ARCEPs latest guidance on Europe roaming frames roam like at home (RLAH) as a tariff and access rule: for compliant offers, the in-travel experience for voice, SMS, and data should match what the customer gets at home, and only specific exceptions should trigger change.
For French mobile customers, ARCEP reiterates the mechanics of roaming charging through the visited network, and then lays out where the RLAH geography applies (and where it doesnt), alongside the conditions operators can use when they seek to charge more or to apply mobile data usage limits.
How RLAH charging works for voice and SMS while roaming
ARCEP says that when a French mobile customer travels abroad, they are on the visited operators network. In that situation, calling minutes, SMS messages, and consumed data use resources on the visited operators network, and fees flow back to the customers French home operator. business roaming is therefore tied to how operators settle usage across home and visited networks.
ARCEP also says operators cannot restrict the calls and SMS that can be used while roaming, meaning the call and SMS volumes included in the customers offer must be accessible in the RLAH area as at home. During travel in the RLAH zone, ARCEP states that the services are billed at the national tariff and under the conditions set by the customers home mobile operator offer.
RLAH countries and the perimeter that does not carry the rules
ARCEP states that the RLAH country perimeter corresponds to the European Economic Area (EEA), listing the EU member states plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway, along with Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova as covered destinations once the relevant dates apply.
ARCEP also draws two lines around where the roaming rules do not apply: first, it says the rules do not apply to roaming communications between EEA states that are not EU member states (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) and Ukraine or Moldova; second, it says the rules do not apply between Ukraine and Moldova.
ARCEP further says the United Kingdom is no longer part of the European Union from 1 January 2021 and is treated as a third country for roaming like at home regulation purposes. It adds that operators may voluntarily keep removing roaming fees for French clients traveling to the United Kingdom, and it advises users to check their contract or contact their operator for details.
Mobile internet limits: permitted where the offer type and bounds fit
ARCEP says mobile internet access must also be available while roaming in the RLAH area as at home. However, it states operators may define a usage limit for mobile internet outside the home territory for unlimited or particularly generous mobile internet plans and for prepaid offers.
ARCEP says the ability to set such a limit is intended to help operators manage their purchase costs from foreign mobile operators and avoid increases in mobile plan prices, while also insisting that any usage limit is strictly bounded and must in any case provide comfortable mobile internet usage while traveling in the RLAH zone.
When operators can ask ARCEP to deviate from the RLAH norm
Beyond usage limits for mobile data, ARCEP also describes an exemption path for operators. It says mobile operators that apply may be authorized by ARcep for a 12-month period to offer less favorable roaming conditions than the RLAH norm if they can demonstrate a significant deficit in providing roaming services in the RLAH zone.
ARCEP states that the deficit threshold must be greater than 3% of the operators margin on mobile services (in absolute value) to qualify. It also says that an operators exemption from the norm might be used only for part of its offers, might include international roaming in RLAH with stronger limitations, or might not be used at all. For the currently authorized operator to charge additional fees, ARCEP identifies Lebara France Ltd, and it references Arceps decision no. 2025-1935, published on 14 October 2025.