Albania has begun negotiations to join the European roaming area. The European Commission launched the process with all six Western Balkan countries after the European Council approved its proposal in June. RTSH has obtained a document outlining the legal conditions, including wholesale price caps, consumer protection, fair-use limits, call termination rates, tariff transparency and regulatory enforcement. Albania must also align its rules with future European changes.

The impact on consumer prices could be significant. In May 2019, the European Council capped calls at 19 euro cents per minute and text messages at 6 cents within the European Union. Currently, a package in Albania covering European Union use can cost around ALL 2,900 a month for 50 GB. Meanwhile, European visitors could also benefit from lower costs as tourism grows. However, no public analysis has assessed the effects on operators’ revenues, consumer prices or competition.

A voluntary agreement between regional and European operators sets indicative prices of up to 14 euros per gigabyte in 2026 and 9 euros from 2028. However, these are not European roaming rates, and negotiations have no announced deadline. Consumers will benefit only after Albania meets the conditions and both sides open their markets to each other.

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