How can Atli help?

An eSIM is an embedded SIM card: already built into your phone. Instead of putting in a physical card, you download the plan onto it.

• Check whether your phone supports it, it takes a few seconds
• You add a plan by scanning a QR code, about a minute
• You can keep several eSIMs on one phone and switch between them in Settings

With Atli you pick a destination, pay in the chat, and the eSIM arrives there as a QR code.

You install it once and switch it on when you need data. The eSIM itself never expires, only the data plan on it.

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Not yet.

You do not need one. Atli lives in WhatsApp and Telegram, and everything happens in the chat:

• Buy a plan and install it
• See what data and days you have left
• Get help, from Atli or from a team member

Prefer a browser? heyatli.com does the same job on the web. Your plans and credits sit on your account either way.

English, Deutsch, Français, Italiano, Polski, Español, Português, Русский and Bahasa Indonesia.

Atli picks a starting language from your phone number or your Telegram settings. Not the one you wanted? Type language and pick from the list. The whole chat switches.

After you buy, your eSIM arrives right in the chat with 3 ways to install:

1. One tap (iPhone iOS 17.4+ / Android): tap the Install button.
2. Scan or upload the QR: point another phone at it, or save the QR image and add it from your photos in Settings.
3. Manual: no scanner? Copy the SM-DP+ address and code into Settings.

Best tip: install on wifi before you fly, then land already connected.

Open as a page eSIM setup guide

Once the Atli eSIM is installed, set these four things.

1. Turn data roaming OFF on your regular SIM

This is what stops your normal operator charging you for roaming.

• Settings › Cellular › SIMs › tap your regular SIM, the one with your phone number under it
• Scroll to Data Roaming and turn it off
• Tap Back

Or switch the regular SIM off entirely for the trip:

• You will not get calls or texts on your normal number while it is off
• WhatsApp, iMessage, FaceTime, Messenger and the rest keep working over Atli data or wifi

2. Set up the Atli eSIM

• Settings › Cellular › SIMs › tap Atli
• Turn the Atli eSIM on if it is off
• Data Mode › Low Data Mode
• Go back

Low Data Mode keeps iOS from spending your data on background jobs like system updates.

3. Choose Atli for cellular data

• Settings › Cellular › Cellular Data
• Pick Atli

Your phone uses Atli for data for as long as Atli is selected here. Back home, select your regular SIM again and turn the Atli eSIM off until the next trip.

4. Turn off iCloud backup over cellular

Recommended. A backup can use a lot of data without you noticing.

• Settings › Apple Account › iCloud › iCloud Backup
• Turn off Back Up Over Cellular

Open as a page eSIM setup guide

Once the Atli eSIM is installed, set these three things. Menu names move around between makers, so match the words rather than the exact path.

1. Pick Atli for mobile data

• Settings › Connections › SIM manager
• Set mobile data to the Atli eSIM

If your phone only offers one primary SIM setting instead of separate ones for calls, texts and data, set Atli as primary while you are using it.

2. Turn data roaming ON for Atli

• Settings › Connections › Mobile networks
• Turn on Data roaming

Atli is a global eSIM, so roaming is how it connects. It is included and costs nothing extra.

If your phone sets roaming per SIM, Pixel does, turn it on for the Atli eSIM only.

3. Decide what your regular SIM does

Atli is data only. If calls and texts stay on your normal number, your operator can still charge you for calls you make and texts you send abroad. Receiving texts costs nothing.

• To avoid those charges, switch your regular SIM off for the trip
• With it off you will not get calls or texts on your normal number. WhatsApp, Telegram and the rest keep working over Atli data

When you get home

• Settings › Connections › Mobile networks › turn Data roaming off
• Settings › Connections › SIM manager › set mobile data back to your regular SIM

Or just switch the Atli eSIM off until the next trip.

Open as a page eSIM setup guide

Your eSIM is delivered right here in the chat, so it is still in your history. To bring it back:

• Ask Atli for wallet on Telegram or WhatsApp to see your plans
• Tap 📲 QR / Install and the QR code and the manual details come back
• You can do that as many times as you need

The Install on iPhone and Install on Android buttons are the easiest way in, one tap and the profile installs itself. The QR code and the manual details are there for when those are not an option.

Open as a page eSIM setup guide

Deleted your eSIM? As long as you have your QR or activation code, you can reinstall on the same phone. Yours lives in this chat: ask for wallet, tap 📲 QR / Install, and install on wifi. The plan stays attached to the eSIM.

Got a new phone? The eSIM cannot move: it is tied to the first phone it was installed on. Whatever data is left stays on the old phone and still works there, so hotspot from it until it runs out, and buy your next plan from the new phone.

