Republic Act No. 11934, or the SIM Registration Act, was enacted last year. The new mandate of registering all SIM cards—whether prepaid, postpaid, or broadband—was implemented to lessen fraudulent and criminal activities that rely heavily on SIMs. Some of these are phishing, scamming, and extortion.
All Philippine residents and visitors must comply with the law, including tourists and foreign nationals.
It’s important to note that the registration process is different for Foreign Nationals residing in the country and tourists in the Philippines for a vacation.
To register your prepaid SIM, here are the documents and information you’ll need to provide:
- Mobile number
- Full name
- Nationality
- Date of birth
- Selfie photo
- For foreign nationals visiting as Tourists:
- Passport
- Proof of address in the Philippines
- Return ticket to own country or any other ticket showing the date and time of departure from the Philippines
- For foreign nationals with other types of visas:
- Passport
- Proof of address in the Philippines
- Alien Employment Permit issued by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)
- Alien Certificate of Registration Identification Card or ARCI-Card issued by the Bureau of Immigration (BI)
- School Registration and ID for students
- Other pertinent documents, whichever is applicable.
For non-tourist foreign nationals (e.g., ex-pats) who are subscribed to Smart Postpaid plans, you may simply send “YES” to 5858 and wait for a confirmation message.
Take note SIM cards registered for tourists are valid for only 30 days and will be automatically deactivated after this period.
If you want to extend your vacation and maintain the active status of your SIM card, you’ll have to submit or present an approved visa extension. It’s best to do this while your SIM is still active.
You may visit the SIM Registration Portal to register your SIM. The whole process takes only a few minutes.
Once you’ve submitted all required documents, you must wait for an SMS confirmation that registration is complete.
If you’re currently in the country, you only have until July 25, 2023, to register your SIM.
Once you miss the deadline, your SIM will be automatically deactivated.
For all incoming foreign nationals and tourists, any new SIM cards you’ll purchase in the country will not be activated unless registered.
Unregistered SIM cards past the deadline will not be functional. This means you won’t be able to send and receive text messages or calls. You also won’t be able to connect to the internet via mobile data.
Find out more about the SIM Registration Act here.
