Last updated: 14 October 2026
Sky Mobile roaming is not free in Europe. In 120 destinations, including the EU, the USA, Turkey and Thailand, Sky's Roaming Passport Plus lets you use your UK data, calls and texts for £2 per 24 hours, charged only on the days you use your phone. It starts by itself when you use more than 10MB of data, or make a call or send a text. Your roaming data is capped at 25GB per billing cycle, then £2.50 per GB. Places outside the list are charged at "rest of the world" rates: Japan, for example, costs £2.16 per MB.
So a week in Spain or New York costs £14 on top of your plan. That is fair for a short trip. A travel eSIM is worth comparing on long trips, where £2 a day adds up, and in destinations Roaming Passport Plus does not cover.
Going to Japan? It is not on Sky's Roaming Passport Plus list, so data costs £2.16 per MB: 1GB would cost more than £2,200. A week of Japan data with us, 40GB, costs $13.99 (prices in US dollars).
What changed in 2026
On 26 May 2026 Sky more than doubled its Roaming Passport Plus list, from 55 destinations to 120. The new ones include India, Egypt, Singapore, Barbados, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Morocco, Peru, Mauritius and China. The USA, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Thailand are on the list too. The price stayed at £2 a day.
Sky has also blocked roaming in some countries "until further notice": Zimbabwe from 1 May 2026, the Central African Republic from 10 June 2026, Burundi, Djibouti and Kyrgyzstan from 27 August 2026, and 17 more from 2 September 2026, including Russia, Belarus, Cuba, Uruguay, Mongolia and Macao.
How Roaming Passport Plus works
From Sky's tariff guide (prices effective 7 October 2026) and help pages:
- £2 per 24 hours, only on days you use it. There is nothing to buy or switch on. The pass starts when you use more than 10MB of data in a day, make a call or send a text. Receiving calls and texts does not start it. Sky texts you when a 24-hour pass starts and when it is ending.
- The 24 hours run on UK time from the moment it starts, not midnight to midnight.
- One pass covers the whole EU/EEA and Switzerland. Cross from France to Italy in the same 24 hours and you pay once. Outside Europe, each destination starts its own pass, so a day split between two countries can cost two passes.
- Your UK plan applies. Data comes from your monthly allowance, and from your Sky Piggybank if you have saved data there. Calls and texts to the UK count as at home.
- 25GB fair usage. Past 25GB of roaming data in a billing cycle, extra data costs £2.50 per GB, pro rated. If you then only use data, no daily pass is charged.
- Calls to local numbers are extra. A call to a number in the EU/EEA costs 55p a minute and a text 10p; calls to local numbers elsewhere are charged at Sky's international rates.
- Your spend cap must allow it. The £2 counts toward your monthly spend cap. Set to £0 or too low, the cap blocks your phone abroad. Sky's own example: for a week away, set it to at least £14.
- Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man: your UK data works there at no extra cost.
- Sky VIP Diamond customers get Free Global Roaming in the same 120 destinations at no extra cost.
Where Roaming Passport Plus works, and where it does not
The list covers the whole EU/EEA, Switzerland, the USA, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Turkey (including Northern Cyprus), Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Morocco, South Africa and much of the Caribbean and Latin America.
Some popular places are not on it and are charged per use at rest-of-world rates:
| Destination | Data | Calls (local or UK) | Receiving a call | Text |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | £2.16 per MB | £2.16 a minute | £1.80 a minute | 50p |
| Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain | £2.16 per MB | £2.16 a minute | £1.80 a minute | 50p |
| Kenya, Tanzania | £2.16 per MB | £2.16 a minute | £1.80 a minute | 50p |
| Jordan | £4.32 per MB | £4.68 a minute | £1.80 a minute | 72p |
| Maldives, Seychelles | No data roaming | £8.64 a minute | £2.88 a minute | £1.08 |
| Monaco | 36p per MB | 72p a minute | 14p a minute | 14p |
Japan is the surprise. At £2.16 per MB, 1GB of data would cost more than £2,200. On a cruise, Sky has no mobile data at sea, and nothing works in the air.
What a trip costs with Sky Mobile
- A week in Spain: £14 if you use your phone every day. Spend a day only on Wi-Fi with no calls or texts, and that day is free.
- A week in the USA: £14, on your UK allowance. The same £2 a day as Europe.