Open as a page eSIM setup guide

Data that was working and then stopped is almost always one of these. Try them in order and test after each one.

1. Check you still have a plan

• Make sure you have a plan that covers where you are, country or regional
• If the data is used up or the days have run out, buy another. It lands on the same eSIM

2. Check your signal

• Look at the bars in your status bar. One bar means weak coverage where you are standing, and that alone can break data

3. Check your settings

• Data Roaming must be ON for the Atli eSIM. Roaming is how a travel eSIM works and it is included
• The Atli eSIM must be your data line. iPhone: Settings › Cellular › Cellular Data › Atli. Android: Settings › SIMs › mobile data › Atli

4. Airplane mode on, then off

• On for 10 seconds, then off. This drops and rebuilds the connection, and it is the step that works most often

5. Pick a different network manually

• The network you are on may be congested or having problems. Atli runs on more than one operator in many destinations, so turn off automatic selection and choose another

6. Delete the eSIM and install it again

• Do this on wifi, not on mobile data
• It resets things on the phone that the other steps cannot reach
• Your credits, rewards and data plans are not affected. The plan stays attached to the eSIM and comes back with it

Still nothing after all six? Talk to a human. When data stops and a reinstall does not bring it back, it is usually an operator problem where you are, and we need to look into it.

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Bars on the status bar but no 4G or 5G, and nothing loads. It is usually one of three things, especially the first time you use the eSIM.

1. Data roaming is off for the Atli eSIM

• A travel eSIM needs data roaming ON. Turn it on for the Atli line

2. The network mode does not match

Sometimes the phone is looking for 5G where the local operator does not offer it. Dropping to 4G fixes it.

• iPhone: Settings › Cellular › SIMs › Atli › Voice & Data › pick 4G or LTE instead of 5G Auto
• Android: Settings › Connections › Mobile networks › Network mode › pick 4G/LTE instead of 5G Preferred

3. There is no data coverage where you are

This one comes down to the network.

• Rural areas can have no data coverage at all
• Crowded places get congested and drop data connections
• Operator faults happen and are usually temporary

Try another network if your location has one.

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3G, 4G or 5G flashing on and off in your status bar, with no data, means one thing: the APN settings for your eSIM are wrong.

Reset the APN settings for the Atli eSIM and your connection comes back.

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If the install fails or throws an error, work through these.

• Get on a stable wifi connection if you can
• Check your phone supports eSIM
• Check your phone is not carrier-locked
• Turn airplane mode off if it is on
• Check whether the Atli eSIM is already installed. If it is, there is nothing left to activate
• Be somewhere with coverage, two bars or better

The two errors and what they usually mean

• eSIM not supported, or "this eSIM is not compatible with this device", almost always means the phone is carrier-locked, or your operator blocks eSIMs on it. Only they can lift that: ask them to unlock the device, then activate
• A VPN can throw the same error. Turn it off and try again before you call anyone
• Unable to activate eSIM usually means it is already installed on the device

Still stuck after those? Talk to a human and we will help.

Open as a page eSIM setup guide

It usually means the phone has not found a network it is allowed to use yet. On landing that is normal for a few minutes.

Give it a moment first

• Wait 2-3 minutes after you turn airplane mode off. Finding and registering on a foreign network is not instant
• Then airplane mode on for 10 seconds, and off again

If it is still saying it

• Make sure your plan covers the country you are actually in
• Pick a network manually instead of letting the phone choose
• Check the Atli eSIM is switched on and set as your data line

Do not delete the eSIM at this point. Reinstalling does not make a network appear, and you need data or wifi to install again.

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In many destinations your Atli eSIM works on more than one network operator. If the one you are on is weak or slow, you can switch manually.

Your phone chooses automatically by default and takes the strongest signal it can see when you land. Switching is only possible where Atli has more than one network at your location.

iPhone

• Settings › Cellular (or Mobile Data) › scroll down to SIMs
• Tap the Atli eSIM › Network Selection › turn off Automatic
• Wait for the list to fill, then pick a network

Android

• Settings › Connections (or Network & internet) › Mobile networks › Network operators
• Pick the Atli eSIM at the bottom › turn off Select automatically
• Wait for the list to fill, then pick a network

On Android the steps vary a little by make and model.

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If data still will not work after the usual steps, resetting the APN puts the Atli connection settings back to default.

iPhone

• Settings › Cellular › SIMs › Atli eSIM › Cellular Data Network
• Scroll to the bottom › Reset Settings › Reset
• Then turn airplane mode on, wait a few seconds, and turn it off
• That last step reconnects you with the new settings

Android

• Settings › Connections › Mobile networks › Access Point Names
• Pick the Atli eSIM at the bottom
• Tap the three dots top right › Reset to default › Reset
• Your phone refreshes the data session on its own

On Android the steps vary a little by make and model.

