SaskTel is the latest Canadian carrier to announce the end of its 3G network.
In a release on Feb. 10, the Saskatchewan-based crown corporation said it “will be turning down its 3G wireless network on October 1, 2027.” SaskTel says that after this date, 3G wireless devices will no longer function on its network, and wireless devices that don’t support voice over LTE (VoLTE) will lose access to voice services.
If you’re not sure whether your device supports VoLTE, SaskTel has a support page where you can check whether your phone will work. VoLTE support is important as devices that don’t support the standard fall back to 3G services to perform voice calls, which is why those phones will stop working when 3G shuts down.
The changes will apply to both SaskTel and the carrier’s Lüm Mobile offshoot.
SaskTel notes that it will transition the existing 3G and non-VoLTE customers to its 4G LTE and 5G/5G+ networks. Charlene Gavel, SaskTel’s president and CEO, noted in the release that the company will be able to repurpose its 3G spectrum to increase the capacity of its other networks once the shutdown is complete.
SaskTel joins other Canadian carriers in shuttering 3G in an industry-wide push to phase out the technology and retire aging equipment in favour of newer, faster wireless technology.
Rogers kicked off the 3G shutdown in 2025, sparking months of issues and problems for customers. The main problem came back to VoLTE support. Many customers were told they would need to upgrade despite having devices that support VoLTE, particularly people with OnePlus smartphones.
Part of the problem is certification — Canadian carriers will verify the devices they sell work with their VoLTE, but won’t always verify devices they don’t sell, such as OnePlus phones, which aren’t typically sold by Canadian carriers. (This doesn’t mean you need to buy a phone from a carrier to get VoLTE, just that phones sold by carriers are guaranteed to work even if you buy that device elsewhere.)
Next up, several providers started shutting down their 3G networks in Manitoba at the end of December, including Bell, Telus, their subsidiaries like Koodo, and Freedom Mobile. Both Telus and Bell have slated a national 3G shutdown for March 1, 2027.
