Grey cellular bars for physical SIM card on iPhone 13 mini in roaming, but eSIM works fine

iPhone 13 mini,

iOS 18.3.1


I’m currently in roaming, but i was recently in roaming with the same phone and SIM cards in at least 4 European countries and all was working fine.


After landing in Spain and turning the airplane mode off I can no longer make and receive phone calls in my physical SIM card. Cellular bars are full but grayed out. Internet is working through.


Some times after phone restart or turning airplane mode on/off it gets normal, but once I try to call someone or someone tries to call me the call fails and bars turn grey again. Also I’ve received a message in the first day from carrier that someone was trying to call me 5 times but none of those calls came through and no sms since then either.


I tried to pinpoint the problem to whether it is carrier or phone related and looks like the phone is the main culprit:


  1. Tried 2 other working SIM cards from different carriers - no luck.
  2. Rebooted my phone cleared carrier settings, reinstalled SIM card - no luck
  3. Inserted my SIM card into my wife’s iPhone(15 Pro) - all works fine, bars are normal color, can make/receive calls. BTW she is also in roaming with the same carrier and has no issues.
  4. Turned on my eSIM and that’s where things got interesting. It all works fine for the eSIM i.e. normal bars, calls, sms, but physical SIM card still doesn’t work for calls and sms.


Any help will be very appreciated.


[Re-Titled by Moderator]



Posted on Feb 18, 2025 8:25 AM

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3 replies

Feb 18, 2025 10:38 PM in response to Kit_t

Since the same SIM is working on another device you need to try these...


You may try some of these steps, please check after each step...


  1. Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve temporary software glitches. Turn off your iPhone, wait for a few seconds, and then turn it back on.
    1. Restart the device. That's it.
    2. Still not solved --> Force restart iPhone - Apple Support
  2. Corporate iPhone Profile Check and Removal Guide
    1. Is this your corporate iPhone? Then please contact the system administrator of your corporate
  3. If it is your device, in that case, do you have any profile installed by your corporate/organization/enterprise/School Management?
      1. Erase the profile added by you If you have installed a profile on your own --> Install or remove configuration profiles on iPhone - Apple ...
  4. Please contact the system administrator of the organization who provided the profile to you
  5. Reset Network Settings: Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Network Settings: Only network settings are removed.
    1. When you reset network settings, previously used networks and VPN settings that weren’t installed by a configuration profile or mobile device management (MDM) are removed. Wi-Fi is turned off and then back on, disconnecting you from any network you’re on. The Wi-Fi and Ask to Join Networks settings remain turned on.
    2. To remove VPN settings installed by a configuration profile, go to Settings > General > Profiles & Device Management, select the configuration profile, then tap Remove Profile. This also removes other settings and accounts provided by the profile. See Install or remove configuration profiles on iPhone in this guide.
    3. To remove network settings installed by MDM, go to Settings > General > Profiles & Device Management, select the management, then tap Remove Management. This also removes other settings and certificates provided by MDM. See “Mobile device management (MDM)” in the iOS Deployment Reference.
    4. Reset your Network Settings. Tap Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings. This also resets Wi-Fi networks and passwords, cellular settings, and VPN and APN settings that you've used before.
  6. If the issue persists, you can try resetting all settings on your iPhone. This will not erase your data but will reset all personalized settings to their default values. Go to Settings > General > Transfer & Reset > Reset > Reset All Settings and confirm the action. Note that you will need to reconfigure your settings afterward. All settings—including network settings, the keyboard dictionary, the Home screen layout, location settings, privacy settings, and Apple Pay cards—are removed or reset to their defaults. No data or media are deleted.
    1. Reset All Settings: Return iPhone settings to their defaults - Apple Support:- Return iPhone settings to their defaults
    2. You can return settings to their defaults without erasing your content.
    3. If you want to save your settings, back up your iPhone before returning them to their defaults. For example, if you’re trying to solve a problem but returning settings to their defaults doesn’t help, you might want to restore your previous settings from a backup.
  7. Make sure you have the latest updates installed.
    1. Update Over-the-Air (OTA) —> Update your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support (IN)
    2. Update using iTunes/Finder —> Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support (IN)


If none of the above steps resolve the issue, it is recommended to reach out to Apple Support or visit an authorized service center for further assistance. They can provide specific guidance based on your device model and iOS version.



Feb 19, 2025 9:26 AM in response to SravanKrA

Thank you for your response. I’ve tried everything, including a complete phone reset with all data and settings erased, but unfortunately, the issue still persists.


This is my personal phone, with no profiles installed.


As a temporary solution, I’ve redirected all calls from my physical SIM to the eSIM.


I’ll see if the issue persists in other countries. I recall having LTE problems in Ukraine back in the day because my iPhone SE was a "USA model," while local carriers only supported European LTE frequencies—meaning it worked properly only with "European iPhone models". Perhaps this issue is something similar.

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Grey cellular bars for physical SIM card on iPhone 13 mini in roaming, but eSIM works fine

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