Frequently asked questions

An eSIM is a digital SIM card built into your phone. Instead of inserting a physical card, you install a data plan digitally. It lets you get mobile data abroad without swapping out your regular SIM, so you keep your normal number active.

Your phone needs to be eSIM-compatible and carrier-unlocked. Most phones from the last few years support eSIM, including iPhone XS and newer, Google Pixel 3 and newer, and recent Samsung Galaxy S and Note models. To check on iPhone: go to Settings → General → About and look for an EID number. If you see one, your phone supports eSIM. If you're unsure, contact us before buying.

Right after your payment succeeds, we email your eSIM and installation instructions to the address you used at checkout - usually within a few minutes. You install it by scanning a QR code or tapping an install link. You can also view it any time in My account.

Your eSIM is not lost. Nothing is used until it is installed, and we can always send it again.

1. Check spam and junk first. Search your inbox for "Telisco". The email arrives within a few minutes of payment.
2. Resend it yourself. Sign in at My account with the email address you used at checkout and send it to yourself again.
3. If the address was wrong, write to us. Email [email protected] from the address you want the eSIM sent to. Tell us the name you used and roughly when you paid. We will move the order onto your correct address and send it there.

It helps to attach your receipt. If the email address on the order is wrong, we cannot match you to it by email, so please attach the receipt for the payment to Telisco from your bank or card account, or a screenshot of the line on your statement. That confirms the order is yours and lets us fix it straight away.

Yes, for the initial install. Your phone needs an internet connection - Wi-Fi or your existing mobile data - to download the eSIM profile the first time. We recommend installing on Wi-Fi at home before you travel. Once installed, you can turn it on or off anytime without needing Wi-Fi again.

Yes, and many people do, for a partner, a child or a colleague. One thing to know first: we always send the eSIM to the email address on the order, and only to that address. We are not able to send it to a third person, and we cannot change the address after the purchase.

So buy it as normal, then forward the delivery email to whoever will use it. They open the install link on their own phone and it installs in one tap. Nothing needs to be typed in and you do not need to be involved again.

Install it on the phone that will actually use it. An eSIM installs on one device and cannot be moved afterwards.

You can install your eSIM before you travel - installing it does not start your plan. For most plans, the validity period begins when the eSIM first connects to a network in your destination. We recommend installing while you still have Wi-Fi at home, then simply turning on data roaming for the eSIM when you land.

The validity period typically starts when your eSIM connects to a mobile network in the destination country, not when you install it or buy it. So you can buy in advance and install early without losing days.

Yes - this is required for the eSIM to work, even though it's called "roaming." It does NOT add extra charges: your Telisco plan already covers the data, and turning on roaming simply lets your eSIM connect to a local network in your destination.

iPhoneSettings → Cellular → your eSIM's line → Data Roaming → on.

AndroidSettings → Network & Internet → SIMs → your eSIM's line → Roaming → on.

Turn it on after you land (or before, if you installed at home).

Almost always this is your phone sitting on the wrong local network. Your eSIM can use specific partner networks in each country, but the phone chooses between them on its own, and once it settles on a slow one it often stays there. Choosing the network by hand fixes most cases. Work through these in order.

1. Refresh the connection. Turn Airplane mode on for 10 seconds, then off. If nothing changes, restart the phone.
2. Check the basics. The Telisco line must be selected for mobile data, Data Roaming must be on for it, and any VPN should be off while you test.
3. Choose the network yourself. This is the step that usually works. See the two screens below.
4. Make sure you are not stuck on 3G. iPhoneSettings → Cellular → your Telisco line → Voice & Data → choose 5G Auto or LTE. AndroidSettings → Network & internet → SIMs → your eSIM → Preferred network type → 5G or 4G/LTE.
5. Give it a moment. Wait about 15 to 30 seconds after each change, or toggle Airplane mode again, before testing.

Please do not delete the eSIM. Deleting it will not speed anything up, and on most plans a profile can only be installed once, so you would lose the data you paid for. Contact us instead.

Tap either walkthrough to open it full size.

Wait up to 30 seconds for the list of networks to appear, then choose one. Every plan page shows which networks that plan uses, under Plan details, so you can pick the right one rather than guessing. If the first choice is still slow, come back and try the next one on the list.

If you have tried every network and all of them are slow, that is the mobile coverage where you are standing rather than the eSIM. Speeds differ between city centres, rural areas and remote spots, and the same plan can be quick in one place and slow in another an hour away.

