NADRA’s big decision: 8.1 million SIMs active on expired CNICs likely to be blocked

NADRA has warned citizens that millions of CNICs and other important documents across the country have expired, which has raised fears of affecting bank accounts, mobile SIMs and several government and welfare facilities.

According to official sources, more than 8.1 million mobile SIMs are active on such CNICs whose validity has expired, while a large number of SIMs have also been found registered in the names of deceased persons.

NADRA and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) have indicated immediate action against these SIMs.

Authorities say that citizens whose CNICs have expired should get them renewed immediately, otherwise their mobile numbers can be blocked at any time.
According to NADRA, the aim of this move is to update the national identity record and prevent misuse of fake or inactive CNICs.

Under the recent decision, in the first phase, SIMs linked to CNICs that expired in 2017 or earlier are being blocked, while in the next phases, SIMs registered on CNICs that expired or were cancelled in subsequent years will also be blocked.

NADRA has also clarified that SIMs in the names of deceased relatives can also be deactivated at any time, so citizens should immediately get such SIMs transferred to their own names.

According to the agency, in case of delay in this process, not only mobile services may be affected but also access to banking facilities, biometric verification, Ehsaas and other government welfare programs may be suspended.

Telecom experts say that SIMs activated on expired CNICs are also a major security issue as they can be used for fraud, illegal activities and identity theft.
Citizens can also apply online for renewal of their identity documents through NADRA mega centers or Pak-ID app.

To check the number of SIMs, PTA has also provided SMS service to citizens on 668, through which details of all mobile numbers registered on CNIC can be found.
NADRA has appealed to citizens to immediately check the SIMs registered in their names and those of their deceased loved ones to avoid any possible blocking or legal complications.