- Two weeks in Turkey: £28, on your UK allowance, if you use data, call or text every day.
- A month in Thailand: about £60 for 30 days, and your roaming data counts toward the 25GB cap per billing cycle.
- Two weeks in Japan: no pass at all. Turn data roaming off and use Wi-Fi or another data plan.
When a travel eSIM is cheaper
Roaming Passport Plus is simple, and for a short trip with a generous UK plan it is good value. A travel eSIM tends to win when:
- You go to Japan, or anywhere else outside the 120. Rest-of-world data at £2.16 per MB is not usable for maps and apps.
- The trip is long. £2 a day is £28 for two weeks and £60 for a month, before any data past 25GB. A travel eSIM for the whole trip is one fixed price.
- Your UK plan is small. Roaming uses your own allowance. On a 3GB or 5GB plan, a holiday of maps, photos and video calls runs out quickly.
- You use a lot of data. Past 25GB in a billing cycle, Sky charges £2.50 per GB.
- Your trip crosses several countries outside Europe. Each one starts its own £2 pass, so two countries in one day can cost £4.
Being honest: for a one-week trip in Europe or the USA where you use your phone every day, £14 is hard to beat by much, and nothing needs setting up. A travel eSIM needs a phone that takes an eSIM and is unlocked: check yours in 30 seconds. For the general picture, see travel eSIM vs international roaming.
For two weeks or more in Europe, compare a Europe plan for the whole trip with £2 a day.
How to use Sky Mobile and a travel eSIM together
You can keep your Sky number reachable without paying the daily charge, as long as you are careful about what starts the pass.
- Install the travel eSIM at home, on Wi-Fi: iPhone or Android.
- When you land, set the eSIM as the line for mobile data and turn on data roaming for the eSIM only.
- On your Sky line, turn data roaming off. More than 10MB of data on the Sky line starts a £2 pass.
- Do not call or send texts from your Sky number. Either one starts the pass. Receiving calls and texts does not, in Roaming Passport Plus destinations, so bank codes still arrive for free.
- Make calls over the eSIM's data with WhatsApp or FaceTime. Sky says Wi-Fi Calling only works in the UK: abroad, your phone uses the normal mobile signal and roaming charges apply.
Sky Mobile offers its own line as an eSIM too, so you can keep Sky on a SIM card or an eSIM alongside the travel eSIM. Our USA, Turkey and Thailand pages compare plans for longer stays.
Comparing networks? See how giffgaff, SMARTY, Tesco Mobile, Lebara, iD Mobile and VOXI handle roaming.
FAQ
Is Sky Mobile roaming free in Europe?
No. As of October 2026, roaming in the EU costs £2 per 24 hours with Roaming Passport Plus, charged only on days you use data over 10MB, make a call or send a text. Sky VIP Diamond customers get Free Global Roaming at no extra cost.
How much is Sky Mobile roaming per day?
£2 per 24 hours in all 120 Roaming Passport Plus destinations, as of 14 October 2026. You use your UK data, calls and texts, with a 25GB roaming fair usage limit per billing cycle.
Does Sky Mobile work in the USA?
Yes. The USA is a Roaming Passport Plus destination, so as of October 2026 you use your UK allowances there for £2 per 24 hours on the days you use your phone.
Does Sky Mobile work in Japan?
Yes, but Japan is not in Roaming Passport Plus as of October 2026. Sky's tariff guide charges £2.16 per MB of data, £2.16 a minute for calls and £1.80 a minute to receive one, so keep data roaming off there.
What is the Sky Mobile roaming fair usage limit?
25GB of roaming data per billing cycle, per SIM, as of October 2026. Past that, extra data costs £2.50 per GB, pro rated.
Does Sky Mobile Wi-Fi Calling work abroad?
No. As of October 2026 Sky says Wi-Fi Calling is only available in the UK. Abroad your phone uses the normal mobile signal and roaming charges apply.
Why is my Sky Mobile not working abroad?
Check your spend cap first. As of October 2026, Sky says a cap set to £0 or too low blocks your phone abroad, and the £2 daily charge counts toward it. Then check that data roaming is on and that your destination is on Sky's list.
Facts checked on 14 October 2026 against Sky Mobile's own pages and its tariff guide of 7 October 2026.