page.

You can re-use your SIM Card within six (6) months of the last recharge. For most customers the "last recharge" will be the date you initially activated the SIM Card in your phone.

After six months without a recharge your SIM Card is considered inactive by the Three UK and it is permanently and forever cancelled, cannot be re-used or recharged and the mobile number cannot be retrieved for future use. To confirm, this means that if it has been more than six months since you last recharged your SIM Card cannot be re-used.

We accept Paypal, credit card (Visa, Mastercard & American Express), Apple Pay, and Google Pay.

Our entire website, and our checkout page, is protected by SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) which is a security protocol that provides privacy, authentication, and integrity to Internet communications. SSL encrypts data that is transmitted across the web. This means that anyone who tries to intercept this data will only see a garbled mix of characters that is impossible to decrypt.

You can click the little padlock icon in your browser's address bar to verify that the checkout page is secure before entering your credit card details.

We’re so confident that our SIM Card will work for you that we provide a 100% money back guarantee if the SIM Card is faulty/defective and doesn't work. To take advantage of the money back guarantee we just need you to do the following:

1. If you get to the UK/Europe and your SIM Card isn’t working, you must contact us on WhatsApp (+447882165545) or email help@ukprepaidsimcard.com.au. Just connect your phone to wi-fi to do this.

2. When you contact us, include your name and your SIM Card serial number (it’s on the back of the SIM Card and starts with 8944).

3. Allow us a reasonable amount of time to fix the issue (it will be a maximum of 24 hours, but usually in as little as 1-2 hours).

4. If we can’t fix the issue because the SIM Card is faulty/defective then we’ll provide a 100% refund of the amount you paid for your SIM Card.

Just to be clear, the money back guarantee only applies if you do steps 1-3 above. So, for example, if you wait until you get back to Australia to contact us then the money back guarantee won’t apply.