International SIM cards – the perils

Oftentimes SIM cards you want to use abroad are expensive.

I thought I’d found the perfect deal for Spain in Lebara (you essentially pay €10/$15 for the card), and I thought I’d even be able to keep my sweet phone number. Well, they’ve changed the rules. It used to be that you had to use it in some capacity every 90 days to keep it active without occurring additional fees.

Now, I see that they’ve changed the rules. See this FAQ page on their site where I’ve gotten the following:

Your Lebara Móvil SIM card will remain active as long as you top-up the balance at least once every two months (60 days). If you do not do this or if you run out of credit, Lebara Móvil will grant you an additional month to top-up your balance. During this month, and until you top-up the balance, you will only be able to receive calls or make calls to the emergency services. If at the end of this one month period, there has not been at least one top-up, the SIM card will be permanently deactivated and you will lose the number and, if applicable, any remaining credit.

Sorry. I’m just bummed. I had €17 left on the card when I left in October. And I really do have a sweet phone number. Lebara’s still cheap, especially when they have their frequent top-up deals – buy €20 credit, get €10 free. Ah, well. Here we go again.