Using my pay as you go phone on cellular service in Canada

[gaiyabeck]

I will be in Canada till December, and EE has told me I need to send a text or make a call every 3-6 months to ensure that I keep my number and the outstanding balance in my account. When I switch to my EE SIM card and try to do either, the phone can't find a network. My daughter suggested the international roaming might be deactivated on my SIM. Is she right? If so, how do I get it activated so I can send a message? If not, what should I be doing to access an available cellular network?  Thanks!

[Chris_B]

@gaiyabeck  With it being a pay-as-you-go you don’t need to activate anything for roaming.  Try manually searching for a network on your device for the EE SIM card.   You’ll also need credit on your account to pay for the call/text as no pack allowance will cover you for this. 

[Christopher_G]

Hi @gaiyabeck.

Welcome to the community.

Did you use the pay as you go SIM card in the UK to make a call or send a text before you travelled to Canada?

Chris

[gaiyabeck]

Hi Chris,

Yes - I used the phone on pay-as-you-go for 4 months, and have now returned to Canada until December.

[gaiyabeck]

Thanks for the advice, Chris. New wrinkle: I can't seem to override the automatic network selection setting for the EE. I'm not sure if it matters, but I have an eSIM for my Canadian account and a physical SIM for the EE account.

[Katie_B]

Hi  @gaiyabeck. 

What happens when you try to manually select a network?

Katie.