Virgin Media international roaming FAQ

Virgin Media customers can use their inclusive, texts, minutes and data for no extra charge in 43 EU locations with its Roam Like Home scheme.

Even after Britain's departure from the EU, Virgin Mobile has so far kept EU roaming charges at bay. Should you exceed your usual allowance while roaming in the EU, you'll incur charges at the standard out-of-plan rate, mirroring the rates in the UK.

In light of the O2 and Virgin Media merger, Virgin Mobile customers will undergo a transition to O2 plans by the end of 2023. While these plans may have slightly different roaming rules, they still include free EU roaming.

Which locations are included in Virgin Media roaming?

Only EU countries, plus some of their owned territories, are included in Virgin Media’s Roam Like Home:

• Austria

• Belgium

• Bulgaria

• Canary Islands

• Croatia

• Cyprus

• Czech Republic

• Denmark

• Estonia

• Finland

• France

• French Guiana

• Germany

• Gibraltar

• Greece

• Guadeloupe

• Hungary

• Iceland

• Ireland

• Italy

• Latvia

• Liechtenstein

• Lithuania

• Luxembourg

• Madeira

• Malta

• Martinique

• Mayotte

• Monaco

• Netherlands

• Norway

• Poland

• Portugal

• Réunion Islands

• Romania

• Saint-Barthélemy

• San Marino

• Slovakia

• Slovenia

• Spain

• Sweden

• The French Antilles

• Vatican City (Italy)

What is Roam Like Home?

Roam Like Home is Virgin Mobile's roaming service, which allows you to use your mobile phone in the EU just as you would in the UK.

It means that if you travel to one of the 43 eligible destinations, you do not need to pay any extra to access the internet or make calls, and the rules of your plan will stay the same.

All EU countries are included in the service, which means that Brexit hasn't had an impact on the charges you're faced with while using the internet on your phone abroad.

Which Virgin Mobile plans include free roaming?

You'll get inclusive EU roaming on all pay monthly and SIM only plans on Virgin Media as well as tablet deals.

You'll get access to your regular allowance of minutes, texts and data when travelling to any of the abovementioned locations – subject to fair usage limits detailed below.

Virgin Mobile's fair usage policy

Virgin Mobile’s fair usage policy varies depending on your plan, making it a little more complicated than other networks. The Virgin Mobile fair usage policy also states that you can't excessively roam abroad for four consecutive months, which is fairly similar to other networks requiring a certain amount of time spent at home vs roaming.

However, as mentioned above, following the merger between Virgin Media and O2, all Virgin Mobile customers will be moved to O2 plans by the end of 2023. Therefore, you should be aware that O2 has a 25GB cap for roaming in the EU.

Which countries are not included in Virgin Media roaming packages?

Unfortunately, Virgin Mobiles doesn't currently include free roaming in popular destinations like the USA or Turkey. You can still use your phone, but you'll be charged additional roaming fees depending on where you're travelling to. This can be as much as £12.50 per MB of data you use, which if you decide to watch a few videos on social media could quickly result in a hefty bill when you get home.

For example, when roaming in the USA, Canada or Australia, you'll be charged £5 per MB, 50p per text, £2 per minute when making a call and £1.50 per minute when receiving a call. So maybe stick to Facetiming on Wi-Fi when catching up with friends and family back home.

Virgin Media roaming charges

You’re able to explore roaming opportunities in a variety of countries worldwide. However, your regular allowance won't apply, and you'll incur charges at a distinct out-of-plan rate. For out-of-plan usage, Virgin Mobile will cap the monthly charge at £52.02 by default.

If you wish to remove this limit, simply send a text with YES to 23457. If you then want to reinstate the limit, text NO to the same number.

At the time of writing, there are still a number of countries in which you can't use your Virgin Mobile plan at all, including:

• Brunei Darussalam

• Ethiopia

• Falkland Islands

• Guam

• Guyana

• Lesotho

• Namibia

• New Caledonia

• Northern Mariana Islands

• Paraguay

• Solomon Islands

• Somalia

• Swaziland

• Timor-Leste

• Turkmenistan

• Vanuatu

• Venezuela

• Zimbabwe

Does Virgin Mobile have 5G roaming?

Virgin Media doesn't currently have 5G roaming, which is only available on a few networks such as Vodafone and some MVNOs using its network like VOXI . The maximum signal you can receive when roaming is 4G.

Virgin Mobile data add-ons when roaming

Virgin Mobile data add-ons function the same way whether you're in the UK or an EU country. There are no additional charges when using a data add-on in a Roam Like Home destination.

Opt for 1GB at £10 or 3GB at £20, easily accessible through Your Account or the Virgin Mobile app.

You can purchase multiple data add-ons if needed, but it's important to note that each data add-on will reset and be forfeited when your allowance refreshes at the beginning of each month.