Picture yourself in the middle of nowhere, a broken radiator hose on your KTM adventure bike spews white steam into the arid desert. Now imagine pulling out your trusty sat phone to call for help. As you dial the number, a cloud of dust appears on the horizon and a truck appears, and you assume it’s heading your way. As the truck arrives at your smoking motorcycle, a group of men jump out with guns. The language is foreign, but through crude sign language, you gather that your sat phone is a problem.

There are many places on earth where this situation would playout just this way. Surprisingly, satellite phones are not necessarily legal everywhere in the world. We took a dive into the specifics of countries with sat phone restrictions a few years ago, but we thought that it deserved another look. Keep in mind that Outfitter Satellite is not in the business of giving legal advice, so anything you may read in this blog is only speculatory.

Most areas of the world are a complex blend of policy and permissions, but regardless of why you need your sat phone, it could be completely illegal to possess. For instance, in India you are not allowed to possess a sat phone for any reason due to terrorism concerns. Not that they are going to chase you down and throw you in jail if you are using one on a mountain top, but if you are caught, they may detain you and issue a fine. Of course as we said before, we dont actually know what will happen to you, just make sure you are informed.

Of course, while we would never tell you to illegally bring your sat phone into hostile territory, but sometimes an unintentional mistake can happen. A simple search will turn up loads of stories about unwitting travelers that ended up in hot water when they inadvertently brought a sat phone where they are forbidden.(This is us warning you to be informed and not take this blog as legal advice.)

Be Informed

There is no excuse in today’s day and age for ignorance of the laws around the world. Resources are vast and pretty much everything you need to know about visiting a particular country is available online.

The number of travelers that have had issues simply by being uninformed could fill an entire newsfeed on their own. (What did we tell you?) Be sure to check with the state department website, where you will be able to find the information you will need about traveling abroad.

If You Are Arrested

Let's say the worst case scenario has come to pass, and you were caught with your sat phone you should have known better than to take with you anyway. Depending on the country, the penalties for having a sat phone can range from being released with a stern warning to full-blown prosecution.

Also keep in mind that places like Cuba have a moratorium on sat phones, and if caught, they will not take honor U.S. currency or credit cards — so be prepared. There have been stories of foreigners sentenced to prison for having a sat phone. The best practice is to stay informed.

The first thing you need to do if you are arrested in a forigen country is to contact the local U.S. embassy. The embassy will be able to help with contacting your family, securing a lawyer, and making sure you are treated fairly. Remember you are still a U.S. citizen and are required to be treated as such.

When dealing with forigen governments it can always be a bit dicey. If you have any doubt about bringing your satellite phone into a particular country, the best policy is to leave it at home.

When allowed, and horror stories notwithstanding, satellite phones can be invaluable for the traveler. There is no better way to maintain contact with the world at large than with a satellite phone from Outfitter Satellite Phones.

Not only do we offer sat phones but satellite internet hotspots as well. Of course, we urge you to only use those where legal to do so. Oh, and just because we have a sat phone rental program does not mean that you can take them to Cuba.

Overall, taking satellite phones out of the U.S. is a pretty safe bet, and most of the world is completely fine with this method of communication. Of course, if you have any questions the professionals at Outfitter Satellite Phones in Nashville are ready to help with your needs. So give us a call or shoot us an email, and don't forget that we have a solution for all of your communication needs. We do not however, have any authority when it comes to legal advice and are in no way implying any specific legal knowledge of the nuances of sat phones around the world.