The Assurance Wireless program is a free cell phone service provided by Virgin Mobile to eligible customers. The program is available to low-income households and provides them with free access to basic cell phone services. Customers who qualify for the program receive a free cell phone, unlimited text messaging, and 250 minutes of talk time per month.
Assurance Wireless is one of the largest providers of free government cell phones. The company has been operating since 2008 and currently serves over two million customers in all 50 states. The federal Lifeline program supports the service, which provides subsidies to eligible telecommunications companies.
Customers who participate in the Assurance Wireless program can use their phones to stay connected with loved ones, access emergency services, and keep up with work and school obligations. To qualify for the program, customers must meet certain income requirements. For example, customers must have an annual household income at or below 135% of the federal poverty level.
For many people living in poverty, reliable communication is essential for maintaining stability and improving their quality of life. The Assurance Wireless program helps close the digital divide by providing those who need it most with access to vital communication services.
Qualifications
If you qualify for the National Verifier, you will automatically qualify for Assurance Wireless. Suppose you do not qualify for the National Verifier. In that case, you may still be eligible for Assurance Wireless if you meet certain income requirements or participate in other programs, such as Medicaid or food stamps. You can learn more about program eligibility by visiting the Lifeline Support website.
To participate in Assurance Wireless, customers must first sign up for an account. Once your account is created, you will be able to view available plans and pricing, as well as enrol in the program. Enrollment is quick and easy and can be done online or over the phone. Once your enrollment is complete, you will receive free monthly minutes, texts, and data.
You can use these services to stay connected with family and friends, access important information online, and more. Assurance Wireless offers additional features like voicemail and call waiting at no extra cost!
Your household must earn below a certain amount each year if you qualify based on income. This varies by state but is generally around $25,000 per year for an individual or $50,000 per year for a family of four.
If you do not have an income or are too high, you may still qualify if you are enrolled in certain public assistance programs. These include
- Medicaid
- Food Stamps/SNAP
- Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
- Federal Public Housing Assistance
- Tribally Administered Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
- Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
- Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance
- Tribal Head Start
- Veterans and Survivors Pension Benefit
You must provide proof of eligibility to enrol in the Assurance Wireless program. This can be done by providing documentation from a qualifying program or submitting your most recent tax return.
Once approved for the program, you can choose a free cell phone and select a monthly plan with free minutes and data.
One Account per Household
Only one Lifeline discount per household is available, whether landline or wireless. If your household already receives discounts on a landline phone, you are ineligible for the program; however, if someone in your household qualifies for the Lifeline program through another provider such as SafeLink Wireless or Reachout Wireless, you may be eligible for the program as well.
If you qualify for Assurance Wireless service, you will receive a free cellular phone and up to 350 free monthly minutes of airtime. Additional minutes may be purchased in blocks of time (200, 500 or 1000 minutes) at very reasonable rates. You can also purchase unlimited monthly plans starting at just $20.
No contracts to sign and no credit checks required – everyone qualifies! Plus, there are no hidden fees or surcharges – what you see is what you get.
If you have questions about the verification process, please call 1-877-578-2444 to speak to a verification expert. The experts are available Monday through Friday. They will be able to answer any questions you may have about the process and help walk you through it step by step.
Costs
Assurance Wireless Lifeline service is free to qualified consumers. Assurance Wireless offers several plans to its customers, including a certain amount of free minutes, texts, and data each month. Customers can also purchase additional minutes, texts, and data if they need more than what is included in their plan.
The cost of the Assurance Wireless program varies depending on the individual plan a customer chooses. However, all plans are affordable, and some even provide discounts for certain groups of people, such as veterans or seniors.
Phone Plans
- FREE Android Smartphone
- FREE Unlimited Texts each month
- Keep Your Current Home or Cell Phone Number
- FREE Unlimited Calls to 211
- FREE Calls to Customer Care
- BYOD kits are compatible with most unlocked GSM-capable smartphones.
- Nationwide Sprint® Network Coverage
- A minimum of 350 FREE Voice Minutes Each Month
- FREE Voicemail Account, Call Waiting and Caller ID
- FREE 911 Access
- FREE 3GB of DATA each month (high-speed data varies by device).
How to Get A Phone
There are a few steps to take to get a phone through the Assurance Wireless program. First, you must make sure that you qualify for the program. To do this, you must be at least 18 years of age and either has income at or below 135% of the federal poverty guidelines or participate in certain government assistance programs, such as Medicaid or food stamps.
If you meet these criteria, you can begin the application process. The next step is to fill out an application for the program. This can be done online or over the phone. Once your application has been received and approved, you can choose from a selection of free phones available through Assurance Wireless.
You will also be given a free minutes plan to use each month. If you need any help along the way, Assurance Wireless has customer service representatives to assist you. You can contact them by phone or email if you have questions about qualifying for the program or completing your application.
Assurance Wireless Customer Care Number
To apply for the program, you can either fill out an online application or call Customer Care at 1-888-898-4888 to speak to a representative in your area. The representative will help you with the application process.
Once approved for the program, you will be able to choose a free cell phone from a selection of models, and you will receive a certain number of free minutes each month.
How to Receive Continuous FREE service
The Lifeline program is vital to ensuring that all Americans have access to communication services. As such, those who participate in the program must be properly certified and re-certified on an annual basis. The process is easy and can be completed online or by phone. Click the link or call the number provided to get started.
