Basics[]
Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia. Together with two neighbouring islands, it forms one of Australia's external territories and utilises a different country code (+672). It has around 1,800 inhabitants living on a total area of about 35 km2.
There is now only one operator offering voice and data service via 3G/4G on the island. There was previously a second operator of 4G service on the island called GloNet however with the Australian government funding the new 4G network on the island it was now not viable.
- Norfolk Telecom (NT)
The Australian Government has given Norfolk Telecom a $4 million grant into upgrading to 4G and to link the island by a fibre-optic submarine cable. The old 2G network was switched off in November 2020.
nbn SkyMuster satellite service[]
In 2017 the Australian nbn SkyMuster satellite service started on the Norfolk Island. It delivers broadband access to homes and businesses in regional and remote Australia via two state-of-the-art satellites. This usually involves the installation of a satellite dish, a modem and a power supply in a private home or business free of charge. Typically speeds of 8-20 Mbps are reached and prices start at about $30 per month for 50 GB.
Norfolk Telecom (NT)[]
Norfolk Telecom is the state-owned telco and operates a 3G/4G network with island wide coverage. The 3G operates on 900 Mhz (Band 8) and the 4G network operates on 700 Mhz (Band 28). This is a new network that replaces the old 2G only network and as a result it uses new sim cards. This new network is the result of the Australian government granting $4 million to upgrade the network to 4G.
The 2G/GSM network on 900 MHz Was shut down in November 2020 old SIM cards need to be swapped by Telecom to 3G/4G compatible. This can be done at the main office.
Data Sim Cards[]
Currently 6 different plans exist however one is only meant to be supplied to tourists, this can be cheated by having a resident purchase for you. All of them currently include a sim card when purchased.
| Price | Data | Extra | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
| $ 10 | 1 GB | - | 30 days |
| $ 20 | 0.2 GB | $10 call credit | 180 days |
| $ 30 | 3 GB | 200 min local calls and 200 local sms | 30 days |
| $ 60 | 6 GB | 300 min local calls and 300 local sms | 30 days |
| $ 80 | 8 GB | 500 min local calls and 500 local sms | 30 days |
| $ 30 | 2 GB | Tourist sim (see below) | 21 days |
The local calls only include to mobiles except the call credit which can be used to call landlines and the tourist sim which includes 25 mins local landline calls, 25 mins local mobile calls, 5 mins calls to AU/NZ numbers and 100 local sms.
All bundles are valid for 30 days with the sim card valid for 180 days from last recharge except the tourist sim which is only valid for 21 days with no possibility to extend.
On all plans (except the tourist plan where only the $20 add on is available) it is possible to add on data - 2 GB data for $ 20, 4 GB data for $30 and 8 GB data for $50.
It is only possible to purchase a new sim card at the main office located at 9 New Cascade Road. Some form of ID (such as passport) is required for all purchases as is standard for prepaid sim cards in Australia.
More info[]
- Official website