Guernsey Exempts Travel eSIM Mobile Providers from Needing a Licence

The Guernsey Competition & Regulatory Authority (GCRA) has decided to exempt most travel eSIM providers from needing a licence. “The GCRA’s view is that most travel eSIM services bought by Guernsey consumers for use overseas are unlikely to require a Guernsey telecommunications licence,” said the regulator. But there is a limitation.

The question was raised following an application from a locally based travel eSIM provider, which prompted the GCRA to review how travel eSIM services fit within Guernsey’s telecommunications licensing framework. The review found that some services may fall within the Telecommunications (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law where they are used in, or facilitated from within, the Bailiwick. Where this is the case, the provider would normally need a licence or an exemption.

“The GCRA has concluded that individual licensing would not be effective or proportionate, given the global and digital nature of the travel eSIM market. It has therefore issued a Direction granting a class exemption for travel eSIM services which would otherwise require a licence, provided they are supplied to consumers on a temporary travel basis for no more than 30 consecutive days,” said the GCRA. See the Full Ruling.