SIM replacement in Nigeria is now tedious than before. If you don’t have NIN, you won’t be able to replace a misplace SIM card or Welcome.
Here are the New Rules for SIM Replacement
1.NIN is now mandatory for all SIM replacement. The commission said adequate quality assurance measures shall be built into the validation and verification processes to ensure the accuracy of verifications/validations.
2. Where Bank Verification Number (BVN) generated NIN is flagged by NIMC, communication service providers shall not conduct SIM replacement for Individual and corporate (IoT/M2M) subscribers.
Communication service provider shall advise the subscriber to return to NIMC office for regularization.
3. Where communications service providers are unable to successfully verify the subscriber’s NIN records due to degradation in the service availability threshold, communications service providers are to refer to Appendix 2 of the Business Rules for SIM Registration.
For Foreigners
Foreigners who wish to perform SIM replacement, NCC said foreigners, who are lawfully residing in Nigeria for two years or more fall under the category of registrable persons, shall require a NIN for SIM replacement while foreigners validly transiting through Nigeria or are employed in or reside in Nigeria for less than 24 months are exempted from the mandatory use of NIN requirement.
2. NCC said communications service providers will capture the following on their records before new SIM activations, MNP and SIM replacements: International passport biodata page and visa
SIM Replacement on Second Lines
For SIM replacement/upgrades on secondary lines, secondary telecoms master’s NIN shall be validated as part of corporate subscriber’s SIM-NIN harmonization before SIM replacement is carried out.
NCC said SIM replacement/upgrade for primary telecom master shall not require secondary NIN validation, adding that any peculiar request different from any corporate entity, which is at variance to the general rules on corporate and IoT/M2M SIM activation and replacement shall be treated on a case by case basis after such corporate entity procures a waiver from NCC and upon written directives from the commission to the concerned communications service provider.
Guide Your SIM jealously if you don’t have NIN number just yet.