An installed HelloRoam eSIM cannot move to another phone
A HelloRoam eSIM you have installed cannot move to another phone, including with the phone's own transfer feature. If it has not connected to a network your plan covers, email help@helloroam.com and we can issue a new eSIM. After it connects, we do not issue one for a change of phone. Do not delete it from the old phone.
Your situation, and the next move
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| Your eSIM has not connected in your destination yet. | Write to help@helloroam.com. Support can issue a new eSIM for your new phone. |
| Your eSIM has already connected to a supported network in your destination. | It cannot be moved, and support does not issue a new one for a change of phone. |
| You are not sure whether your eSIM has ever connected. | On the HelloRoam website, open My eSIMs, then open the plan's details. If it shows Activated On with a date, or Active on the card, treat the eSIM as in use. Ready, Not Activated and Purchase Date tell you nothing. The HelloRoam app shows no label at all. Not sure? Leave the eSIM on the old phone and say so when you write in. |
| The HelloRoam app still shows a QR code, or on iPhone an install button, for this eSIM. | That is normal, even after the eSIM has connected. It does not mean the code still works, or that the eSIM can move to another phone. Long-pressing the QR code, tapping the install button, or scanning it with another phone changes none of that. For a new phone, write to help@helloroam.com instead. |
| You are not sure the new phone can use eSIM, or it might still be locked to a carrier. | Check that first. A locked phone cannot use a travel eSIM until the carrier unlocks it. |
Check both phones before you write in
iPhone
This checks that your HelloRoam eSIM is still on the old phone. It does not move it anywhere.
Open Settings > Cellular on the old phone.
Check the HelloRoam line is still listed there.
Open Settings > General > About on each phone.
Read each phone's exact model number.
Line names like Primary or Secondary are only labels.
If unsure which line is HelloRoam, match the ICCID with the HelloRoam app.
Don't delete the line.
Leave it as it is, and move on to the contact section below.
Illustration
Samsung
This checks that your HelloRoam eSIM is still on the old phone. It does not move it anywhere.
Open Settings > Connections > SIM manager on the old phone.
Check the HelloRoam eSIM is still listed there.
Open Settings > About phone on each phone.
Read each phone's exact model number.
If eSIMs share a name, match the ICCID with the HelloRoam app.
Do not match them by the order you installed them.
Don't remove the eSIM yourself.
Leave it as it is, and move on to the contact section below.
Illustration
Pixel
This checks that your HelloRoam eSIM is still on the old phone. It does not move it anywhere.
Open Settings > Network & internet > SIMs on the old phone.
Check the HelloRoam line is still listed there.
Open Settings > About phone on each phone.
Read each phone's exact model number.
Line names are only labels.
If unsure which line is HelloRoam, match the ICCID with the HelloRoam app.
Don't remove the line yourself.
Leave it as it is, and move on to the contact section below.
Illustration
Other Android
Menu names change by brand and by Android version. This checks that your HelloRoam eSIM is still on the old phone.
Open Settings > Network & internet > SIMs on the old phone. Older versions call it Mobile network.
Check the HelloRoam line is still listed there.
Open Settings > About phone on each phone.
Read each phone's exact model number.
Line names are only labels.
If unsure which line is HelloRoam, match the ICCID with the HelloRoam app.
Don't remove the line yourself.
Leave it as it is, and move on to the contact section below.
Illustration
If the old phone is gone or broken
- 1
If you no longer have the old phone, say so in your first message. Send everything else on the list below anyway.
- 2
The old phone helps support confirm details, but you do not need it to write in.
Have this ready before you email us
Write to help@helloroam.com. These details help support find your order, so include as many as you can in your first message.
- Your order number.
- The email you used at checkout.
- Whether you still have the old phone.
- The make and model of the new phone, and of the old one. The exact model number helps more than the marketing name.
- Whether your eSIM has ever connected, as far as you know. If My eSIMs shows Activated On, treat it as in use. Ready, Not Activated and Purchase Date tell you nothing either way, so a best guess is all we ask for.
- A screenshot of the old phone's list of lines, if you still have it: Cellular on iPhone, SIM manager on Samsung, SIMs on Pixel.
