How to use Telstra Pre-Paid for international calls
Keep loved ones close
Enjoy standard international calls to 88 destinations (when you activate on Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan), with included talk time from 60 to 6,000 minutes.
Got friends and family overseas?
Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan gives you capped standard international call minutes to 88 destinations.
Plus you get 100 texts to any country. Yes, that’s any country, even those that aren’t included in the international calls allowance.
So there’s no need to buy separate pre-paid international SIM cards. You can just use your Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan to keep in touch with friends and family overseas.
Get started with Telstra Pre-Paid international calls
It's easy to get up and running with a Pre-Paid SIM from Telstra.
- You can bring your own phone and buy a Pre-Paid starter kit or buy a Pre-Paid phone with a SIM starter kit included.
- Then, it's as simple as activating your SIM online and dialling the international number from your Telstra Pre-Paid mobile.
No surprise bills with Telstra international calls pre-paid
Staying in touch with family and friends in other countries is so important. It’s always such a pleasure to hear their voices and catch up on their latest news and gossip.
But nothing takes the joy away faster than a big phone bill that you weren’t expecting. That’s where a Telstra Pre-Paid plan can help you manage your costs.
You pay in advance and you know exactly how many minutes you have for international calls. So you’re always in control of your spending and you can top up when you need to.
Which means you can relax and chat away knowing you won’t get a bill with a nasty surprise.
Pre-Paid Mobile plan or Pre-Paid Casual?
Which is best for calling international from Australia?
Telstra includes international call minutes on both our Pre-Paid Mobile plan and our Pre-Paid Mobile Casual plan. So what’s the difference and which should you choose for international calls?
If you use your mobile phone often, for both local and international calls, then a Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan is probably best for you.
While a Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan costs more, they include a much higher allowance of international call minutes.
So if you make a lot of international calls, a Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan could offer you better value. And don’t forget, they also include 100 texts to any country. Not to mention unlimited calls and texts to standard Australian numbers.
On the other hand, if you only use your mobile occasionally, you could consider a Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile Casual plan. And there’s a 6-month expiry period. But the number of international call minutes is much lower and the included destinations are more limited. And international texts have a limit as well.
You can call so many places
Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan includes international call minutes to 88 destinations across the world.
And why do we call them destinations and not countries? Well most of the places you can speak to with Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile international calls are countries in their own right. But to give you even more choice, we’ve included various territories and regions like Guam, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Hong Kong and the Faroe islands.
Our destinations are divided into three zones, depending on the number of international minutes they’re allotted. And the included destinations are subject to change.
Customers on Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile Casual can call Zones 1 and 2. Customers on Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plans can call all three destinations.
Zone 1 destinations:
- Canada
- China
- Denmark
- Germany
- Guam
- Hong Kong
- India
- Ireland
- Indonesia
- Japan
- Malaysia
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Puerto Rico
- Romania
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Spain
- Sweden
- UK
- USA
- US Virgin Islands
- Vietnam
Zone 2 destinations:
- Argentina
- Bahamas
- Bangladesh
- Bermuda
- Brunei
- Brazil
- Cambodia
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Dominican Republic
- Faroe Islands
- French Guiana
- Greenland
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Greece
- Italy
- Laos
- Lebanon
- Liechtenstein
- France
- Iran
- Israel
- Kenya
- Kuwait
- Mexico
- Mongolia
- Palestinian Authority
- Nepal
- Netherlands
- Nigeria
- Pakistan
- Philippines
- Peru
- Sri Lanka
- Saudi Arabia
- South Africa
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- United Arab Emirates
- Slovak Republic
- Venezuela
Zone 3 destinations (not available on Telstra Pre-Paid Casual):
- Austria
- Comoros
- Croatia
- East Timor
- Egypt
- Fiji
- Ghana
- Mauritius
- Papua New Guinea
- Poland
- Russia
- Samoa
- Serbia
- Solomon Islands
- Surinam
- Switzerland
- Tonga
- Turkey
- Vanuatu
- Zimbabwe
All on Australia's best mobile network
A Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan doesn’t just let you make calls to lots of international destinations.
Our network coverage also means you can make calls in more places in Australia.
The Telstra Mobile Network offers 4GX in all major and regional cities and in over 1600 towns and communities around Australia. In other coverage areas around Australia, you’ll automatically switch to our fastest available 3G. You can check the coverage at telstra.com/coverage.
The Telstra mobile network covers more than 2.5 million square kilometres - that's 1 million square kilometres more than any other mobile network in Australia.
All of this makes it easier for you to call overseas from cities, towns and regional areas right around Australia.
