AT&T Community Forums

Cancel plan temporarily

I am outside of the US and need to cancel my prepaid plan. To make changes to my account, I need to know my 4 digit PIN. To reset this PIN, I need to receive a text. I cannot receive texts because I am abroad on a prepaid plan. How can I cancel my plan or AutoPay until I return? Thank you.

Responses

Accepted Solution

formerlyknownas

ACE - Sage

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118.3K Messages

15 days ago

If you were in a country that was compatible with AT&t's $35 roaming add-on for prepaid service, you would be able to log into your account. So I assume you are not in one of the covered countries.

You would also have to be able to receive your PIN code reset via Wi-Fi calling, so I assume you either do not have access to Wi-Fi calling or your phone is not capable of AT&T Wi-Fi calling.

So you have at this point possibly locked yourself out of your account if you cannot receive a text message with your PIN code or two-factor authentication code.

As for canceling your prepaid service, or not paying for your prepaid refill, you can try calling AT&T, however, if you can't prove it's your account, they are likely not going to talk to you. The contact us Link at the bottom of this webpage has the free number for travelers outside of the USA for prepaid users.

Just as a warning, if your prepaid refill is not made on a regular basis, your account might be closed and your number lost.

I hate to say it, but a little bit of planning ahead of time would be a lot less headache for you right now. 😟

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cajw

3 Messages

15 days ago

Thanks for the response! It’s true about the planning. However after an hour of calling the contact phone numbers through Skype calling I never ended up being able to speak to a human. When I finally clicked enough options to find one that said it would allow me to speak to a human, all required me to input my 4 digit pin before it would connect me and even after about 8+ incorrect attempts just kept telling me to try again with my PIN. Good tip on the Wi-Fi calling. I looked into it but it doesn’t seem to be an option on my phone. Watching the video about it implies that is because it is only an option for postpaid accounts. My device is otherwise compatible and I have Wi-Fi. If you have any other potential solutions please let me know. You have been very thorough and helpful so thank you.

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formerlyknownas

ACE - Sage

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118.3K Messages

14 days ago

Wi-Fi calling is available for both postpaid and prepaid. If you do not have access to Wi-Fi calling it's because you either do not have a compatible phone, or did not set it up before leaving the US

The hitch now is your PIN.

Without it you're locked out. The only way AT&T will authenticate is to send you a passcode to your phone via text message

The only other way to stop paying for service would be to cancel the method of payment, canceling your creditor debit card while outside the country may be very undesirable. As that may leave you stranded without any access to pay

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cajw

3 Messages

12 days ago

Thanks for the follow up! I found the option to turn on Wi-Fi calling and managed to turn off my AutoPay so thank you!! It ended up not being in the spot all the instructions say it should be in my iPhone 11 Pro Max, I think because I have used multiple SIM cards/eSIMs before in other countries. But when I clicked the options for my AT&T SIM card it was there and everything worked as it should. Thanks so much for your help and the money you saved me!

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