Still stuck? Contact us with your order reference and a screenshot of your network settings, and we will troubleshoot it with the network operator for you. We would rather sort it out than leave you offline.

Yes. A data eSIM works alongside your existing SIM, so your normal number stays active for calls and SMS. To avoid roaming charges on your home line, you can turn off data roaming for your primary SIM and use the Telisco eSIM for data. A Calls + SMS + Data plan adds a second, local number on top; your own number is unchanged.

With a data plan you can call and text over the internet (WhatsApp, FaceTime, iMessage) while your regular number stays active on your own SIM. For some destinations we also offer Calls + SMS + Data plans, which include a local phone number and a calling and texting allowance. Look for the Calls + SMS + Data option on the destination page.

You get a local phone number plus data, calls and SMS on one eSIM. Three things are different from a data plan:

• The validity starts the moment you buy, not when you install or land. Buy it close to your trip.
• It cannot be refunded once bought, even if you never install it.
• The number belongs to the country shown in the plan details, so calls and SMS to other countries may be limited.

You confirm these at checkout before paying. Your own number stays active on your regular SIM as usual.

Yes. The eSIM adds a second line with its own number. Your own SIM stays in the phone with its number, and you choose which line handles calls, SMS and data in your phone's settings.

Exactly like at home. The plan has one allowance of data, calls and SMS that works in every country on its coverage list, so in Spain your data comes out of the same plan with no roaming charge. The number's country only decides what the number looks like to people who call you.

The eSIM has no service there: no data, no calls, no SMS. Buy a Telisco plan for that country instead, and keep the calls plan for when you are back inside its coverage. The coverage list is shown on every plan before you buy.

Your eSIM connects to a mobile network in the country you are visiting. The point where that traffic reaches the wider internet, though, is sometimes in another country. Websites and apps see that country, not the one you are standing in.

It is a bit like using a VPN, except there is no app and nothing to switch on. Almost everything works exactly as normal. What can change is small stuff: the language a site opens in, the currency a shop shows, or which regional catalogue a streaming service offers you. You can always switch a site back to your own language or currency from its own settings.

Every plan tells you where it appears online, in the plan details before you buy. Some plans appear from the country you are visiting, the same as a local SIM card, and those carry a green LOCAL IP mark in the plan list. Where a local plan and a regular plan both exist for the same data and duration, we show you both so you can choose.

It is a real mobile number, issued by a network operator in the country shown in the plan details (a French +33, UK +44 or US +1 number). It is not a VoIP or virtual number, and calls and texts run over the mobile network the same way they do on any SIM.

That matters in one practical place: banks, WhatsApp and other services that send verification codes often refuse internet numbers, and they accept this one. Nothing needs an app or an internet connection for calls and SMS to work.

Yes, anywhere the plan covers. Callers dial your French, UK or US number and pay their normal rate for calling that country. Incoming SMS are included on every plan, including the ones that do not include outgoing SMS.

Yes. It is a real mobile number, so SMS codes arrive on it. Most travellers keep WhatsApp on their own number and use the new one for local contacts, but you can register WhatsApp with the new number if you prefer.

Yes. Emergency numbers such as 112 and 911 work on any available network, on every plan.

No. You can buy as a guest and your eSIM arrives by email. An account is optional: right after paying you can save the order to an account with one tap (Google or a sign-in link, no password), or sign in later at My account, and every eSIM bought with that email appears there, with usage, top-ups and receipts.

Press Continue with Google at My account, or enter your email and we send you a sign-in link and a 6-digit code. The link and the code work once and expire in 15 minutes. With Google, the email of your Google account becomes your Telisco email, so eSIMs bought with that address appear straight away. You stay signed in on that device for 30 days. If you prefer, you can still open your eSIMs with your email and order reference.

On most plans, yes. Each plan's details say Hotspot: Allowed when the supplier states it for that plan. When the details say Not stated, the supplier does not pass this information to us, so we cannot guarantee it: hotspot usually works on those plans too, but it is not promised. On unlimited plans, data shared through the hotspot counts towards the daily allowance like any other data.

When the plan details say Hotspot: Allowed, yes. When they say Not stated, the supplier has not passed that information to us and we cannot guarantee it.

You can receive SMS on the number, including verification codes, but not send them. Use WhatsApp or another app to send messages on those plans.

No. When the plan ends, buy a new one. Data-only plans can be topped up from My account.

