“Roam Like at Home” for the Western Balkans: EU moves to eliminate roaming charges between the region and the Union

People travelling between the EU and Western Balkans will be able to make calls, send text messages and use mobile data without roaming surcharges

The European Commission has proposed opening negotiations with the six Western Balkan countries – Albania, Kosova, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia – to integrate them into the EU’s “Roam Like at Home” regime. If the process is successfully concluded, citizens and businesses on both sides will be able to use mobile services at domestic rates, without roaming surcharges, when traveling between the European Union and the region.

This move represents one of the most concrete steps toward the gradual integration of the Western Balkans into the EU’s Single Market, even before full membership. In essence, it aims to deliver tangible benefits to citizens ahead of the formal completion of the enlargement process.

Today, a citizen from Prishtina, Tirana or Skopje traveling to an EU country often faces additional charges for calls, text messages or mobile data. The same applies to EU citizens visiting the region. By joining the “Roam Like at Home” scheme, that financial barrier would be removed. Calls, SMS and data usage would be billed at the same rates as in the user’s home country.

The regime has been in force within the EU since 2017 and is widely regarded as one of the most visible successes of European integration in everyday life. Now, the European Commission is seeking to extend this area to include the Western Balkans.

Under the procedure, the Commission has adopted a proposal for negotiating mandates and is requesting authorization from the Council of the EU to begin formal talks with each partner in the region. Negotiations will take place bilaterally, meaning separately with each country. Only once negotiations are successfully concluded and each country fully aligns its legislation with EU roaming rules will they be able to join the “Roam Like at Home” area.

This will require full alignment with the EU’s regulatory framework in telecommunications, including rules on wholesale price caps between operators, consumer protection, and market competition.

However, this initiative does not start from scratch. For several years, voluntary commitments between some mobile operators in the EU and the Western Balkans have enabled partial reductions in roaming charges. In addition, since 2021, a regional agreement eliminating roaming charges within the Western Balkans has been in place among the six countries, launched under the Regional Common Market framework.

That regional agreement has already led to significant cost reductions for citizens traveling within the region. The new step now aims to extend those benefits to travel between the Western Balkans and the EU.

From an economic perspective, the impact is expected to be direct. Students enrolled in European universities, seasonal workers, businesses operating across multiple markets, and tourists would all benefit from cheaper and simpler communication. For small and medium-sized enterprises, which often rely on continuous cross-border communication, lower roaming costs could translate into real savings and greater competitiveness.

Politically, the move is part of the 2023 Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, through which the EU seeks to accelerate the region’s economic integration into the Single Market. The logic is straightforward: the benefits of membership should not be indefinitely postponed but delivered progressively, linked to concrete reforms.

The Commission views this as an example of phased integration. Instead of waiting for formal accession to participate in key EU policies, countries can integrate step by step, provided they meet the required standards.

In this context, joining “Roam Like at Home” is more than a technical telecommunications matter. It is a political signal that the region is moving closer to EU structures in real terms.

The process, however, will not be automatic. Western Balkan countries will need to adapt their legislation to the EU acquis in electronic communications. This includes strengthening national regulatory authorities, ensuring their independence, and fully implementing internal market rules.

Mobile operators will also need to comply with EU wholesale pricing rules to ensure the model remains financially sustainable. Within the EU, the abolition of roaming charges became possible only after clear caps were introduced on the prices operators charge each other.

Public reactions across the region have been largely positive. Media outlets in Albania, Kosova and North Macedonia have reported the initiative as a concrete step toward European integration and as a direct benefit for citizens. Telecommunications analysts note that it could increase mobile data usage and digital services uptake, further boosting the region’s digital transformation.

At the same time, some experts warn that full regulatory alignment may take time and investment. For smaller markets, the pressure on operators could be greater, especially if incoming and outgoing traffic flows are unbalanced.

At its core, however, the issue is this: digital integration is becoming a central pillar of rapprochement with the EU. At a time when the economy, education and public administration are rapidly digitizing, affordable mobile connectivity is no longer a luxury but essential infrastructure.

For Kosova, Albania and other countries in the region, this initiative comes as the enlargement process regains political attention in Brussels, against the backdrop of geopolitical challenges and the war in Ukraine. The integration of the Western Balkans into European structures is increasingly seen as a matter of strategic stability.

In that sense, inclusion in “Roam Like at Home” also carries symbolic weight. It connects the region to the European space not only politically, but in everyday life.

If negotiations proceed at a steady pace and countries meet the necessary conditions, citizens could see tangible changes within a few years. Ultimately, everything will depend on the speed of domestic reforms and the willingness of institutions to align their legal frameworks with EU standards.

In the end, this initiative tests a new model of integration: tangible benefits tied to measurable reforms. It is not an abstract promise about the future, but a practical step that directly affects citizens’ daily lives and expenses.

If implemented as envisioned, the free movement of people between the EU and the Western Balkans would be matched by free communication. And in an era where digital connectivity underpins economic activity, education and social ties, that shift goes well beyond the monthly phone bill. /The Balkan Report/