Given that the countries who fall under the EU banner share the continent and currency, it seems that what they don’t share is a standard telco rate. This means that if you were to travel within Europe, you could face roaming charges despite coming from one of the countries in Europe.It sounds ridiculous but we suppose it makes good business sense, but back in 2013, the EU Commission planned to drop roaming charges. The initial plan was to drop it by 2016 but a report from earlier this year suggested 2018, but it looks like we now have an official date, which according to the EU Commission (via Engadget) has been set for the 15th of June 2017.
According to the press release from the EU Commission, “Under today’s agreement roaming charges will cease to exist in the EU as of 15 June 2017. Consumers will pay the same price for calls, texts and mobile data wherever they are travelling in the EU. Calling a friend when you are at home or in another EU country won’t make a difference on your bill.”
That being said, we realize that 2017 is still two years away meaning that until then, roaming charges will still be in effect. This means that if you are planning to travel within Europe, this is something you should pay attention to, lest you arrive home and find yourself with bill shock, but either way this change is definitely something to look forward to.