How to unlock you iPhone to use eSIM or other provider SIM?

It has been a norm for a while for major networks to sell Phones to you which are locked to use only on their network. There are many advantages of this for service provider but just a few for yourself as a user – you potentially get your brand new iPhone or other model for a fraction of total price – you just continue to pay monthly installments until you pay off the total price + monthly connection fees. SIM locking is very common if subsidized phones are sold with prepaid contracts.

But what happens when you need to change networks – when you travel, when preferred network is not available, or when you find better tariffs from other service provider?

What if you want to install eSIM?

Up until certain time it was not possible to unlock the phone or it was illegal.

But not anymore in USA, Canada and many other countries!

For example:

• The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) said that as of December 1 of 2017, phone sellers will be barred from selling handsets locked to a specific carrier, and all carriers will be required to unlock customer handsets for free.

• US carriers will now unlock your phone, thanks to law change .The new law repeals a 2012 decision by the Library of Congress that made cell phone unlocking a violation of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The DMCA, which prohibits Americans from “circumventing” technologies that protect copyrighted works, gives the Library of Congress the authority to grant exemptions. Last year, the Library of Congress opted not to renew the DMCA exemption for cell phone unlocking, which it had granted in 2006 and 2010.  

Please see more details on device lock on various countries in this article in Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIM_lock 

However there are exceptions. For example, if you purchased your device from Verizon, Verizon still locks your phone to their network for 60 days! They claim this is for security reasons and to avoid fraud and protect you. Read more in their press releases here and here.

It is still possible to unlock after 60 days.

How to Unlock your device?

If your handset is locked you can ask your provider to unlock it for you. Phones reported as lost or stolen will not be unlocked.

Mobile providers have different policies and processes for unlocking phones. For example, some will only unlock your mobile phone after a certain period of time has passed and will charge a fee, while some will unlock your phone at any time for free. If you are on a pay monthly contract and are outside your minimum contract period, most providers will unlock your phone for free.

Some handsets can be unlocked relatively quickly, for example most providers unlock iPhones within three days. For other handsets, unlocking may take longer, particularly if your provider has to contact the handset manufacturer to get the unlocking code. This is often the case for older handsets.

Details of your provider’s handset unlocking procedure will usually be available on their website.

Once you device is unlocked you can benefit form special SIMs and eSIM for dual sim use or to save on roaming charges when you travel next. Check out very interesting offers of roaming SIM and eSIM here: www.mobilitypass.com 
Please share with us your stories about locked phones in comments below.