STC Free Roaming Calls: stc Makes Calls to and From Saudi Arabia Free for a Week for Customers Abroad

STC free roaming calls are live from today. stc announced on Monday 12 October 2026 that every customer roaming outside Saudi Arabia can make and receive voice calls to and from the Kingdom free of charge and without limits for one week, according to Al Eqtisadiah and other Saudi outlets reporting the company’s statement.

For expats on an stc line who are on annual leave, stuck abroad by a cancelled flight or travelling for work, this is a week where a call home to Riyadh or Jeddah costs nothing.

What stc Has Announced

The offer is simple: stc customers who are roaming abroad pay nothing for voice calls with Saudi Arabia for seven days. That covers calls you make to the Kingdom and calls you receive from it.

stc framed the move as part of its national responsibility, saying it wants customers abroad to stay in touch with family and loved ones in the Kingdom. No separate terms page has been published yet.

Who Benefits From STC Free Roaming Calls

Anyone holding an active stc number who is currently outside Saudi Arabia and roaming on a foreign network is covered, based on the wording reported so far.

• Expats on vacation in their home country who keep their stc SIM active to call their employer, landlord or colleagues in KSA.
• Travellers whose return flights were delayed or cancelled and who need to sort out work and family matters by phone.
• Saudi residents on business trips who normally pay roaming rates for every call back to the office.
• Families in the Kingdom calling a relative abroad on an stc number, since incoming calls are included.

In practice, expats who usually switch roaming off and rely on WhatsApp gain the most: for one week, a normal call does not depend on hotel Wi-Fi.

What stc Has Not Confirmed Yet

Several details that matter to expats have not been published, so treat them as open until stc says otherwise.

• Exact end date. stc said one week from 12 October but has not named the final day or hour.
• Prepaid and postpaid. The reports say all roaming customers, without separating Sawa prepaid from postpaid plans.
• Data and SMS. Only voice calls are mentioned, so assume roaming data is charged at your normal rate or bundle.
• Other calls. Calls to a third country, or local calls inside the country you are visiting, are not mentioned.
• Mobily and Zain. The reports do not mention any matching offer from the other operators.

What Expats Should Do Now

The offer needs no code, but a few quick checks stop you from getting a surprise bill when you are back.

1. Make sure international roaming is active on your stc line and enabled in your phone’s settings.
2. Turn off roaming data if you do not have a data bundle, because only voice calls are mentioned in the offer.
3. Check that you are dialling a Saudi number (+966). Calls to other countries may still be charged.
4. Check your usage in the mysTC app after the first call. If a charge appears, contact stc customer care before the week ends.
5. If stc does not resolve a billing problem, you can raise a complaint with the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST), the Saudi telecom regulator.

If you are abroad on leave, use the week for calls you have been putting off, such as confirming your return date with HR. Also check that your exit re-entry visa is still valid on Absher, since a long delay abroad can push you close to its expiry.

What Has Not Changed

Your regular stc roaming prices and bundles stay as they were for everything outside this offer. Once the week ends, calls go back to the standard roaming rates listed on stc’s roaming page, so plan longer calls for the next few days. For balance, recharge and service codes, see our stc balance check guide.

We will update this story if stc publishes the end date or full terms.