EU Mobile Roaming Cap now in Force

European business travellers and holidaymakers will still be hit with high roaming charges this summer despite a new EU price cap, which came into force last Sunday.

The problem arises because companies have until the end of August to start charging new tariffs.

Under the rules, operators cannot charge EU subscribers making cross-border calls within the 27-nation bloc more than 49 euro cents (66 US cents) a minute in the first year of application while receiving a call could cost no more than 24 cents.

The ceiling for roaming services, which excludes value added tax, would then drop again in the second year, falling to 46 and 22 cents and then 43 and 19 cents in the third year.

“At last Europeans can breath a sigh of relief as the EU Roaming Regulation finally becomes binding law across all Member States,” said Viviane Reding, Commissioner for Information Society and Media.

The price cap was introduced in a bid to cut exorbitant roaming charges by up to 70pc, after EU officials became frustrated with mobile phone operators’ failure to do so voluntarily.

Mobile companies have to offer customers a new roaming Eurotariff by the end of July and if accepted, the company is obliged have to activate it within one month.

To end the system where people don’t know how much they are paying until hit with a massive bill when they get home, customers will also receive a free text when they arrive in a new EU country informing them of the price they can expect to pay for using their phone.

The new law does not affect charges for sending or receiving text and picture messages which can be very high and the EU Commission said that they hoped that operators would lower these voluntarily.