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Everything you have bought lives in your wallet. Type wallet to Atli on Telegram or WhatsApp, or tap My eSIMs and plans in the menu.

• Your eSIM and its number, the ICCID, which support may ask you for
• Every plan on it: destination, size, what is left, whether it is active, and the days left
• Check Usage, QR / Install and Buy another plan, right under the card

Your wallet follows your account, not the chat. Clear the conversation and type wallet again: it is all still there.

Type check data or check usage to Atli on Telegram or WhatsApp.

You get a card for every plan on your eSIM, the ones you are using first:

• Used: what you have spent, with a bar and a percentage
• Left: what is still there
• Time Left: the days and hours the plan has to run, and the date it expires

Tap Refresh Usage under the card to read it again from the network.

A plan you have not started yet shows it is ready and waiting, with the days it will run. Nothing is counting down yet. More in When your plan starts.

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Most of it is your phone using data in the background: cloud photo backups, app updates, feeds refreshing. A laptop on your hotspot can quietly swallow gigabytes too.

First, type check data to Atli. The card shows what went and what is left, so you are not guessing.

Then cut the biggest users:

• iPhone: set the Atli eSIM to Low Data Mode (Settings › Cellular › SIMs › Atli › Data Mode), and turn off Back Up Over Cellular (Settings › Apple Account › iCloud › iCloud Backup)
• Android: turn on Data Saver (Settings › Connections, or Network & internet), and let photos back up on wifi only
• App updates: set the App Store or Play Store to update over wifi only
• Streaming: drop the quality a notch. High quality video can use 1 GB in about 20 minutes
• Hotspot: laptops use far more than phones, so keep an eye on the meter while sharing

The full walkthroughs live in iPhone setup and Android setup.

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Your data plan starts when your phone first connects to a network at your destination. It does not start when you buy it or when you install the eSIM.

So you can:

• Install the eSIM at any time
• Buy the plan before your trip
• Wait until you connect and actually start using data

Example:

• You buy a plan today
• You travel next week
• The plan starts when your phone first connects at your destination

You have up to 30 days after purchase to start using the plan. After 30 days it starts on its own, and the days start counting from then.

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Install your Atli eSIM once on your phone. Every plan you buy later is added to that same eSIM on the same phone.

1. Buy any plan, any time. Type a destination, pick a plan, and pay. No new QR code, installation, activation, or settings changes.

2. Plans start when you connect. The clock only starts when your phone connects to a network at your destination, not when you buy.

3. You have 30 days to start. If you do not connect within 30 days of buying, the plan starts on its own that day and the days start counting from then.

4. Multiple plans stack. If your current plan runs out and you have another one queued on the same eSIM, your phone moves to it automatically.

To see what you have, type check data or usage to Atli.

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If you have another plan on the same eSIM, your phone moves onto it by itself when the current one is used up. You do not have to install or switch anything.

• More than one plan: the next one takes over automatically, so you stay online
• Only one plan: data stops when it is used up

Buy another plan whenever you like. It lands on the same eSIM, so you can add one before you travel or in the middle of a trip.

To see what is left, type check data or usage to Atli. How much data is left? walks through the card.

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It depends on what you do on your phone more than on how long the trip is.

A rough guide, per week:

• Light: 1-3 GB. Maps, messaging, email, some browsing
• Medium: 3-7 GB. All of that plus social feeds, music and some video
• Heavy: 7 GB and up. Video calls, streaming, working off a hotspot

Video is what empties a plan. Streaming at high quality can use 1 GB in about 20 minutes, while maps and messaging all day usually stay in the hundreds of MB.

Sizes run 1, 3, 5, 10 and 20 GB, and there are unlimited ones. Data plans run 7 or 30 days, and unlimited runs from 5 days up to 30, depending on the destination.

Start small if you are unsure. You can buy more at any time and it lands on the same eSIM, so there is nothing to reinstall.

Want a number instead of a band? The data calculator turns your days and habits into a plan size.

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Unlimited plans give you 3 GB a day at full speed. Past that, the rest of the day runs at 3 Mbps, and full speed comes back the next day.

• 3 GB is plenty for one day: maps, messages, social feeds and a couple of hours of video
• At 3 Mbps, messaging, maps, email and music still work. Video drops to standard quality
• Hotspot works on unlimited plans too. What your laptop pulls counts towards the same 3 GB

Unlimited plans run from 5 to 30 days, depending on the destination. The days start like any plan: on your first connection, or 30 days after purchase.