- Which line is HelloRoam. The ICCID helps if you have more than one eSIM.
- Whether the new phone is unlocked, and whether it supports eSIM.
- The country and city you are in right now.
Crop any QR code out of your screenshots before you send them.
help@helloroam.comNew phone questions, answered
Can I move my eSIM from an Android phone to an iPhone?
No, an installed HelloRoam eSIM cannot move from an Android phone to an iPhone, or the reverse. Apple's Android-to-iPhone transfer depends on your carrier and your phone. It does not move a HelloRoam eSIM. If yours has not connected in your destination yet, email help@helloroam.com. Support can issue a new eSIM for the iPhone. After the eSIM connects, support does not issue one for a change of phone. Leave the eSIM on the Android phone.
How do I activate cellular on a new iPhone?
You activate cellular on a new iPhone with a method your carrier supports. Apple's Set up eSIM on iPhone page lists them. None of them moves your HelloRoam e SIM. It stays on the old phone, so leave it there and don't delete it. Email help@helloroam.com and say whether it has connected in your destination yet. If the old phone holds several eSIMs, find which line is HelloRoam first.
Can support move my eSIM if I have not used it yet?
No, support cannot move an installed HelloRoam eSIM, but it can issue a new eSIM for your new phone. That is possible only while your eSIM has not connected to a supported network in your destination. Email help@helloroam.com with your order number and both phones' models. Leave the old eSIM on the old phone, and don't delete it.
I already used my eSIM and got a new phone. Can I still use it?
Only on the old phone. Once your HelloRoam eSIM has connected to a supported network in your destination, it cannot move to another phone. Support does not issue a new one for a change of phone. Its code cannot be used again, and your e-sim stays tied to the phone it was installed on. Keep it there, and read when removing it is safe.
Does eSIM Quick Transfer work with a HelloRoam eSIM?
No, eSIM Quick Transfer does not move a HelloRoam eSIM to a new iPhone. Apple's Set up eSIM on iPhone page says Quick Transfer works if your carrier supports it. Samsung's eSIM Instant Transfer and Google's Pixel eSIM transfer also depend on the carrier. None of these tools moves a HelloRoam eSIM. If yours has not connected in your destination yet, support can issue a new one. Write to help@helloroam.com, not your home carrier.
Sources for this guide
The steps and menu names for your phone's settings follow these pages. Each entry shows the date we read it.
- Set up eSIM on iPhone, Apple. Retrieved
- Transfer your eSIM from Android to iPhone, Apple. Retrieved
- Use eSIM while traveling internationally with your iPhone, Apple. Retrieved
- Use Airplane Mode on your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro, Apple. Retrieved
- If you can't connect to Wi-Fi on your iPhone or iPad, Apple. Retrieved
- Use cellular data on your iPhone or iPad, Apple. Retrieved
- Use Dual SIM on iPhone, Apple. Retrieved
- Find the serial number or IMEI on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, Apple. Retrieved
- Galaxy eSIM and supported network carriers, Samsung. Retrieved
- Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, S25 Edge and S25 Ultra User Guide, Samsung. Retrieved
- SIM cards for your Galaxy phone or tablet, Samsung. Retrieved
- Move your Galaxy phone to a different service carrier, Samsung. Retrieved
- Transfer a SIM to a new phone - Android, Google. Retrieved
- Connect to mobile networks on a Pixel phone, Google. Retrieved
- Control airplane mode, private DNS & other network settings, Google. Retrieved
- Find your IMEI and other Pixel phone ID numbers, Google. Retrieved
- Android Settings app strings, res/values/strings.xml (android16-release), Android Open Source Project. Retrieved
- Android Settings app strings, res-product/values/strings.xml (android16-release), Android Open Source Project. Retrieved
About this guide
- Covers
- This guide covers what happens to an installed HelloRoam eSIM when you change phones, and nothing else. Steps cover iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, Google Pixel and other Android phones. Our compatible devices page lists eSIM phones.
- Written by
- HelloRoam Editorial Team
The HelloRoam team that writes every help guide, working from the HelloRoam app and the phone makers' own help pages.
- Last updated
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- Spot a mistake?
- Email help@helloroam.com and we will fix it