< Back to all FAQ's “Can I use my current phone with my free government cell phone service?” is the one of the most frequently asked question we get here at FreeGovernmentCellPhones.net. And no wonder: Millions of Americans have spent hundreds of dollars to purchase their own cell phones
and really want to hear that they are compatible with the free government cell phone program. With that in mind, we put our team of ace research assistants to work gathering the official policies from each and every company that participates in the Lifeline Assistance cell phone program. There are five major companies whose business is nearly national in scope, plus another dozen or so smaller, regional companies that are substantial enough to include in this compendium. Let’s start
with the national companies: Safelink Wireless – Safelink, the oldest and best known of the companies that offer Lifeline Assistance free government cell phones, has millions of customers in 39 states plus Washington, DC and Puerto Rico. The Safelink website has a handy video tutorial that gives you step-by-step instructions on how to Bring Your Own Phone (BYOP). It’s headlined: “Use your own Phone, get Bonus Free Service” That’s about as simple
as can be. Under the website’s Terms & Conditions (clicking will download a PDF), it says:
Assurance Wireless – Assurance Wireless is a division of global giant Virgin Mobile. It’s a major competitor that serves 40 states and the District of Columbia. Its policy regarding using your own cell phone is complex, but clearly presented:
ReachOut Wireless – ReachOut now offers free government cell phone service in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Here’s the text of the company’s policy on using your own cell phone:
Budget Mobile – Budget currently offers free government cell phone plans in 30 states and have already announced expansion plans into 17 more states and Puerto Rico. Here is the company’s bring-your-own-phone policy:
Life Wireless – Life Wireless does business in 25 states plus Puerto Rico. Its bring-your-own-phone policy says:
The Big Five may have the bulk of the nation’s free government cell phone customers, but scores of small, regional companies give them plenty of stiff competition. Let’s take a look at the policies some of the larger ones have instituted: Assist Wireless – Assist Wireless already competes for your Lifeline Assistance business in three states (Arkansas, Maryland and Oklahoma) and expects to soon expand into ten additional states (California, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and Texas). Unfortunately, they do not allow you to use your own phone. Cintex Wireless – This smaller free government cell phone company offers Lifeline Assistance plans in Arkansas, Maine, Maryland, Rhode Island and West Virginia. The company’s website suggests that for all their Lifeline and paid plans, they don’t send you a phone, but instead send you a SIM card that will work in any GSM phone that you have. If you already have a SIM card in your phone, you can activate it on their website. StandUp Wireless – StandUp Wireless is a Lifeline Assistance vendor in eleven states (Arizona, Arkansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin). They do not allow you to bring your own phone, and must use the one they give you. Can I use my own phone with StandUP Wireless?
Wireless for Hope – Wireless operates in just two states — Arkansas and Louisiana — and also does business under the Easy Wireless name. The company’s bring-your-own-phone is spelled out on the Easy website:
Tag Mobile – Tag Mobile serves up free Lifeline cell phones in Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin. There’s nothing on their website that addresses the issue, but we called their customer service department and were told that you must use the phone they provide. Care Wireless – Care concentrates its business in Illinois. Despite that limited service area, the company’s website answers the “Can I use my own cell phone?” question very clearly:
Alaska Wireless – Alaska Wireless, as you might guess, offers Lifeline service in Alaska. Their website does not say their policy, but customer service wrote us the following:
FreedomPop – FreedomPop is not an official Lifeline phone provider, but we include it on FreeGovernmentCellPhones.net because they offer a terrific deal that provides free service on a high-end phone. But they’ve recently added a “Bring Your Own Phone” program and, just as it sounds, you can bring your own phone. There may be some restrictions on which types of phones. And the others – In addition, a handful of the smaller, regional free government cell phone companies also neglect to include their bring-your-own-phone policies on their websites and have not responded to our requests for information. Despite our best efforts, we were unable to determine the policies of True Wireless (Arkansas, Maryland, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and Texas), Yourtel Wireless (Kansas, Illinois, Missouri, Maine, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Washington, Rhode Island and Washington), Terracom Wireless (Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia or Wisconsin), and i-Wireless (Ohio and Kentucky). Our advice? If you already have a cell phone and want to find out if you can use it as your free government cell phone, here’s what you should do: Visit our States page and note which companies compete in your state. Then come back to this page and note which ones will allow you to bring your own phone. That could tip the balance and help you decide to which free government cell phone company is right for you. How do I transfer my Assurance Wireless SIM card to another phone?If you are approved, you can keep your current phone number by contacting Customer Care when you receive your new device at 1-888-321-5880 and a representative will help you. Just call from a different phone and have your account number and password from your previous carrier handy.
Can I use a different phone with Assurance Wireless?Selected Virgin Mobile phones may be used with an Assurance Wireless account excluding the Party Animal, Super Model, Blackberry® and Android™ models. However, for the best customer experience we encourage you to use the handset sent to you by Assurance Wireless.
Are Assurance Wireless SIM cards locked?Does Assurance Wireless unlock devices with a Master Subsidy Lock (“MSL”)? These devices are not capable of being SIM unlocked. Assurance Wireless may be able to provide a Master Subsidy Lock ("MSL") code to eligible customers.
Can I put my government phone SIM card in another phone?A. You cannot do that because a SIM card becomes locked to a Tracfone phone (sister company of Safelink Wireless, where they get the phones) the moment the phone they sent you is powered up. After than, it becomes “unusable” in any other phone or with any other provider.
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