Physical sim to eSIM overseas transfer

Forums › Spark New Zealand (including Skinny and BigPipe) › Physical sim to eSIM overseas transfer

Swemoph

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#324467 13-Apr-2026 20:32

Hey all,

I’ve been roaming with my Spark NZ SIM in Australia for a little over 4 years because I need to keep my number active. I recently changed phones and now want to move from my physical SIM to an eSIM on an iPhone.

From Spark’s documentation, it sounds like you need to be physically in New Zealand to do this:

"You can complete Pay Monthly physical SIM to eSIM, or eSIM to eSIM change in our stores or by calling or messaging Spark. You must be in New Zealand to complete this change."

(https://www.spark.co.nz/help/mobile/set-up/swap-my-sim/)

This was also confirmed by their social media team. Unfortunately, flying over to New Zealand just to swap my SIM is not really an option, and I would rather not keep two phones.

I did notice some self-service sim transfer options in the docs that do not involve calling or visiting a store.

"Change Physical SIM to eSIM on the same iPhone" and "Transfer a Physical SIM/eSIM on your current iPhone, to an eSIM on your new iPhone"

I can see the first option available in my iPhone cellular settings to convert the SIM.

My question is, would I be able to use these two options to convert my physical sim to an eSIM, then transfer that to my new phone? Neither of these options seems to require visiting a Spark store or contacting their call center.

My biggest fear is ending up in no-mans land where the SIM swap is botched or half complete, and I can't recover from it without visiting a store.

If not, is there literally any way to move the SIM card over without being in New Zealand? Any firsthand experience would be really appreciated.

Thanks!

Linux

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#3480662 13-Apr-2026 20:37

@Swemoph Paying for 4 years roaming why did you not just use 2degrees Wi-Fi calling (They do not geo block Wi-Fi calling) with your NZ number? Zero roaming fees or a cheap 2degrees business plan that has $0 roaming to AU included

Yes you can easily move eSIM between handsets by scanning a QR code

Swemoph

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#3480664 13-Apr-2026 20:47

Linux:

@Swemoph Paying for 4 years roaming why did you not just use 2degrees Wi-Fi calling (They do not geo block Wi-Fi calling) with your NZ number? Zero roaming fees or a cheap 2degrees business plan that has $0 roaming to AU included

Yes you can easily move eSIM between handsets by scanning a QR code

Thanks for the reply - I have not paid anything extra for roaming luckily. I keep roaming data off and only use the number for FT/iMessage + to receive SMS codes. A carrier swap might be a useful option when I next visit though as it'd enable me to make calls/send texts.

I am aware that you can scan the QR code to move the SIM, but can this be commissioned/activated correctly while overseas?

Aucklandjafa

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#3480665 13-Apr-2026 20:47

Just keep your physical sim, that way if anything goes wrong, you can get Spark to move your number back to it

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#3480666 13-Apr-2026 20:49

It should work overseas as long as you have a internet connection

nztim

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#3480732 14-Apr-2026 09:55

This cannot be done overseas and must come from a WiFi connection that gives a New Zealand ASN

You do this away from an NZ ASN there will be tears

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.

nztim

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#3480734 14-Apr-2026 10:01

I changed to e-sim in the United states, I had a mikrotik with me that broadcasted WiFi which my phone was connected to it, that mikrotik created a route all traffic IP SEC tunnel to my firewall in New Zealand giving my phone an IP address with a New Zealand ASN

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boosacnoodle

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#3480739 14-Apr-2026 10:21

nztim:

You do this away from an NZ ASN there will be tears

... What happened?

nztim

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#3480742 14-Apr-2026 10:48

boosacnoodle:

... What happened?

Wife Air dropped the Sim from one iPhone to Another in the US and new phone failed to register the Sim on the new phone and then lost it on the old phone ONE NZ sent a new QR code then we used the Mikrotik with an IP SEC tunnel to get it back.

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.

geek3001

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#3480756 14-Apr-2026 11:25

@nztim:

This cannot be done overseas and must come from a WiFi connection that gives a New Zealand ASN

You do this away from an NZ ASN there will be tears

Presumably this is the electronic eSIM equivalent of the physical SIM having to be activated in the country of purchase?

I was caught with this in Aus with an un-activated NZ SIM card in the late 2000's.

If I recall correctly, a decade or two ago, following terrorist activity in Europe (Spain?) with burner phones and SIM's purchased who knows where, that were used to activate things that went bang, activating physical SIM cards in a country other than where it was purchased became impossible.

nztim

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#3480762 14-Apr-2026 12:05

geek3001:

Presumably this is the electronic eSIM equivalent of the physical SIM having to be activated in the country of purchase?

I was caught with this in Aus with an un-activated NZ SIM card in the late 2000's.

If I recall correctly, a decade or two ago, following terrorist activity in Europe (Spain?) with burner phones and SIM's purchased who knows where, that were used to activate things that went bang, activating physical SIM cards in a country other than where it was purchased became impossible.

Yes eSim swap which requires you to be connected to WiFi with a Public IP of an ASN within New Zealand

Was a huge PITA - Wife was a bit trigger happy, I already had ordered a router from Amazon to do this change, Luckly shipping from Azmon is quite quick within the US.

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.

Swemoph

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#3480861 14-Apr-2026 20:25

nztim:

This cannot be done overseas and must come from a WiFi connection that gives a New Zealand ASN

You do this away from an NZ ASN there will be tears

Thanks for the response, this is good to know @nztim!

I do have a Ubiquiti setup back in New Zealand which I can use for a VPN exit node - I'll look into getting a WiFi network up which tunnels traffic through that, then attempt the swap and cross my fingers. Will confirm the public IP address is indeed from an NZ ASN before doing anything destructive 😊

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nztim

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#3480882 14-Apr-2026 21:10

Swemoph:

Will confirm the public IP address is indeed from an NZ ASN before doing anything destructive 😊

If you break it, I take no responsibility, and on a plane, you will have to go :)

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.

Swemoph

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#3480900 14-Apr-2026 21:39

nztim:

Swemoph:

Will confirm the public IP address is indeed from an NZ ASN before doing anything destructive 😊

If you break it, I take no responsibility, and on a plane, you will have to go :)

Haha, don't worry I accept all responsibility. Might be a good excuse to visit the friends and family :)