KDDI to renew au overseas roaming service in February 2027

KDDI and Okinawa Cellular have announced a renewal of their overseas data roaming service, ‘au Overseas Unlimited’ (au Kaigai Hodai), effective February 1, 2027.

The update aims to simplify the user experience by eliminating the need for advance reservations. Subscribers to specific plans, such as the ‘au Value Link Plan’, ‘au Value Link Manekatsu 2’, ‘Tsukaihodai MAX+’, and ‘au Manekatsu Plan+’, will be able to use data communications immediately upon arrival abroad simply by enabling roaming settings on their devices. Other users of au, UQ mobile, and povo 1.0 will no longer need to make advance reservations but will still need to perform an activation step upon arrival.

The pricing structure will also be unified. Previously, rates varied between 800, 1,000, and 1,200 yen depending on the destination and whether a reservation was made. Under the new system, a flat rate of 980 yen per 24-hour period will apply to all regions. While data usage is unlimited, speeds will be capped at a maximum of 5 Mbps if usage exceeds 10GB within a 24-hour period.

Additionally, the ‘au Overseas Unlimited’ app will be updated to allow users to check their usage history, data consumption, and costs in real time. This includes the ability to monitor the status and remaining days of the monthly 15-day free benefit provided to eligible plan subscribers.