EU and Western Balkans telcos to cut data roaming charges from October
Telecommunications operators from the European Union and the countries from the Western Balkans have agreed to gradually decrease data roaming prices from October 2023 to 2028, the European Commission said in a press release. Western Balkans roaming charges
The agreement reached between a total of 38 telecommunication operations from both EU and Western Balkan countries is supported by the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) as well as the European Commission, and it is in line with the Roaming Declaration signed previously in Albania’s capital.
The operators vowed to reduce the gap between domestic fees regarding data usage in both territories. It means that the maximum retail price levels for one gigabyte will decline starting from October this year to 2028 as follows:
- €18 from October 1, 2023
- €14 from 2026
- €9 from 2028
The introduction of price caps will reduce data roaming prices for consumers by at least a third of the current average price for data roaming, the Commission said.
“This voluntary agreement will bring predictability, help eliminate consumer bill shocks, and facilitate substantially lowering data roaming charges for the EU and Western Balkan consumers, ” Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, commented.
On July 1, 2021, the Western Balkan countries eliminated roaming costs within the region, following the Roam Like at Home regime. Telecom Ministries and Independent Regulators of the area hailed this as a historic achievement of cooperation.
In December, telecommunications operators from the EU member states and the Western Balkan countries signed an agreement to reduce roaming charges between the EU and the Western Balkans as of October 1.
Territories classed under Western Balkans in EU documents are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.
