Roaming charges when travelling through Norway (pictured) or Iceland will be capped
(Picture: Marius Dobilas/Shutterstock)Jet-setting Brits are set to start reaping some of the benefits of Brexit from early next year, as UK officials just announced they have signed an agreement with Norway and Iceland to cap mobile-roaming fees for those travelling there.
The latest announcement doesn’t necessarily scrap roaming fees completely. It merely places a cap on them, and details have yet to be worked out by each country’s telecom operators.
The agreement is part of a wider free-trade agreement signed last year with Norway and Iceland (plus tiny Liechtenstein), as part of the Government’s “Global Britain” policy, to establish the UK as a significant player on the world stage.
The news might be welcomed by some of the 124,000 UK travelers who visited Norway and Iceland in 2021, and by those who might be planning a trip to catch a glimpse of the fabled northern lights, among other Nordic attractions.
It should also be noted that Norway and Iceland are among two of the most expensive countries to visit in Europe, with travellers reporting that a pint of beer hovers around £8 in both nations. When instituted, the cap might help soften the blow of travel there, if only a little.
The 5.08 million who visited Spain and Italy in 2021, on the other hand, are likely to remain disappointed, as companies like Three charge £2 per day for roaming in the EU.
Indeed, in July and August this year, British holidaymakers have been drained of almost £80 million as they headed to Europe, according to Virgin Media O2, which is the only major operator without EU roaming charges.
Readers with a strong memory might recall that roaming fees did not exist at all from 2017 until January 2020, when the UK officially exited the EU. That’s when it was left up to individual operators to decide whether or not to bring back charges.
Meanwhile, the EU recently decided to ban roaming fees within its countries for another decade.
