How to carrier unlock iPhone 7 plus when AT&T refuses (clean IMEI)

Hennesseystealth wrote:

I have an AT&T iphone 7 plus. It has been used on the Cricket Wireless system (AT&T) for years. It is carrier locked to that system. I am going to India and asked for it to be unlocked and they keep telling me it can't. I use their unlock website and it says denied.

Cricket is NOT AT&T. Cricket uses the AT&T network, but they are a separate company.

If Cricket denied the unlock request, then it can't be unlocked. End of discussion.

The so-called unlocking services are nothing but scams. They can't unlock the phone.

Is it currently active on the Cricket network? If not, then they won't be able to see it to unlock it. If it was, but is no longer active on their network, you may have to end up signing back up with cricket and keeping the service going for 6 consecutive months in order to get it unlocked by them.

By the way, there is NO federal law requiring them to unlock the phone. You are mistaken about that.

Cricket is a wholly owned subsidiary of AT&T, which is why Cricket SIM cards work immediately on AT&T locked phones (but not Cricket locked phones with AT&T). However, it can be a nightmare trying to figure out what to do if one breaks an AT&T contract (or even just leaves after the contract terms are over) and just switches to Cricket because they don't necessarily talk to each other. Only AT&T can lock it, and it's going to be tough if they claims that their unlocking terms haven't been met yet.

My humble opinion ... others may say I am wrong ... but you are out of time ...

Buy a new unlocked iPhoneSE 64 GB from an Apple Store. It WILL be unlocked completely. $400. iPhone7 is older, might as well trade up to newer device. And your old phone *may* be tradable even with the carrier lock, but Apple will say.

Others will point out that a US iPhone only has warranty support in US. But the iPhone7 is possibly a US phone and does not have warranty in India as is.

If you use it with Cricket then it is locked to Cricket, not to AT&T. That’s why AT&T refuses to unlock it. Cricket is the only carrier who can unlock it. It doesn’t matter that Cricket is “owned” by AT&T; Cricket is still a separate carrier.

Only the carrier it is locked to can unlock it.

If they refuse, there is nothing we or Apple can do for you.

Please do not make another person a victim here ... that would be a very unethical move. The phone is a brick. Recycle it at Apple store for parts.