TheCable

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has extended the deadline for the disconnection of unlinked lines from April 15 to July 31, for subscribers with more than four SIM cards.

The deadline for those with less than four SIM cards expired on March 29, as reported by TheCable.

According to a source, the March 29 deadline “has been effected”.

The source said telcos have been given a deadline of July 31 to verify the national identity numbers (NINs) of subscribers, and “are expected to bar any line whose NIN fails verification on or before then”.

TheCable understands that the new deadline followed requests for “long extensions” by operators.

On February 29, the commission said a total of 45 million lines in the country would be barred for not linking their SIM cards with their NINs from February 28, 2024.

The agency said out of the 45 million, 42 million lines have neither made a call, had a data session or sent an SMS in over one year. But the deadline was extended to March 29.

The NCC, reiterating its position, asked telcos to bar unlinked lines on March 29, saying there would be no more extensions for subscribers to comply with the NIN-SIM policy.

The agency said telecommunication companies have been directed to bar owners of more than four SIM cards whose registration failed to match their NIN data.