Photo, NID photocopy no more needed to buy mobile phone SIM card

Customers will no longer need to provide photos and copies of national ID to buy mobile phone SIM cards as the telecom operators have launched electronic registration services for new connections.

The customers will need to provide only name, NID number, date of birth, current address and fingerprints for the new connections.

The subscribers will also no longer need to fill up any application form in the e-registration system.

The operators say the new system has strengthened security of the subscribers’ personal data.

Telecom operators Grameenphone and Banglalink say they have launched the services following orders from the regulators BTRC.

GP introduced the process to the media at an event arranged in Dhaka on Tuesday, the company said in a press release.

Brig Gen Shahriar Ahmed Chowdhury, Director General, System and Service, of BTRC was present as chief guest. Yasir Azman, Deputy CEO, and Mahmud Hossain, CCAO, of GP among others, were also present on the occasion.

“This system will not only make the lives of the customers easier through a systematic process but will also be beneficial for the telecom ecosystem moving towards further digitisation,” the release quoted Yasir as saying.

“And not to mention, it will also contribute to the environmental preservation in the long run,” he added.

Initially, the e-registration process will only be applicable for new SIM sales only.

Gradually, the process will also be applicable for ownership transfer, dual claims, death case settlements, MNP, and address updates, etc.

The whole process is free of cost for the customer, but the price of a new connection or any relevant service charges will be applicable.

In case of biometric information like date of birth and fingerprint mismatch against NID, the new SIM will not be activated and registered, GP said.

Banglalink said it started the e-registration process across Bangladesh on Monday.

Its CEO Erik Aas welcomed the government’s initiative to introduce electronic and paperless SIM registration process.

“This initiative will play a remarkable role in simplifying the registration process of mobile subscribers along with strengthening the security of their personal information,” a press release from the company quoted him as saying.

“Since the initiative will virtually eliminate the use of papers in the registration, it is an exemplary Green initiative as well. We believe that it is a great advancement towards the digitalisation of the country,” he added.