- Lifeline Annual Certification.
- Re-certify by phone call 888-653-9262 from your Assurance Wireless phone.
- Re-verification to continue receiving Lifeline service.
There are two ways that you can complete Reverification:
- Online
- By Mail
Please follow these instructions if you decide to complete your Reverification online:
- Visit www.assurancewireless.com/Shop/Common/Re-Verify.aspx and log in with your Assurance Wireless Account Number and PIN located on the back of your phone (under the battery). If you have not yet created an account, please click “Create New Account” to start.
- Complete all required fields on the demographical information page, then click “Submit” at the bottom.
- On the next screen, review your responses for accuracy, then click “Confirm”.
- Once you have completed online Re-Verification, a confirmation message will display on your screen.
If you would like to complete your Reverification by mail, please follow these steps:
- Download and print the Reverification Form located here: [LINK] OR request that a form be mailed to you by calling their Consumer Care Center at 1-888-321-5880
- Complete all required fields, then sign and date where indicated at the bottom of the Form.
- Return your completed Form by one of these methods: -Fax or Mail.
If You Need More Minutes, Data or Text
You may wonder how much it would cost to add more minutes to your plan. The answer is that it depends on the type of plan you have. If you need more minutes, you can buy 250 additional voice minutes for $5.
Alternatively, you can purchase additional voice minutes for 10¢ each. Lastly, there are a variety of low-cost plans available if you need a larger amount of minutes. We are confident that you will be satisfied with the results of whichever option you choose.
Bundled Plans for Smartphone customers:
- $15 Plan – Includes Unlimited Voice Minutes, Unlimited Texts and an additional 500MB of Data each month.
- $20 Plan – Includes Unlimited Voice Minutes, Unlimited Texts and an additional 1GB of Data each month.
- $30 Plan – Includes unlimited Voice Minutes, Unlimited Texts and an additional 4GB of Data each month.
- $40 Plan – Includes unlimited Voice Minutes, Unlimited Texts and an additional 10GB of Data each month.
The $15 plan is the most basic of the 4, providing only 500MB of data and unlimited voice and text. This plan may be suitable for individuals who don’t use their phones for data-intensive activities such as streaming music or videos and are comfortable staying within 500MB.
For just $15 more per month, the $20 plan offers 4 times as much data at 1GB. This could make a difference for customers who want to use data-heavy apps on their phones but still stay within a reasonable budget.
The $30 and $40 plans offer progressively larger amounts of data. The latter is especially suited to power users who require greater data allotments for gaming, video streaming and working from their mobile devices.
If You Do Not Qualify Assurance Wireless Program
There are a few reasons someone might not qualify for the Assurance Wireless program. The first reason is that they may not have a low enough income. To qualify for the program, an individual must have an income at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. If someone does not meet these criteria, they will not be eligible for the program.
Another reason someone may not qualify for Assurance Wireless is if they already receive benefits from another government assistance program that provides them with free or discounted cell phone service. Examples of these programs include Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
If an individual is already enrolled in one of these programs, they will not be able to receive benefits from Assurance Wireless. Finally, people who are incarcerated are also ineligible for the program. This includes people currently in jail or prison, as well as those on parole or probation.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the Assurance Wireless program?
The Assurance Wireless program is a Lifeline Assistance service provided by Virgin Mobile USA that offers affordable, subsidized cell phone service to eligible customers. The program provides a free handset and monthly minutes to qualifying users, who must meet certain eligibility requirements.
2. How do I qualify for Assurance Wireless?
To qualify for Assurance Wireless, customers must either participate in certain government assistance programs, or have a household income that falls below 135% of the federal poverty guidelines. Additionally, customers must not already receive Lifeline Assistance from another provider.
3. How do I sign up for Assurance Wireless?
Signing up for an account with Virgin Mobile USA. Once you have created an account, you will need to provide proof of your eligibility for the program by submitting documentation such as a copy of your most recent tax return or Social Security benefits statement. After your eligibility has been confirmed, you can select a phone and plan that best meets your needs.
4. How much data is included in the Assurance Wireless plans?
The amount of data included in the Assurance Wireless plans vary depending on your specific plan. However, all plans include a certain amount of data that can be used for things like browsing the internet, checking email, and downloading apps.
5. What if I use up all my minutes before the end of the month?
If you are running low on minutes, you can always add more to your account by purchasing a top-up card from Virgin Mobile USA. These cards can add additional minutes, texts, or data to your account.
6. Can I keep my current phone number if I switch to Assurance Wireless?
In most cases, yes! When you sign up for an account with Virgin Mobile USA, you will be asked if you would like to keep your existing phone number or generate a new one.
7. How much does Assurance Wireless service cost?
The cost of Assurance Wireless service varies depending on your specific plan. However, all plans are quite affordable and subsidized for eligible customers.
8. What happens if I miss a payment?
If you miss a payment, your account will be suspended, and you will no longer have access to your Lifeline benefits. To reactivate your account, you must pay and submit proof of eligibility for the program (if applicable).
9. Can I cancel my Assurance Wireless service at any time?
You can cancel your Assurance Wireless service anytime by contacting Virgin Mobile USA customer support. However, please note that you will not be able to reactivate your account once it has been cancelled.