The European Commission has proposed opening negotiations with six countries in the Western Balkans – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia – to extend its ‘Roam Like at Home’ initiative.
Roam Like at Home enables citizens of any EU country to make calls, send text messages and use mobile data without facing roaming surcharges.
Under the proposed arrangement, citizens and businesses visiting Western Balkan countries would pay domestic rates for mobile services, with the same applying to residents of these countries travelling across the EU.
Roaming charges
“Roaming charges are a problem for people across the Western Balkans,” commented Marta Kos, Commissioner for Enlargement. “They affect workers crossing borders or families who simply want to stay in touch.
“Surprise bills or higher charges when travelling are something we no longer know inside the EU. Today we proposed to extend this to the Western Balkans. It would mean easier calls, and mobile data that works at home prices.”
As the Commission noted, the measure will help to support cross-border activity, as well as supporting those travelling for study, work or holidays.
Next steps
The Commission is currently seeking authorisation from the European Council to commence bilateral agreements with each country – once these are completed, the six countries would become part of the EU roaming area.
The initiative builds on existing voluntary agreements between several mobile operators in the EU and these six countries to reduce roaming charges, as well as a regional roaming agreement across the Western Balkans.
“Today, we are taking a significant step for the Western Balkan partners’ journey towards joining the EU’s roaming family,” added Henna Virkkunen, executive vice-president for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy. “It is good news both for citizens and businesses.”
The proposal forms part of the EU’s approach to gradual integration ahead of EU accession, as set out in the 2023 Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. The Growth Plan brings forward benefits of EU membership by progressively integrating the Western Balkan partners into the EU’s Single Market. Read more here.
