Mainland Spain and the Canary Islands have a big number of regular visitors, some who squeeze in as many holidays as they can, and some who have invested in a holiday home, where they spend part of the year. A Spanish pay as you go mobile phone is ideal for cheap calls when at their holiday home, but a new law may result in you losing that number.

As of November 9th 2009, the Data Retention Act requires that telephone operators register personal details of their pay as you go customers. That mobile that is slumbering in a cupboard in the UK may have already received a text to advise of this change, but will you read it in time.

Thankfully it is possible to get someone to register your mobile SIM card on your behalf in Spain. They will need your details and a copy of the inside back cover of your passport, it’s a FREE service from any Spanish shop that deals with your provider. The clock is ticking, so dig out that phone and if you are not returning to Spain in time to register the SIM yourself, get a friend to on your behalf.