Keeping Your Phone Number for Erasmus

You just arrived at your new university abroad. You turn on your phone to check Google Maps and message your family. Instantly, your home carrier sends a text: international roaming data costs $15 per day. You panic and turn off cellular data. You are now disconnected in a new city.

Studying abroad requires constant connectivity. You need data to navigate campus, translate languages, and stay in touch with friends. But you also face a specific dilemma. You must keep your home phone number active. Your bank, university portals, and government services send two-factor authentication (2FA) codes via SMS. If you lose access to those texts, you lose access to your money and accounts.

You need a strategy to get local data while keeping your original number alive.

The Connectivity Problem for Students Abroad

Moving to a new country changes your data needs. A short vacation allows you to survive on hotel Wi-Fi. A six-month exchange program demands a permanent connection. You will use data to find an apartment, open a local bank account, and coordinate group projects.

Many students assume their home phone plan will cover them. This assumption leads to massive bills.

If you travel from the US, carriers like AT&T or Verizon charge up to $15 per day for international passes. Over a 30-day month, that equals $450 just for phone data. This breaks a student budget immediately.

If you have a European phone plan, you might think EU roaming rules protect you. European carriers offer free roaming within the EU, but there is a strict limit. This limit is called the Fair Use Policy. Carriers monitor your location. If you use your home plan abroad for more than four consecutive months, your carrier flags your account. They will cut off your data or add heavy surcharges for every megabyte you use. An Erasmus year lasts six to twelve months. Your home plan will fail you halfway through the semester.

You must find an alternative. Finding a way of receiving your 2FA codes abroad means balancing cost, data volume, and the ability to receive home texts.

Available Solutions and Their Real Costs

Students typically look at three traditional options before discovering eSIMs. Each comes with specific hidden costs or technical drawbacks.

The Local Physical SIM Card

You walk into a local telecom shop and buy a prepaid physical SIM card. You get a local phone number and a local data allowance.

The problem is your hardware. Most modern smartphones only have one physical SIM card slot. To insert the new local SIM, you must remove your home SIM card. The moment you remove that card, your home number goes dead. You miss text messages from your family. Your banking app locks you out because you cannot receive the login verification text. You isolate yourself from your home contacts.

The Pocket WiFi Router

You rent a portable Wi-Fi router. This small device connects to local cell towers and broadcasts a Wi-Fi network for your phone and laptop.

This works for a family on vacation, but it fails for a solo student. You pay a high daily rental fee. Rental companies demand security deposits of $100 or more. You must carry a second device everywhere you go. You have to charge it every night. If the battery dies during a night out, you lose your map access and your ability to call a taxi.

GoMoWorld eSIM

An eSIM is a digital SIM card embedded inside your phone. It allows you to download a new data plan without removing your physical SIM card.

GoMoWorld is a data-only eSIM service. This solves the student dilemma perfectly. You keep your physical home SIM card in your phone. You leave your home line active to receive incoming texts and calls. You use the GoMoWorld eSIM for all your heavy data needs. You get a dedicated data connection tailored to your destination without paying roaming fees.

If you study in Berlin, getting online as a student in Germany requires high data limits for a low price. GoMoWorld provides exactly that. If you take a weekend trip to London, finding internet for a young traveler in the UK takes two minutes. You just buy a UK plan in the app.

Comparison Table: Local SIM vs Pocket WiFi vs GoMoWorld eSIM

Our Recommendation for Students Abroad

For an exchange student, GoMoWorld offers the most logical setup. You avoid the high costs of roaming and the technical hassle of swapping physical cards.

Prepay Control and Fixed Budgets

Student budgets are tight. You cannot risk a surprise $200 roaming bill at the end of the month. GoMoWorld operates on a strict prepay system. There are absolutely no overage fees. You pay upfront for the data you need.

The pricing structure is simple and fixed for the destination:

• €3.99 for 7 days (3GB)
• €10.99 for 15 days (10GB)
• €19.99 for 30 days (25GB)

You get 25GB of 4G/5G data for €19.99. When your 30 days end, or if you consume all 25GB, your data simply stops. You will never be charged extra. To get back online, you just open the app and buy another plan.

Hotspot Included for Studying

As a student, your smartphone is not your only device. You need internet on your laptop to write essays, submit assignments, and research topics.

GoMoWorld includes mobile hotspot tethering on all plans by default. You can share your 25GB allowance with your computer. You can study in a local cafe without relying on slow, insecure public Wi-Fi. This flexibility makes it a favorite for working holiday travelers and international students alike.

Dual-SIM Configuration

Modern phones handle two active lines easily. You configure your settings to split the work. You set your phone to use your home physical SIM strictly for voice and SMS. You set your phone to use the GoMoWorld eSIM strictly for cellular data. You turn off "Data Roaming" on your home line to block any accidental $15 daily charges. You get the best of both worlds.

Practical Guide: Set Up and Use GoMoWorld eSIM

Getting connected with GoMoWorld takes less than five minutes. You do not need to visit a store. You do not need to wait for a plastic card in the mail.

1. Download the App: Install the GoMoWorld app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The entire installation happens through the app. We use zero QR codes.
2. Choose Your Destination: Select the country where you will be studying.
3. Pick Your Plan: Choose the 30-day plan for €19.99 to get 25GB of data.
4. Install the eSIM: Follow the on-screen prompts to install the digital profile onto your phone.
5. Activate When Ready: Buy your plan weeks before you travel. GoMoWorld plans never expire until you activate them.
6. Start Your Data: When your plane lands, open the GoMoWorld app and tap "Start". Your data connects instantly. There is no auto-activation. You control exactly when your 30-day period begins.

Finding internet at Coachella comes down to this level of control. You pay for what you use, and you decide when it starts. Keep your original number safe, protect your budget, and enjoy your semester abroad without connectivity stress. Get your GoMoWorld eSIM →

FAQ

How do I keep my home number when going abroad for a year?

You keep your home number by leaving your physical SIM card inside your phone. To avoid high roaming charges for internet, you install a data-only eSIM like GoMoWorld. You configure your phone settings to use the physical SIM for incoming texts and the eSIM for all cellular data.

Can I keep my phone number abroad?

Yes, you can keep your phone number abroad. You must maintain your subscription with your home carrier. Use a dual-SIM setup with a GoMoWorld eSIM to handle your daily internet needs, ensuring you never pay your home carrier's daily roaming fees for data.

Is it possible to keep a French plan in Spain or abroad?

Yes, you can keep a French plan in Spain. However, European Fair Use Policies restrict free roaming after four consecutive months abroad. To avoid surcharges during a long Erasmus stay, use a GoMoWorld eSIM for local data while keeping your French line active for essential SMS and calls.

How to keep your number when changing plans abroad?

Do not cancel your home plan if you want to keep your number. Instead, switch your home plan to the cheapest available tier to maintain the line. Then, use a GoMoWorld eSIM for your heavy daily data usage in your new country. This keeps your original number alive for two-factor authentication codes.