The Nigerian Communications Commission has proposed that telecom operators be required to give subscribers at least 14 days’ notice before deactivating their SIM cards due to inactivity or post-paid churn.

The proposal is outlined in a consultation paper titled Stakeholders Consultation Process for the Telecoms Identity Risks Management Platform, dated February 2026 and published on the Commission’s website.

Under the proposed amendments to the Quality-of-Service Business Rules, the NCC said that “prior to the churning of a post-paid line, the operator shall notify the affected subscriber through an alternative line or via email about the pending disconnection of the line.”

“This notification shall be sent at least 14 days before the final date for the churn of the number,” It added.

A similar provision was also proposed to apply to prepaid subscribers.

The commission said, “prior to churning of a pre-paid line, the Operator shall send a notification to the affected subscriber through an alternative line or an email on the pending churning of his line,” stressing again that the notice “shall be sent at least 14 days before the final date for the churn of the number.”

Under Section 2.3.1 of the QoS Business Rules, a subscriber line may be deactivated if it has not recorded a Revenue Generating Event within six months. If the inactivity continues for another six months, the subscriber may forfeit the number, except where the inactivity is due to network-related faults.

The commission also proposed that operators be required to submit churn data to the new Telecoms Identity Risk Management System, according to the document.

The proposed changes are part of a broader regulatory review linked to the rollout of the Nigerian Communications Commission’s Telecoms Identity Risk Management System, a cross-sector platform aimed at curbing fraud associated with recycled, swapped and barred mobile numbers.

In the background section of the paper, the commission explained that the TIRMS “is a secure, regulatory-backed platform that helps prevent fraud stemming from churned, swapped, and barred Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Numbers in Nigeria.”

It added that the platform “will provide a uniform approach for all sectors in relation to the integrity and utilisation of registered MSISDNs on the Nigerian Communications network.”

The consultation process, which the Nigerian Communications Commission said is in line with Section 58 of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, will remain open for 21 days from the date of publication. Stakeholders are expected to submit their comments on or before March 20, 2026.