Ask Atli for any destination and the unlimited options sit at the end of the plan list.

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No. One Atli plan runs on one device at a time.

• Your Atli account has one eSIM
• That eSIM can be active on one device
• The same eSIM cannot run on two phones at once

Share the connection instead

• Turn on the hotspot and connect your other devices to your phone
• There is no limit on how many you tether
• It all comes out of the same plan, and laptops use more than phones

Travelling with someone who needs to be online on their own? They need their own plan. More on tethering in Calls, texts and hotspot.

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Every phone that goes online needs its own plan, and an Atli account holds one eSIM. Two ways to sort a group:

• A plan each. Everyone messages Atli from their own phone and buys, or you gift them a plan from your chat: a code they claim on their own phone. See Gift an eSIM.
• One plan, shared by hotspot. Turn on your hotspot and the others connect through you. Fine at a cafe table or in the car, less so when the group splits up, and everything they use comes out of your plan.

For a longer trip with several phones, a plan each wins: everyone stays online on their own, and each phone shows its own data left.

Tablets and laptops without an eSIM ride on a phone's hotspot either way.

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An Atli eSIM is data only. It has no phone number of its own, and regular calls and SMS do not run over it.

• Your own SIM stays in your phone and keeps your number
• Calls and texts work as usual, on your normal carrier at their rates
• Apps that run over data work on the Atli eSIM: WhatsApp, iMessage, FaceTime, Telegram, Instagram, maps, email. Calls inside those apps included

Hotspot works, with no limits of its own.

• Share with as many devices as you like, at full speed
• Turn it on in your phone settings and set a password
• It comes out of your data plan, and laptops use more than phones, so keep an eye on your usage

Two things to avoid.

• Do not enter a phone number for the Atli eSIM in your device settings. It breaks the eSIM and makes that number unusable
• Do not convert your physical SIM to an eSIM. That is a separate option in your settings, it has nothing to do with Atli, and it cannot be undone. Abroad you would need a new physical SIM from your provider

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Atli does not block anything. Your data connection carries WhatsApp, FaceTime, Messenger and the rest exactly as it carries everything else.

The UAE is the exception, and it is not us:

• Local operators there block VoIP calls at network level, on their own networks
• That applies to any SIM or eSIM on those networks, including local ones
• Messaging in those apps keeps working. It is the calls that are blocked

So your data can be working perfectly and a WhatsApp call still will not connect. Hotel and cafe wifi is often blocked the same way.

Nothing on our side can lift it. It is set by the operator, not by the plan you bought.

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Atli gives you 4G/LTE and 5G in most destinations.

• Some destinations offer only 4G, and a few only 3G
• Where 5G exists, getting it still depends on the network's coverage at your exact spot, and on how busy that network is

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Atli works in port, not out at sea. It runs on the same mobile networks as any phone on land, and those do not reach across open water.

• In port and near the coast: works normally, as long as your plan covers that country
• Out at sea: no signal. Only the ship wifi or the ship's satellite package work there, and both are sold on board

So buy for the ports, not for the trip. Go down your itinerary and list the countries you actually dock in.

• All in one region: one regional plan covers the lot. A Mediterranean route is Europe only if every port is European, so Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Israel need their own
• The Caribbean has no regional plan at all. Those islands are country plans, one per destination
• Spread across regions, or only one or two stops matter to you: buy a country plan for those

You are online only while the ship is in port, so a cruise gets through less data than a land trip of the same length.

One thing to watch: at sea the ship runs its own mobile network and charges its own rates. Leave roaming off on your usual SIM so it does not connect to it.

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There are no roaming fees with Atli. The price of the plan is the whole price.

• Data Roaming ON for the Atli eSIM is how a travel eSIM connects. It is included and costs nothing extra
• There is no charge per MB and no charge per country
• When the data runs out, data stops. There is never an extra bill

Roaming charges on a trip come from your regular SIM, not from Atli. Turn Data Roaming OFF on your regular SIM, or switch it off for the trip. The steps are in iPhone setup and Android setup.

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Your eSIM works where your plan covers, and nowhere else. Three kinds:

• Country plan: that one country
• Regional plan: every country on that region's list. Europe, Asia, Southeast Asia and Oceania, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East or North America
• Global plan: every destination on all seven of those lists

Type any destination name in the chat and I will tell you the networks Atli runs on there and which plan reaches it.

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Yes. The Atli eSIM works at home the same as it works abroad, as long as your plan covers your country.

