The ICF and the entry fee come before the SIM
The UK Foreign Office says all travellers must complete an Immigration and Customs Form, the ICF, up to three days before arrival and before departure, at icf.sr. It also says British citizens can visit for tourism for up to 90 days without a visa but must pay an entry fee of 54 US dollars before they travel. A passport must be valid for at least six months after arrival, and a yellow fever certificate is needed from countries with transmission risk.
These rules differ by nationality, so check your own through official channels. The practical point for connectivity is that two of these steps are online and need a screenshot or printout. Complete them on a proper connection at home. The same page warns that British pounds cannot be exchanged, so bring US dollars or euros.
Telesur: physical SIM or eSIM, where and what to bring
Telesur's SIM page lists an all-services SIM for phones and a data-only SIM for laptops and tablets, each as a physical card or an eSIM at SRD 115. A separate Telesur FAQ gives the price of both as SRD 123.34, so the two pages differ and you should confirm at the counter. Telesur says its promotion of 45 free on-net minutes and 1 GB with every new prepaid SIM runs through 31 December 2026.
The page says the SIMs are sold at six Telesur branches, in Paramaribo (Norte, Latour, Centrum and Zonnebloemstraat), Nickerie and Lelydorp, from Monday to Friday between 8:00 and 15:30. The FAQ adds that eSIMs are also sold in the online shop, and that an individual customer needs an account number, a valid email address and a valid ID. Those hours mean a weekend arrival cannot rely on a branch, so plan the first connection around Wi-Fi.
Telesur bundles, coverage claims and roaming
Telesur's prepaid page lists data bundles from SRD 33 for 150 MB over 12 hours up to SRD 3,799 for 1,200 GB over 30 days with 5G, and says it has temporarily increased the data volumes of its 1-day, 3-day, 7-day and 30-day bundles and a 50 GB 5G package. Prepaid credit stays valid for six months with activity, and unused data from an automatically renewed package carries forward one period.
Telesur says it offers the best coverage throughout the entire country, which is a marketing claim. We found no regulator coverage survey, so treat coverage in the interior as unconfirmed. On roaming, the page says voice roaming is possible with sufficient base credit, which concerns Telesur customers abroad rather than visitors in Suriname.
Digicel's 30-day tourist eSIM
Digicel Suriname's tourist page, which is in Dutch, lists three prepaid eSIM plans for visitors, each valid for 30 days: 5 GB at SRD 400, 10 GB at SRD 600 and 15 GB at SRD 800, all excluding tax. The page says the plans include unlimited rollover data and 5G any-use data, and that accounts are managed in the MyDigicel app.
The page also mentions a preloaded SIM-to-GO card at SRD 750 sold at local retailers, gas stations and pharmacies, but gives no data allowance, so we cannot compare it with the eSIMs. The eSIM prices exclude tax, so the checkout total will be higher than the figures above.
Emergency numbers
The UK Foreign Office lists 115 as the main emergency number for ambulance, fire and police in Suriname, with 113 for an ambulance, 110 for fire and 115 for police. Telesur's new-customer promotion includes free on-net minutes, and Digicel's tourist plans list data only on the page we read.
For a trip into the interior, ask your lodge or tour operator what signal exists. We found no official map for the interior, and Telesur's coverage claim is general.
Adding a local eSIM beside your home line
Apple says an iPhone must be unlocked to use a travel eSIM and that you choose the data line in Settings, Cellular, with iMessage and FaceTime remaining on the home number. Google says Pixel 3a and later phones support one physical SIM and one eSIM. Samsung describes SIM manager. Telesur notes that you can check eSIM compatibility by dialling #06# and that an eSIM can hold up to two active numbers. Our Suriname plan page is an alternative for data bought before departure.
Networks our Suriname plans use
These are the operators named on our plans for Suriname, taken from the plan data, so the list follows the catalogue.
- Digicel4G
- DIGICEL4G