Choose the minutes you need for calling international from Australia
Both Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan and Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile Casual plan offer a choice of capped international call minutes.
You can select the plan that suits you, depending on how often you call family and friends overseas.
| Recharge amount | Zone 1 | Zone 2 | Zone 3 | Texts to any country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30 | 300 minutes | 60 minutes | 5 minutes | 100 texts |
| $40 | 500 minutes | 100 minutes | 10 minutes | 100 texts |
| $50 | 1000 minutes | 150 minutes | 15 minutes | 100 texts |
| $60 | 1500 minutes | 250 minutes | 20 minutes | 100 texts |
| $150 | 3000 minutes | 350 minutes | 50 minutes | 100 texts |
| $300 | 6000 minutes | 800 minutes | 100 minutes | 100 texts |
| Recharge Amount | Zone 1 | Zone 2 | Texts to any country |
|---|---|---|---|
| $20 | 5 minutes | 5 minutes | 5 texts |
| $30 | 10 minutes | 10 minutes | 10 texts |
| $50 | 10 minutes |
10 minutes |
10 texts |
| $70 | 20 minutes |
20 minutes |
15 texts |
| $100 | 20 minutes |
20 minutes |
15 texts |
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes you can. To make international calls from your Pre-Paid phone, first you need to buy a Telstra Pre-Paid SIM Starter Kit. Then add a Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan, or Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile Casual plan. Both types of plan have international call minutes included.
Yes. Telstra includes international call minutes on our Pre-Paid Mobile plan and our Pre-Paid Mobile Casual plan. If you're on an older Pre-Paid plan, view our Compare Telstra Pre-Paid plans page to learn more about your international call inclusion.
Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan includes international call minutes to 93 destinations across the world. It also gives you more included international call minutes and texts than other Telstra Pre-Paid plans. Learn more about Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan
Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plan includes international call minutes to 93 destinations across the world.
And why do we call them destinations and not countries? Well most of the places you can speak to with Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile international calls are countries in their own right. But to give you even more choice, we’ve included various territories and regions like Guam, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Hong Kong and the Faroe islands.
Our destinations are divided into three zones, depending on the number of international minutes they’re allotted. And the included destinations are subject to change.
Customers on Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile Casual can call Zones 1 and 2. Customers on Telstra Pre-Paid Mobile plans can call all three destinations.
Zone 1 destinations:
Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Guam, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Puerto Rico, Romania, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, UK, USA, US Virgin Islands,Vietnam
Zone 2 destinations:
Argentina, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Bermuda, Brunei, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, Columbia, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Faroe Islands, French Guiana, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Greece, Italy, Laos, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, France, Iran, Israel, Kenya, Kuwait, Mexico, Mongolia, Palestinian Authority, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Peru, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Slovak Republic, Venezuela
Zone 3 destinations (not available on Telstra Pre-Paid Casual):
Austria, Comoros, Croatia, East Timor, Egypt, Fiji, Ghana, Mauritius, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Russia, Samoa, Serbia, Solomon Islands, Surinam, Switzerland, Tonga, Turkey, Vanuatu, Zimbabwe
If you're on an older Pre-Paid plan, view our Compare Telstra Pre-Paid plans page to learn more about your included destinations.
Please note: Included destinations are subject to change.
You can recharge your pre-paid service online using your credit card or debit card, PayPal or a voucher.
Use the My Telstra app
- Download or open the My Telstra app
- Select the Services tab then select the mobile service you’d like to recharge
- Tap Recharge and follow the prompts
Use My Telstra
- Sign in to My Telstra with your Telstra ID and password
- If you have more than one account, select your pre-paid service from the dropdown list at the top of the page
- Next to your service, select Recharge and follow the prompts
Use recharge.telstra.com on your mobile
- Go to recharge.telstra.com on your pre-paid device’s browser
- Enter your pre-paid mobile number and follow the prompts
Use the My Telstra app
- Download or open the My Telstra app
- Tap on the Services tab then select the pre-paid service you’d like to view or change
- Scroll down to Your plan to view your plan details
- Select Change plan to make the switch
Use My Telstra
- Sign in to My Telstra using your Telstra ID
- If you have more than one account, select your pre-paid service from the dropdown list at the top of the page
- Select the service you’d like to change
- Under Change plan, a list of available plans will be shown
- Click on them to learn more about each pre-paid plan
- If you choose to make a change, click Select on the plan you want to change to and follow the prompts
Good to know:
- You’ll receive an SMS confirmation on your mobile device
- To finalise the change and enjoy the new plan, you’ll need to recharge your pre-paid service.
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