PTA Tightens SIM Verification Rules: Fraud SIMs Blocked at Once, Families Get 60 Days to Transfer

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The revised PTA SIM verification rules link a SIM’s survival to the status of the identity document behind it. Telecom operators must now block SIMs obtained through fraud immediately and block SIMs tied to cancelled, confiscated or impounded identity cards within five days.

Families of deceased subscribers get 60 days to transfer ownership before the SIMs are cut off.

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) notified the changes through SRO 1519(I)/2026 in the Gazette of Pakistan. They fall under the Subscriber Antecedents Verification (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2026.

Deceased subscribers: a 60-day window

When the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) informs an operator that a CNIC or National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (NICOP) holder has died, the operator must act. It will send an SMS to every SIM registered in that person’s name, advising the recipient to transfer ownership under the existing regulations within 60 days.

If the transfer is not completed in that period, the SIMs will be blocked.

Invalid CNICs: five days to act

A separate mechanism covers cancelled, confiscated or impounded CNICs and NICOPs. After receiving this information from NADRA, the operator sends the subscriber an SMS stating why the SIM is about to be blocked. It then blocks the SIM within five days, unless NADRA updates the document’s status before the period ends.

A blocked SIM can be restored once the identity document is confirmed as restored. The operator may act on NADRA’s information or verify the restoration with the authority directly, whichever happens first.

Fraudulent SIMs and linked devices: immediate block

The PTA has also directed operators to block at once any SIM reported to have been issued through fraudulent means.

The rules go further than the SIM. Operators must immediately block the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers of devices used to issue or activate such SIMs or last reported in connection with them. An IMEI is the unique number that identifies a handset on a network.

The regulations include a way back. SIMs, or biometric verification system (BVS) devices, can be restored after verification once a reasonable justification is recorded. The text names genuine subscribers as the main case for this.

The NADRA link

To make this work, cellular mobile operators and NADRA must set up an automated system for exchanging information on the expiry, renewal, death, cancellation, confiscation and impounding of CNICs and NICOPs tied to activated SIMs.

NADRA will be responsible for the authenticity of the status information it shares. Operators must also arrange automated verification of subscriber data with NADRA and pass the SIM or Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Number (MSISDN) to the authority once verification is complete.

What changes for subscribers?

For most people the practical effect falls on families. A SIM registered to a late parent or relative often stays in daily use, sometimes for years. Under the new rules, that connection has a clock on it once NADRA records the death.

The 60-day notice matters because numbers are frequently tied to bank alerts, mobile wallets and messaging accounts. Families will need to move ownership before the deadline, not after the number goes dead.

The five-day rule creates a similar risk for people whose identity records change for administrative reasons. The SMS warning and the right to restoration are the safeguards here.

The notable shift is conceptual. Until now, SIM verification was largely a point-of-sale event: check the person, issue the connection. These amendments treat it as continuous, so the connection stays valid only while the CNIC behind it does.

That puts new weight on NADRA’s data. The regulation makes NADRA responsible for the accuracy of what it shares, and a wrong status entry could cost someone their number within five days. How quickly records get corrected will matter as much as how quickly operators block.

The device rules need watching too. Blocking the IMEI of a handset “last reported” with a fraudulent SIM could affect a legitimate user who bought a second-hand phone. The restoration route exists on paper, but the PTA has not described how fast or how easy it will be in practice.

Subscribers will judge these rules by three things: the wording of the SMS alerts, the speed of restoration and whether complaints get a clear route.

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