Every school trip has a handful of phones that cannot take an eSIM. You want to find them a month before departure, not at the check-in desk. The check takes a few minutes per student, and most of it can happen at home with a parent watching.
An eSIM is a mobile plan that downloads onto the phone instead of arriving on a plastic card. It needs two things from the handset: an eSIM chip, and a phone that is not locked to one network. If either is missing, the QR code on the install page will not work, however many times the student scans it.
Step one: does the phone have an eSIM?
On an iPhone, ask the student to open Settings, then Mobile Service or Cellular. If they see an option called Add eSIM or Add Cellular Plan, the phone supports eSIM. Every iPhone from the XR and XS onwards has one, and so do most iPads with mobile data.
On Android, the wording varies by maker. Ask them to open Settings, then Network and internet or Connections, then SIMs or SIM manager. An option like Add eSIM or Download a SIM means the phone supports it. Recent Samsung Galaxy S and Z models, Google Pixel phones from the Pixel 3 onwards and many mid-range phones from 2021 on have eSIM. Some budget models do not, even in recent years, so do not guess from the brand.
A quick cross-check that works on most phones: dial *#06# and look for a number labelled EID. A phone that shows an EID has an eSIM chip.
Step two: is the phone locked to a network?
A phone bought outright is almost always unlocked. A phone on a contract, or one handed down from a parent's old contract, may still be locked to the original network. A locked phone can show the Add eSIM option and still refuse a profile from another network.
On an iPhone, Settings, General, About shows a line called Carrier Lock or Network Provider Lock. It should read No SIM restrictions. On Android there is no single place to check, so the reliable route is to ask the network that sold the phone. Many networks unlock phones free of charge on request, and it usually takes a few working days. Start this early.
Step three: collect the answers in one place
Send one message to parents with three questions: does the phone show Add eSIM, does it show No SIM restrictions, and what email address should the install link go to. The third answer goes straight into your roster file.
Keep a column for the result. Students who pass both checks go on the roster for the first run. Students who fail need a plan before you generate anything, because an eSIM generated for a phone that cannot install it is still an eSIM the network has charged for.
What to do about the phones that fail
- A locked phone: ask the parent to request an unlock from the network now. Recheck in a week.
- A phone with no eSIM: the student can borrow a family member's eSIM-capable phone for the trip, buy a local physical SIM on arrival, or travel on Wi-Fi only with the group's staff phones as backup. Agree which in writing with the parent.
- A phone the student will replace before the trip: wait. An eSIM installs onto one phone, and moving it to a new handset is not always possible. Generate their eSIM after the new phone arrives.
Timing
Run the check three to four weeks before departure. That leaves time for unlocks, and it means you can generate the whole roster two weeks out, with a week for installs and a few days to chase the students who have not scanned their code. On the install board, those are the red rows, and by then you will know none of them is waiting on a phone that was never going to work.