Moving to another country + changing bank accounts

[osyeon]

Hi,

I have to move back to Portugal for a year and i need to change my direct debit to my portuguese bank account, will i have to pay extra fees every time the money comes out of that account (as being an account from Portugal) or is there a way i can pay my phone bill through Vodafone Portugal to avoid those fees.

hope this made sense thank you!

[BandOfBrothers]

Hi @osyeon

As far as I'm aware you need to use a Uk Bank Account for Direct Debits. 

There are other ways of paying your bill however. 

Paying-my-bill.

The Portugal Abroad network is not linked with Vodafone U.K. So you wouldn't be able to transfer your contract to them. 

Alternatives are to keep paying the bill out of your U.K Bank Account.

Or Change the Bank Account details to someone you know who's in the uk. 

Possibly look at the Transfer ownership of the Account to someone else. 

How-do-I-transfer-my-number-and-agreement-to-someone-else.

If you intend to use your Vodafone Uk sim abroad then please look at this link > Vodafone and travelling-abroad.

Ensure your fully aware of any relevant charges and that Roaming is enabled on your account. 

I'd also suggest to have your phone unlocked to all Networks just incase you ever need to use a local SIM card. > Unlock-code-request.

[jeffkinn]

You definitely cannot have a direct debit from a non UK bank account. Also, if you plan to make payments from a Euro denominated account to the UK, you'll not only pay bank charges but will suffer on the exchange rate as banks charge exhorbitant commission rates on currency transfers. 

[hrym]

You could also just cancel the direct debit and pay your bill manually using a credit/debit card.   There may be an extra charge from Vodafone for this and it also relies on your not missing the payment, but it may be simpler and cheaper than any other method.   It would also be advisable to check that the card you're planning to use is acceptable.

You also need to look at the roaming options and implications but, with roaming charges being abandoned, this may not be too much of a problem.

If it's all too much hassle, the nuclear option is to cancel your contract and pay off the remaining charges but you will, of course, lose your number if you do this.