Using your Tesco Mobile phone abroad

When you buy your Tesco Mobile phone or SIM you're already set up to use your phone when abroad, so long as you have enough credit on your account. This service is called 'International Roaming', or sometimes just 'Roaming'.

What countries will your Tesco Mobile phone work in?

You can now roam with Tesco Mobile in over 100 countries if you have a 3G Tesco Mobile SIM card so keeping in touch with your family and friends back home is easy.

To ensure that your phone is set up for our full roaming service you need to have a 3G Tesco Mobile SIM card in your phone. To check if you already have a 3G Tesco Mobile SIM card simply take the back off your phone and look at the SIM card in it. If you have a 3G SIM card it will be blue on the front with a gold panel and 3G SIM written on it. The reverse will be white with a Tesco Mobile logo and some numbers printed on it. If your SIM does not fit this description or does not have 3G SIM written on it please call customer care on 1749 from your Tesco Mobile or 089 420 0000 from any phone and we will send you a new FREE replacement 3G SIM card which will allow you to roam in over 100 countries.

The table below shows the countries you can roam in with your 3G Tesco Mobile SIM card and the rates you will pay for roaming in these countries.

Countries your Tesco Mobile phone will work in
Zone 1 - Europe & EC regulated countries
Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, UK, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Gibraltar, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion (La), French Guiana, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway
Zone 2 - Rest of Europe
Albania, Andorra, Bosnia Herzegovina, Croatia, Faroe Islands, Macedonia, Moldavian Republic, Monaco, Montenegro, San Marino, Serbia, Switzerland, Turkey, Guernsey Island, Isle of Man, Jersey Island, Greenland
Zone 3 - Asia Middle East, CIS & Others
Afghanistan, Antarctica, Armenia, Aruba, Ascension, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Bhutan, Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, China, Coco’s Islands, Diego Garcia, East Timor, Georgia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea (North), Korea (South), Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Macao, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Oman, Nepal, Pakistan, Palestine, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Syria, Taiwan Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen, Belarus
Zone 4 - Oceania
American Samoa, Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marianne islands, Marshall Islands, Micronesia (Federated States of), Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau (Polynesia), Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna
Zone 5 - Africa
Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cap Verde Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Congo (Democratic Republic of), Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Republic, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Zone 6 - North America, Mexico, Carribean
Alaska (USA), Anguilla, Antigua, Barbados, Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Island, Dominica Island, Dominican Rep, Hawaii (USA),Jamaica, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia, Saipan/Marianne, St Kitts/Nevis, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Trinidad/Tobago, Turks & Caicos Islands, U.S.A., Virgin Islands (UK), Antilles (Netherlands), Cuba, Haiti, St. Pierre & Miquelon, Aruba, Bahamas, Grenada, Mexico
Zone 7 - Central & South America
Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Falkland, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Panama, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela, St.-Helene

International Roaming Charges

Calling any Mobile Calling any Landline Sending Texts to any Mobile Receiving Calls Receiving Texts
Zone 1 - Europe & EC regulated countries
€0.47 €0.47 €0.13 €0.18 FREE
Zone 2 - Rest of Europe
€1.69 €1.69 €0.39 €1.59 FREE
Zone 3 - Asia, Middle East, CIS & Others
€1.99 €1.99 €0.39 €1.89 FREE
Zone 4 - Oceania
€1.99 €1.99 €0.39 €1.89 FREE
Zone 5 - Africa
€2.29 €2.29 €0.39 €2.19 FREE
Zone 6 - North America, Mexico & Caribbean
€1.99 €1.99 €0.39 €1.89 FREE
Zone 7 - Central & South America
€1.99 €1.99 €0.39 €1.89 FREE

For zone 1 all calls made while roaming have a 30 second minimum charge and are billed on a per second basis thereafter, all calls received while roaming are charged on a per second basis.

For all other zones all calls made or received while roaming are charged on a per minute basis.

Other Services (whilst roaming in above countries) Cost Detail
WAP - GPRS N/A Price per kb
ISP Data - Connecting via ISP N/A Price per kb
MMS message - (picture, sound & text) N/A Per Message
Voice Mail As per standard roaming call rate per minute Per Minute

Before you go

Some useful things to do before you take your Tesco Mobile phone abroad include:

  • Top Up your mobile so you have plenty of credit
  • Register your credit/debit card with us so you can use Text Top Up from abroad if you need to
  • Pack your mobile, your charger, and an adaptor (for foreign plug sockets)
  • Make sure your voicemail is on to take any messages you miss
  • Store any important numbers such as your travel company, travel insurance company or hotels in your mobile's phonebook

Calling and texting when abroad

To call back to Ireland
When calling home to Ireland from abroad, dial +353 before the number and drop the zero from the prefix. For example, 01 123 4567 becomes +353 1 123 4567.

To call the country you are in
Simply dial the full local number, as though you were using a local phone.

To call another country
This is the same as when calling back to Ireland. Just dial + and the full country code before the number and drop the zero from the prefix. For example, if calling a UK number 0123 456 7890, it becomes +44 123 456 7890.

Sending text messages
Send your text message in the same way as you would if you were calling back home. Insert the +353 before the number and drop the zero from the prefix. For example, 089 123 4567 becomes +353 89 123 4567.

Access your services from abroad

You can use your phone as if you were at home. Some services can also be accessed through your Tesco Mobile SIM Menu. These are indicated by the tick symbol below.

Service SIM Menu Details
Voicemail call 171
Check balance options call 1740
  type *100# send
Top Up options call 1740 to use voucher
  type *101*vouchernumber# send
  text 1745 to use credit card
Directory Enquiries call 11850
Customer Care call 089 420 0000 or 1749 from your Tesco Mobile
Customer Care from a landline   call +353 89 420 0000
Emergency services   call 112 or 999

If you need help when abroad

Customer Care Support
If your phone is lost or stolen and you need to bar it (to prevent your credit being used), or if you are having trouble using your phone, call us on +353 89 420 0000 from a landline or any other phone.

Local Emergency Services
If you need to contact the local police or ambulance services, call 112 or 999 from your mobile or any other phone.