How to add a travel eSIM on iPhone (and keep your Jio/Airtel line)

Before you start: install it in India, on Wi-Fi

Install the eSIM at home on Wi-Fi a few days before you fly. For almost every destination we sell, plan days start at the first connection abroad, not at install; the country page states the rule. Installing at home uses up no days, and you still have time to write to us if something looks wrong.

Check two things first. Apple Support India lists the iPhone XS or later for eSIM; eSIM on iPhone models shows which models take one. Then open Settings > General > About: a travel eSIM needs an iPhone that is not locked to a network provider, and “No SIM Restrictions” next to Network Provider Lock means it is unlocked.

This page covers the travel eSIM only, not converting a Jio, Airtel or Vi SIM to an eSIM. Other phones: general install guide.

Step by step, with the exact menu path (iOS)

Apple’s set-up page on Apple Support India, published on 18 Sep 2026, gives the path Settings > Mobile Service > Add eSIM. A phone cannot scan its own screen, so show the QR code on a laptop or a second phone.

1. Open Settings > Mobile Service > Add eSIM and follow the prompts.
2. To scan the QR code, use the Camera app, tap the Mobile Plan Detected notification, then tap Continue and Add Mobile Plan.
3. On iOS 26 or later the iPhone may ask whether you plan to use the new eSIM at home or while you travel; choose travel.
4. Label both lines: open Settings > Mobile Service, tap a number, tap Mobile Plan Label and pick or type a label. Apple’s examples are Business and Personal; we use Primary for your Indian line and Travel for the eSIM.
5. Leave Travel switched off until you land.

If the scan fails, open Settings > Mobile Service and tap Add Mobile Plan, then Enter Details Manually. Apple’s manual-entry steps call this menu Cellular or Mobile Data. Type the SM-DP+ address and the manual activation code from your order page exactly as written.

Do not delete the profile to “try again”. Apple advises against erasing an eSIM to troubleshoot, and a deleted eSIM usually cannot be installed twice from the same code.

Keep the eSIM as your data line without losing your Jio, Airtel or Vi number

Keep your Indian SIM in the phone as Primary, because bank OTPs and UPI sit on your Indian number and our eSIM carries data only, with no calls or SMS. Mobile Data points at Travel; your Indian line keeps calls and SMS. An iPhone uses one mobile data network at a time, so this one tap decides whether data runs through the eSIM or your Indian operator.

No page can promise that every OTP will reach you abroad, so ask your operator whether SMS works on your plan outside India. Apple notes one side effect: while the data line is roaming, the other number loses Visual Voicemail and MMS. The guide to keeping your Indian SIM for OTPs covers the dual-SIM settings.

Why won’t my iPhone activate the eSIM? Five causes to check, in order

If none of these fits and it isn’t your phone’s fault, we refund the payment whether or not the eSIM was installed.

After landing: what to switch on and off

Switch Travel on when you land. Go to Settings > Mobile Service > Mobile Data and tap Travel, then open the Travel line and turn Data Roaming on, because the eSIM needs it to attach to a foreign network. Keep Data Roaming off on Primary, so a background app cannot draw roaming data from your Jio, Airtel or Vi plan.

With iOS 26 or later, a “Turn On Travel eSIM” notification may appear on arrival. Choosing “Travel eSIM and Current eSIM” keeps both lines on and uses the travel eSIM for data. Apple warns that you “might still incur roaming fees from your home eSIM”.

For almost every destination we sell, the plan days start at that first connection abroad. The first connection to any network also ends the full-refund window. Full refund within 30 days of purchase, as long as the eSIM has not connected to any network. If the eSIM doesn’t work and it isn’t your phone’s fault, we refund the payment whether or not it was installed. If the Travel line still does not connect, the help centre lists the next checks.

Back home, iOS 26 or later may switch Travel off and Primary back on by itself. If it does not, make sure “Turn On this Line” is enabled for Primary in Settings > Mobile Service, then turn Travel off. To delete the eSIM after the trip, open the Travel plan in the same menu and tap Delete Plan. With only one plan, the button is Delete eSIM. Apple’s erase page calls this menu Mobile.

FAQ