Turn on data roaming for the new eSIM line, set it as your data line, and choose it for calls when you want to use the new number. Your own line can stay on for calls to your own number.

Many plans can be topped up in seconds from My account, with no need to install anything: the extra data is added to the same eSIM and is available right away. Whether a plan can be topped up is shown on the plan itself, under Plan details, before you buy.

A top-up extends your plan as well as adding data. The top-up's own days are added to what you have: top up a 7 day plan with another 7 day package and you get 14 days, or with a 3 day package and you get 10. Top-ups have to be bought while the plan is still valid, so do it before it expires rather than after.

Where a plan cannot be reloaded, you simply buy a new one. It arrives by email in minutes and installs the same way, and you can set it up before the first one runs out so there is no gap.

Unlimited plans use fair-use data instead of a fixed GB cap. Standard Unlimited plans include 1GB of full-speed data per day, then continue at a reduced (but still usable) speed for the rest of that day - most commonly around 512 Kbps, though this varies slightly by destination (as low as 256 Kbps or as fast as 1.25 Mbps on some plans). This allowance resets every 24 hours for the full length of your plan, so you get a fresh full-speed burst every day of your trip, not just once. You're never cut off completely. The exact numbers for your specific plan and destination are always shown in the "Fair use" details before you buy. Because there's no fixed data amount, unlimited plans can't be topped up.

Unlimited Plus is a higher tier available on some destinations. It doubles the full-speed data allowance compared to standard Unlimited (2GB vs. 1GB) and typically allows a faster reduced speed afterward too (up to 2 Mbps on most Plus plans, vs. around 512 Kbps on standard Unlimited). Not every destination offers both tiers - where both exist, compare each option's "Fair use" details (shown when you select it) to see the exact numbers before choosing.

For data plans, yes: if your eSIM has not been installed and no data has been used, you're eligible for a full refund within 14 days. Once an eSIM is installed or any data is used, it can't be refunded. Two things are never refundable in any circumstances: Calls + SMS + Data plans, which start and issue your phone number the moment you buy, and top-ups, which apply to an eSIM that is already in use. The only exception to both is a delivery failure on our side. See our full Refund Policy for details.

We strongly recommend against it - if you no longer need a line, turn it off instead of deleting it. If an eSIM is accidentally deleted, reinstalling it may be possible manually using the codes from your original purchase email, but only on the same device it was deleted from, and it isn't guaranteed to work. If you've deleted an eSIM you still need, contact [email protected] and we'll see what we can do.

Yes. All payments are processed securely by Stripe, a leading global payment provider. Telisco never sees or stores your full card details.

No, that step comes from your own bank, not from us. It is called 3D Secure, and banks use it to confirm that the real cardholder is the one paying. Your bank sends you a code by SMS, or asks you to approve the payment in its app. Telisco does not send that code, never sees it, and cannot skip it. If it did not work, try again, since the code often arrives a little late, check your banking app for an approval waiting there, and make sure your phone can still receive SMS on your home number, which is a common problem once you are already travelling on another SIM. If it keeps failing, only your bank can authorise it, or you can try a different card. Email [email protected] and we will send you a fresh checkout link.

No. A payment that fails or is not verified takes no money. If you can see a pending amount on your statement, that is your bank holding it for a moment, and your bank releases it, usually within a few days. We receive nothing from a failed payment, so there is nothing for us to refund. If you can see a completed charge but never received your eSIM email, that is different and we want to know: email [email protected] with your order reference and we will sort it out.

We offer plans for individual countries and whole regions worldwide. Browse available destinations on our Plans page - just search for where you're going.

Depends on the plan. Country plans work in that country only. We also offer regional plans (e.g. "Europe," "Middle East") that cover many countries under one eSIM - check a plan's coverage list, or browse by region if you're visiting multiple destinations on the same trip.

Yes. Our Global plans come in three bundles, each with its own country list: Global Lite covers about 100 of the most travelled countries, Global Max covers over 160, and the Global bundle covers 66. One eSIM works in every country on its list, with nothing to change when you cross a border. Global Lite and Global Max are data only, so you keep your own number for calls and SMS. The Global bundle is also where the Calls + SMS + Data global plans sit, each with a phone number and its own covered-country list shown on the plan. Check the covered-country list on the Global page before you buy; every country page also lists the Global and regional plans that include it.

Email us any time at [email protected]. We aim to respond within 24 hours, and we're happy to help before, during, or after your trip.