DoT SIM Card Limit: If a customer has more numbers in their name than the prescribed limit, they must deactivate the additional numbers. Failure to do so may result in the termination of subsequent mobile connections.

DoT mobile connection limit

DoT SIM Card Limit: If you have more than one mobile number in your name, this information is important for you. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued new guidelines regarding the set limit for mobile connections. Telecom companies will now be required to identify customers who have more mobile connections in their name than the prescribed limit.

For this, the customer's photo, available on the department's Digital Intelligence Platform (DIP), will be used. Under the new directives, action will be taken to bring the number of customers with multiple connections within the prescribed limit. So, let us explain how DoT will investigate this action for over-limit SIMs.

How many mobile numbers is the limit for keeping?

According to DoT directives dated December 7, 2021, an individual can have a maximum of nine mobile connections in their name, across different telecom companies and in different service areas across the country. However, in Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, and the Northeast Licensed Service Area, this limit is six mobile connections. If a customer has more mobile numbers in their name than the prescribed limit, they must deactivate the additional numbers. Failure to do so may result in the deactivation of subsequent mobile connections to bring the total number of mobile numbers in their name within the prescribed limit.

Mobile numbers will be identified through DIP

The DoT has established a new system to address the difficulty faced by telecom companies in identifying the number of mobile numbers operating under a given individual's name across different companies and service areas. The Digital Intelligence Platform (DIP) will be used for this purpose. Based on customer data uploaded by telecom companies, the DIP will identify mobile connections operating under the same individual's name across different companies and service areas. These connections will be grouped by the respective customer's name, and this information will be available to telecom companies through the DIP.

How will SIMs exceeding the limit be checked?

According to a new DoT circular dated August 17, 2026, representative images of customers who have reached the threshold number of mobile connections in their name will be made available on DIP from August 23, 2026. Telecom companies will be required to download these images daily. This is intended to identify whether a person who has reached the threshold number is attempting to obtain a new mobile connection.

Companies will have to take action from August 24

Beginning August 24, 2026, telecom companies will be required to use technical and organizational measures to identify customers attempting to obtain more mobile connections than the permitted limit. Upon identification, the customer will be informed that they already have the maximum number of mobile connections allowed and therefore, a new connection cannot be granted. Initially, this process may be performed on a next-day basis, i.e., D+1. However, the DoT has set a deadline of November 30, 2026, to implement this in real-time across the mobile connection acquisition and activation process.

What will happen if the number exceeds the prescribed limit?

Until telecom companies fully implement this system, any mobile connection activated beyond the prescribed limit will be immediately suspended. After this, the issue of having more connections than the prescribed limit will need to be resolved. The purpose of the DoT directive is to ensure that each person obtains and uses a mobile connection in their name within the prescribed limit.