Dual SIM travel setup: keep your number, use travel data

Prepare before departure, then install the travel eSIM after landing on working airport Wi-Fi, hotel Wi-Fi or another steady trusted connection. Give the lines clear names and select travel data deliberately. Keeping two SIMs enabled does not automatically send data through the cheaper one.

• Check the exact phone: model, country of purchase and carrier restrictions can affect eSIM and simultaneous dual SIM support. A phone that stores several eSIMs may not run them all at once.
• Check the lock: using different providers may require an unlocked handset. On iPhone, look for the carrier-lock status in Settings, General, About; ask the carrier if unsure.
• Keep the Australian number active: travel data does not renew the original service or replace its number.
• Save access: keep the eSIM setup email available and sign into carrier and bank apps at home.
• Check roaming and voicemail: confirm the Australian service’s rules for your destination if you need incoming SMS or calls.

Buy a plan that covers the destinations, trip duration and expected data. For example, our Japan 10GB / 30-day plan is A$19.95. That is 10GB for the whole validity period, with no ordinary calls or SMS. It does not change what your Australian carrier charges.

Bank SMS requires a supported roaming connection and the bank sending the message to the correct number. Calls, outgoing texts and voicemail can cause charges even with Australian-line data roaming off. Read our bank SMS guide before relying on incoming codes.

A call can also affect the other line’s data connection on some device and carrier combinations. Do not enable automatic switching just to make a call work without checking where it sends data. If the Australian number is unnecessary for the trip, you can turn that line off and accept that its mobile calls and SMS will be unavailable.

1. Connect to working airport or hotel Wi-Fi and confirm that a webpage loads. A Wi-Fi icon alone does not prove the connection works.
2. Open the setup email for the correct order and read the plan instructions.
3. Add the eSIM using its QR code or the supported installation method in the email. If scanning from the same phone is awkward, show the QR on a second screen or follow the manual method provided.
4. Label the new line “Travel data” and the original line “Australian number”.
5. Choose the travel line for mobile data and check the settings below before disconnecting from Wi-Fi.

Do not delete your Australian eSIM to make room without checking the phone’s capabilities and a recovery method with its carrier. Turning an unused line off is different from deleting it. If an installation fails, keep the error message and contact support before repeatedly scanning or removing profiles.

iPhone

Open Settings, then Mobile Service or Mobile Data, and use Add eSIM. Follow the setup email and onscreen installation route. Once installed, select the travel eSIM under Mobile Data and turn Allow Mobile Data Switching off.

Open each line to confirm its label and enabled state. Keep Data Roaming off on the Australian line; use the travel line’s Data Roaming setting as instructed in the email. The default voice line is separate from the data line, so check which number a call or SMS will use before sending.

Samsung Galaxy

Open Settings, Connections, SIM manager, then Add eSIM. Follow the QR or other installation method provided. In SIM manager, choose the travel eSIM for Mobile data and review the Calls and Text messages selections separately.

Turn off automatic data switching or backup data if your model offers it. Roaming menus vary across Galaxy models and software versions. Confirm which SIM a roaming setting applies to before changing it, and follow the travel plan instructions. Do not assume a single global toggle affects only the Australian line.

Google Pixel

Open Settings, Network and internet, then SIMs. Use the add-SIM option and follow the eSIM download or QR steps. Select the travel eSIM for mobile data, then review the preferred SIMs for calls and texts.

Disable automatic mobile-data switching if shown. Check roaming within the relevant SIM’s settings and apply the travel email’s instructions to that line. Pixel support for two active eSIMs and simultaneous call/data behaviour depends on model and carrier, so use Google’s model guidance if the options differ.

If the webpage loads, return to the data settings and confirm the travel line is still selected. If it does not, reconnect to Wi-Fi and check one setting at a time against the email. A second signal indicator is not proof that data is using the intended line.

For a hypothetical seven-day trip, label the existing service “Australian number” and the new profile “Japan data”. Choose Japan data for Mobile Data; keep the Australian line’s Data Roaming and automatic data switching off. If you still need incoming bank SMS, leave the Australian line enabled only after confirming its overseas receipt and charge conditions. Check the SMS number with the bank before departure and prepare its supported app-based verification too.

If you do not need ordinary calls or SMS, turn the Australian line off and leave Japan data enabled. That removes mobile access to the Australian number while it is off; it does not cancel the account. A messaging app already configured on that number can still use travel data, while re-registration or a new verification request may require access to the original number.

Select the Australian line for mobile data again and review your normal call and text defaults. Turn the travel line off if it is no longer needed. Keep its setup details until you are sure the trip is finished; deleting an eSIM is not the same as pausing it and may make it harder to reuse or troubleshoot.

• Wi-Fi calling overseas: what Australians should check
• RCS messages overseas with a travel eSIM

Prices, plan terms and product options checked on 30 October 2026. All prices in this guide are Australian dollars. Check the provider’s current offer and your account before buying.

• Apple: using Dual SIM with an eSIM
• Google: use two SIMs on your Pixel phone
• Samsung Australia: install a SIM card and eSIM
• Telstra: reducing mobile costs overseas
• The SIM Shop: Japan eSIM