Come July 11, the iPhone 3G makes its international debut. For those of us not even on the Coming Soon list, it will be an agonising wait without even the certainty that the iPhone will be available in our countries at all. And with the new in-store activation policy, unlocking US iPhones to be used here may not even be possible any more.

Fortunately, there is a glimmer of hope. Due to certain countries’ anti-competitive laws, iPhone 3G will have to be sold unlocked in certain countries. Here’s a rundown of where you can get yourself a legally unlocked iPhone 3G.

Belgium

Belgium is one of the few countries where you can buy the iPhone totally unlocked, unlike other operators where you’ll need to pay an ‘unlocking fee’. The Register reports

Belgian regulators forbid “koppelverkoop” (forced bundling), so as a result punters have to pay a very hefty price – the 8GB version in black will sell for €525 and the 16 GB version in black or white for €615.

Koppelverkoop. You gotta love that word.

Australia

The iPhone will be available on Optus, Telstra and Vodafone down under. Of the 3 telcos, Optus has confirmed you can buy an iPhone unlocked.

An Optus iPhone costs $AU729 and $AU849 for the 8GB and 16GB respectively, and unlocking it will set you back a further $AU80. However, unlocking costs nothing if you do it 6 months after initial activation. This means that if you’re studying in Australia and have another semester to go, you can switch to Optus now and bring back your iPhone for free at the end of the year.

Update 12 Aug: My sources on the ground in Sydney say that Optus is no longer offering iPhones with their pre-paid plans..

New Zealand

The official carrier for the iPhone 3G in New Zealand is Vodafone. You can buy the iPhone in New Zealand unlocked and without a contract from the convenience of Vodafone’s online store. Price for an unlocked iPhone 3G: NZD979.00 for 8GB and NZD1,129.00 for 16GB (RM1,982.50 and RM2,286.94 respectively)

Thank you to reader Jonathen for pointing this out.

Hong Kong

According to CNET Asia, Three Hong Kong is one of two carriers worldwide who offer the phone unlocked by default. There have been more carriers added to this list. The catch is that you have to pay off the remaining months on their two-year plan if they wish to terminate the contract prematurely. Each customer is limited to the purchase of only one handset. Price to get an unlocked iPhone 3G: HK$8,610 (US$1,104).

Update 1 Oct: Official pricing and more details is now available.

Taiwan

DigiTimes reports that Taiwanese iPhone 3Gs are being sold unlocked. See details.

Italy

InformationWeek reports that Telecom Italia Mobile will also offer an unlocked iPhone. They say that

In addition, the phone will be unlocked, meaning it can be used with other carriers.

which suggests that there won’t be any stupid unlocking fee. No news of how much it will cost though.

Europe

There hasn’t been any official news of the iPhone in the 2 countries, but legal developments in Germany and France late last year means that the current 2.5G iPhone needs to be sold unlocked. I’d say it’s a good bet that the iPhone 3G will also be sold unlocked. What’s unknown is what will it cost for the handset without contract (at the moment its €649) and whether it will be sold unlocked.

The Register article referenced earlier also confirms that T-Mobile in Germany and Netherlands will charge the unlocking fee if you want to free your iPhone.

Verdict: Best place to buy

At the moment, it looks as if the best place to get a legally unlocked iPhone 3G would be from Mobistar Belgium. Optus Australia Vodafone New Zealand. For those of us in Malaysia, Australia New Zealand would probably be the easier destination unless you’re making a trip to Europe anyway. New Zealand looks to be the hands-down winner as the destination to get your legally unlocked iPhone because of the price, the fact that the handset comes unlocked and because Vodafone will even deliver it to you (at a New Zealand address only).

Last of all, do refer to Apple Knowledge Base article #HT1937 for a complete list of carriers that offer the iPhone unlocked.

Unfortunately, the Australian dollar is appreciating quickly against the Ringgit so you may want to dig out that old piggy bank of yours..

(This post will be constantly updated as we get new information)

Updated 11 July to include information on Mobistar Belgium.

Updated 11 July to correct my lousy math

Updated 30 July to add Hong Kong option

Please see this post on more details for the Hong Kong option.

Updated 17 Dec: added Taiwan to the list

Updated 29 Dec: added New Zealand option