• Turn the Atli eSIM on and pick it for mobile data in your settings
• Your normal SIM keeps your number, your calls and your texts
• Many people keep one as a backup for when their own network is down, or for a second device

⚠️ Turning it on starts the days, at home just as it would abroad. If you bought it for a trip, leave it switched off until you land.

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Pay right in the chat with Apple Pay, Google Pay or card. No app to install, and nothing to sign up for.

Refund policy: We issue refunds only for genuine technical or network failures on our provider's end where your eSIM cannot connect and our support team cannot resolve it. Requests must be submitted within 14 days of purchase by tapping Talk to a human in the chat.

Non-refundable: Incompatible or carrier-locked devices, change of mind, and plans that have already connected or used data are non-refundable. Confirming your phone is eSIM-capable and carrier-unlocked is your responsibility before buying.

Trouble connecting? Message support right away so our team can diagnose and fix it.

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Atli lives in three places: @AtliEsimBot on Telegram, +1 424-445-3187 on WhatsApp, and heyatli.com on the web. Anything else using the name is not us.

• Paying happens on a Stripe secure checkout page that Atli sends you to. Your card details go to Stripe, never into the chat
• Atli never asks for your card number, a code from your bank or a password. Neither does the team
• The only codes you ever send in the chat are a gift code or a friend code, and those are yours to give

Something looks off? Do not pay. Tap Talk to a human in the chat and ask.

No. An Atli plan is a one-time purchase. There is no subscription, nothing renews by itself, and you are never charged again unless you choose to buy.

• You pay once, in the chat, and that is the whole price
• When the data or the days run out, the plan ends. No surprise bill, ever
• You buy again only when you choose to

One thing can look like renewal: with more than one plan on your eSIM, your phone moves to the next one when the current one is used up. That plan was already paid for. That is a queue moving along, and nothing is charged for it. More in When your data runs out.

Never want to think about running out? Pick an unlimited plan where your destination offers one, or add another plan any time and it lands on the same eSIM. How much data do I need? shows the sizes.

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Ask Atli for invite on Telegram or WhatsApp and he gives you your personal friend code (it looks like ATLI-XXXX) plus a share link.

• Friends get 10% off their first eSIM (on orders $6.00+).
• You get 2000 Atli credits ($2 off) when they buy, on orders $6.00+.

Friend codes are for new travelers only, one per person. The code works on your first order only: if that order is under $6.00 the discount does not apply and the code is used up. Discounts do not stack. You get the best one you qualify for.

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Every $1 you spend earns 30 Atli credits, automatically. Buying for yourself and gifting both count (the credits go to whoever pays).

Every 1000 credits = $1 off on orders of $6 and up, applied automatically at checkout once you have 2000. Leftover credits stay for next time, and they stay good for 12 months from the day you earn them.

Credits cover part of an order, not all of it. The maximum is tiered by order value: the larger the order, the more credits can be applied.

Ask Atli for credits on Telegram or WhatsApp anytime to see what you have.

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Every place you visit with Atli leaves a stamp in your passport. Type passport to Atli on Telegram or WhatsApp to open yours.

• A pin on the world map for every destination stamped, and a count of your stamps
• Your latest stamp, with the date
• A traveller name of your own. Tap Change name under the card to set it

Only country plans leave a stamp. Regional and Global plans cover many destinations at once, so they do not put a pin on the map.

New stamp under the card takes you to the next destination.

Check any phone, tablet, smartwatch or laptop. It needs to be eSIM-capable and carrier-unlocked:

Not listed? On a phone, dial *#06# and if an EID number appears, it supports eSIM. Tablets and watches can't dial codes, so for those just type the model above.

You can run the eSIM and your physical SIM at the same time if your phone takes two SIMs. Every iPhone with eSIM, from the XR and XS on, runs both together; iPhone 13 and later can also run two eSIMs at once.

Not every device has eSIM. Most recent phones from Apple, Samsung and Google do; many other new phones still do not. Tablets, smartwatches and laptops have it less often, and usually only in the Cellular or 5G version.

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Any plan can be a gift: pick their destination, choose a plan, then tap 🎁 Buy as a gift at checkout.

• You get a gift card with a GIFT-XXXX-XXXX claim code to forward.
• They claim it by sending the code to Atli, on Telegram or WhatsApp.
• Claiming does not start the plan. The plan starts on their first connection at the destination, or 30 days after the claim, whichever comes first. Install on wifi.
• Codes stay claimable for 30 days. One claim per code, and you can't claim your own.
• Nothing is lost if nobody claims it. After 30 days the plan moves to your own account and works like any plan you bought for yourself.

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