How to Receive SMS Abroad: Get Texts and Codes While Traveling
By
Hieu Nguyen
How to keep receiving texts and verification codes abroad: the home SIM plus travel eSIM setup on iPhone and Android, and fixes when SMS doesn't arrive.
How to keep receiving texts and verification codes abroad: the home SIM plus travel eSIM setup on iPhone and Android, and fixes when SMS doesn't arrive.
Quick answer: you can receive SMS abroad on your normal number as long as your home SIM stays switched on and international roaming is allowed on your plan. Receiving texts while roaming is often free (inside the EU it costs nothing extra), but it depends on your carrier. If you use a travel eSIM for data, keep your home line on for texts and turn off data roaming on it only. When texts still don't arrive, the usual causes are a switched-off line, roaming blocked on your account, short-code messages that don't work abroad, or a bank that won't send codes to a roaming number.
Below: how SMS works when you travel, a setup that keeps your texts and verification codes arriving, step by step on iPhone and Android, and how to fix the most common "not receiving texts abroad" problems.
Table of contents
How SMS works when you travel
Normal text messages (SMS) are tied to your phone number and your home carrier. When you're abroad, they reach you through a partner network in that country (roaming). Two things follow from that:
- Your home SIM has to be on and connected to a network abroad. A text can't reach a SIM that is switched off or has roaming blocked.
- A travel eSIM doesn't receive your texts. Most travel eSIMs are data only, with no number. They give you internet, not SMS.
Messages sent through apps work differently. iMessage, WhatsApp, Telegram and RCS chats travel over the internet, so they arrive on any data connection, including a travel eSIM or hotel Wi-Fi. That's why WhatsApp works abroad while bank texts don't.
| Message type | How it arrives | Works on a data-only travel eSIM? |
|---|---|---|
| SMS from people and services | Mobile network, to your number | No, needs your home SIM on |
| Bank and app verification codes (OTP) | SMS to your number | No, needs your home SIM on |
| iMessage, WhatsApp, Telegram | Internet | Yes |
Is receiving SMS abroad free?
Often, but not always. It depends on your plan:
- EU and EEA plans: under the EU's "Roam like at home" rules, which run until 2032, receiving texts in another EU or EEA country costs nothing extra.
- Other plans: many carriers don't charge for incoming SMS when roaming, but some do, and some roaming packages only cover sent messages. Check your carrier's roaming page for the country you're visiting.
- Incoming calls are different. Answering calls while roaming is often charged, even when texts are free.
Data: 5GB
Validity: 30
Days
The setup that keeps texts arriving: home SIM + travel eSIM
If your phone supports two lines (most iPhones from the XS onward and many Android phones do), use your home SIM for texts and calls and a travel eSIM for data. Apple confirms that with Dual SIM both numbers can receive SMS while only one line uses mobile data.
On iPhone
- Install your travel eSIM before you leave, using Wi-Fi.
- Go to Settings > Cellular (or Mobile Service) and make sure both lines are turned on.
- Tap Cellular Data and choose the travel eSIM.
- Tap your home line and turn Data Roaming off. Keep the line itself on so SMS can arrive.
- Tap the travel eSIM and turn Data Roaming on (travel eSIMs need it to connect).
On Android (Samsung and Pixel)
- Install the travel eSIM before your trip.
- Open Settings > Connections > SIM manager (Samsung) or Settings > Network & internet > SIMs (Pixel) and keep both SIMs on.
- Set Mobile data to the travel eSIM.
- Open your home SIM and turn Roaming off for data, but leave the SIM enabled.
- Turn roaming on for the travel eSIM.
Test it before you fly: send yourself a text and request a login code from your bank while still at home, with the travel eSIM set as the data line.
Wi-Fi calling: texts without roaming
Some carriers let your home number send and receive calls and texts over Wi-Fi calling, even abroad. On iPhone, turning on Allow Cellular Data Switching lets your home line use the travel eSIM's data for Wi-Fi calling, as Apple shows in its Dual SIM guide. Keep data roaming off on the home line so it doesn't use roaming data. Not every carrier allows Wi-Fi calling outside your home country, and some only allow it on certain plans, so check with yours and test it before you leave.
Why am I not receiving SMS abroad? Common causes and fixes
| Cause | What to do |
|---|---|
| Home SIM line is turned off | Turn the line back on in your SIM settings. You can still keep its data roaming off. |
| Roaming isn't enabled on your account | Ask your carrier to activate international roaming before you travel. Some prepaid plans block it by default. |
| Phone hasn't registered on a network abroad | Restart, toggle airplane mode, or choose a network manually in your SIM settings. |
| The sender uses a short code (e.g. a 5 or 6 digit number) | Short codes are often country specific and may not reach roaming phones. Ask the company for a long-number or voice-call option. |
| Your bank won't send codes abroad | Some banks block or delay codes to roaming numbers. Switch to the bank's app approval or an authenticator before you go. |
| You're using a local SIM instead of your home SIM | Texts go to your home number only. Use dual SIM, or swap SIMs when you need a code. |
| Messages filtered as spam | Check the Unknown Senders or spam filter in your Messages app. |
Why am I not receiving international SMS on my iPhone?
Check, in this order: the home line is on in Settings > Cellular; you have signal on that line (not "No Service"); the correct number is selected for messages in Settings > Messages; the Unknown Senders or spam filter isn't hiding the message; then restart. If iMessage works but SMS doesn't, the issue is with roaming on your carrier's side, so contact them.
Other ways to get your codes abroad
- Bank app approvals: many banks let you approve logins in their app over any internet connection.
- Authenticator apps: codes are generated on your phone and work offline. See authenticator apps vs SMS 2FA when traveling.
- A second number: if your home SIM can't roam at all, an eSIM with its own number can receive texts. See eSIM with a phone number.
For bank codes specifically, follow our guide to receiving bank SMS 2FA abroad with an eSIM.
Keep your number, add travel data
Install a BitJoy eSIM next to your home SIM so texts keep arriving while you browse on local data.
Shop eSIM PlansFrequently asked questions
Can I receive SMS when I am overseas?
Yes, on your normal number, if your home SIM is on and international roaming is active on your plan. A data-only travel eSIM can't receive SMS itself.
Is receiving SMS internationally free?
Often, but it depends on your carrier and destination. Within the EU and EEA, EU plans receive texts at no extra cost. Elsewhere, check your carrier's roaming rates.
Can I receive texts if data roaming is off?
Yes. SMS doesn't use mobile data, so you can turn data roaming off on your home line and still receive texts, as long as the line itself is on.
Why am I not receiving SMS from abroad?
If people abroad can't reach you, or codes don't arrive, the usual reasons are a home line that is switched off, roaming not activated on your account, short-code senders that don't work internationally, or a bank that blocks codes to roaming numbers.
Will I get my texts if I use a local SIM?
No. A local SIM has a different number. Texts to your home number arrive only when your home SIM is in your phone and on.
