How long does it take before MTN deactivates and unused SIM or number in South Africa? You are here because you wish to find the answer to that question. Like all the other networks in the country, MTN has a deactivation policy. SIM cards that are not used within a given time frame are disabled and then recycled. So, this is important information to have. Many South Africans have SIM cards for all the networks in the country. You need to know how long you have before a number that you do not use that often is deactivated.
How long before an unused MTN number is deactivated?
SA Broadband reached out to MTN to get an answer to this question. They told us the following;
MTN recycles numbers after 90 days of no activity, sending a warning SMS message after 30 days of inactivity, and again at 85 days.
What can you do if you wish to keep your number inactive for an extended period?
There are times when you may be looking to keep your SIM inactive for an extended period of time. What do you do them. Maybe you are temporarily relocating to another country for more than 3 months.
According to MTN, the solution here would be to extend the MTN Access4Life period by paying R20 and adding an additional 90 days to the life span of the SIM card.
It’s good that you get a warning
That’s how long before MTN deactivates an unused SIM or number. The good thing here is that you actually get notice that your SIM is about to be deactivated. Some of the other networks do not give this warning.
On MTN, we noted that you get a warning if your SIM hasn’t been used for 30 days. You also get another notice at day 85 of not using your MTN number. That’s 5 days before that SIM is scheduled to be deactivated.
What can you do after MTN deactivates an unused number?
We have written another article covering this topic. But really, the key to whatever you are going to do here is speed. If you do not move fast, then MTN will recycle your number, meaning there will be nothing that you can do to recover it.
Recycling means that number will be reallocated to somebody else. You may have come across people complaining that their new numbers from this or that network were getting calls and SMSes from strangers. That’s an indication that the number that you have gotten has been recycled.
Why wait till MTN deactivates your unused SIM?
Here is the thing, South Africans are always on the hunt for deals and opportunities. In most instances, that entails having SIM cards for all the networks in the country.
It’s why if you check the number of subscribers in the country, you will notice that it far exceeds the countrys’ population. Many people just keep numbers while waiting for promos to pop up.
That’s the major reason why there are so many unused SIMs in the country. It’s the reason why you are here learning how long before MTN deactivates an unused SIM or card. It’s because you have an MTN SIM that you haven’t used in a long while.
Either it has been deactivated or you are worried that it’s going to be deactivated. Hopefully, we have answered you fully here. You may wish to check out our article on how to cancel a contract with MTN.
If you have further questions, post them on our SA Broadband forum. We have a panel of experts there who are ready to help you.