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Since the beginning.
Mobile providers have always tried to charge for hotspot service. Since I started buying my own phones, not through the provider, I haven't had a problem with it turning on, and I haven't seen any additional charge for using it (just normal consumption of the data). I don't think that most providers can tell the difference in traffic natively from the device and from something on its hotspot, so restrictions are likely phone specific. If you have Android, install a custom ROM (I'd suggest anything AOSP), and for iPhone, IDK. Maybe do a complete reset to the official version from Apple (not the carrier specific version of the firmware).
Restoring your files and apps is the most difficult part of the process and generally takes a while (usually a few hours of setting up accounts on different apps, but it should kill off your carriers control of your device in regards to hotspot limits
I understand the frustration, 100% I do. I'm equally angry about the state of things, fact is, there are things you can do about it, like buying your devices unlocked, non-carrier specific from trusted endpoints. This is easy to do with Apple and Google, as they both allow end users to buy their products right from their website or in stores (if such stores exist). But other manufacturers will only sell to distributors, like your carrier, who screws with the firmware before you get your hands on the device. Avoiding such distributors is the key point here. Being unlocked doesn't mean much if you're still running the carriers firmware which disallows the feature unless you do something like pay them.
It's not a nice solution, since most people have, or are purchasing their devices through carrier contacts and discounts, and generally for untampered devices, you need to buy them all at once, up front. The only saving grace is that a lot of manufacturers are now putting the untampered version of the phone firmware online, and you can typically find a way to wipe the device completely and install the manufacturers untampered version with enough time and effort; it's gotten easier, but I wouldn't say it's easy. Just that it's possible...
Easiest way to tell if you're running a carrier version of the firmware is if the carriers app comes pre-loaded and won't allow uninstallation. Only "revert to factory version" and disabling the app are possible (this means it's in the protected OS space on your device). If you can fully uninstall it, or it is not present when you factory reset the device, you're probably running a clean version.
Of note, you can still run their app, the presence of the app as a default application usually means it's tied into a root-level service that restricts access to features and/or spies on you (probably both). The app itself is likely fine, but the underlying service is generally the troublemaker. The service may install with the app, but as long as it doesn't have root level permission, it can't stop you from using the features built into the phone.