How to Register or Re-register a SIM in Nepal: KYC, Biometrics & Ownership Transfer

Every mobile SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) sold in Nepal must be registered to a real, identified person under Know Your Customer (KYC) rules set by the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA), the sector regulator. The policy exists so that each phone number can be traced to an accountable owner, which the NTA links to curbing fraud, financial crime and misuse of anonymous connections. In practice this means an unregistered or falsely registered SIM is not a legitimate connection and can be blocked.

The registration is done through the operator you buy from - Nepal Telecom (NT, the state-owned operator, popularly still called NTC) or Ncell (the largest private operator) - and captured in the operator's KYC system. Your name, photo, ID details and a fingerprint are recorded against the number (MSISDN). The regulator has moved steadily toward a centralised, biometric digital-KYC model so that subscriber identity can be authenticated against national databases rather than paper alone.

A related NTA rule discourages using a SIM registered under someone else's name. Officials have said the aim is to push everyone toward holding numbers in their own name, partly because services such as the government's Nagarik App and various e-government facilities are tied to a SIM that matches your identity. If your number is registered under a parent, sibling or shopkeeper, the fix is to re-register (transfer) it into your name.

For a new prepaid SIM, a Nepali citizen brings a valid government photo identity document and a passport-size photograph to an operator counter or authorised retailer. The staff fill in the KYC/subscription form, scan or photocopy your ID, take your photo and capture a fingerprint on a biometric device. Registration is usually completed on the spot, and the SIM is activated once the KYC record is accepted.

Since Magh 1, 2081 BS (14 January 2025 AD), the National Identity Card (Rastriya Parichaya Patra) has been made mandatory for accessing several essential services, including buying a new SIM, opening a bank account and social-security services. This followed a notice published in the Nepal Gazette (Nepal Rajpatra) on Ashar 10, 2081 BS. In practice, citizenship certificates and other IDs are still widely accepted at counters, but you should carry your National ID where you have one, as operators increasingly authenticate against it.

Postpaid or corporate connections require more paperwork than prepaid. Corporate SIMs typically need the company's PAN/registration documents in addition to the authorised person's ID. Always keep a photocopy of the ID you register with, because the same document details will be needed later if you ever transfer the number or update your KYC.

The distinctive step in Nepali SIM registration is live biometric capture. At the point of sale, staff record at least one fingerprint on a scanner and tie it to your ID and photo, so the connection is bound to a physical person rather than just a photocopy that could be reused. This is why you generally cannot buy a fully working SIM purely online without an in-person verification step.

The NTA has been building toward a centralised, biometric digital-KYC platform that authenticates subscribers against national identity data (which itself stores fingerprints, photograph and iris). The long-term goal is a largely paperless onboarding where your identity is verified electronically at purchase. Until that is universal, expect a hybrid process: an online form or app step followed by a physical visit for final biometric verification.

Both major operators now offer online KYC-update portals to start the process from home - for example, Nepal Telecom's KYC-update/self-service portal, where you log in with your number via OTP, fill your details and upload a live selfie holding your ID. Even so, a one-time counter visit for fingerprint and document verification typically remains necessary before the change is finalised.

The NTA caps how many SIM/RIM cards one person may hold, a rule enforced from July 2020 (Ashar-Shrawan 2077 BS). The general limit is two SIM cards per operator per person. Because Nepal Telecom also runs a separate CDMA network alongside its GSM service, an individual may hold up to three connections from Nepal Telecom (two GSM plus one CDMA).

The stated rationale is traceability: limiting anonymous or bulk SIM holdings reduces the room for fraud, money laundering and misuse in criminal cases, and protects digital-payment systems that rely on a phone number tied to one identity.

For minors, the rule is stricter: a child is generally allowed a single SIM, registered with a guardian's documents and proof of the relationship. This aligns with the wider KYC objective of one identifiable, accountable holder per number.

If your number is unregistered, wrongly registered, or is in someone else's name, you re-register it by completing (or re-doing) the KYC in your own name at an operator centre - the same in-person, ID-plus-biometric process used for a new SIM. Operators sometimes call this KYC update or re-verification. If a SIM has already been blocked for missing or invalid KYC, visit the centre with your ID; incoming/outgoing service is usually restored once a valid KYC record is accepted, provided the number has not been recycled.

Before you go, check whose name a number is currently registered under. On Nepal Telecom dial *922# and on Ncell dial *9966# (Ncell details are also visible in the Ncell app). Knowing the current registered owner tells you whether you simply need to update your own KYC or whether you must run a full ownership transfer because the number is in another person's name.

When the registered owner has died and you need the number, you generally cannot do a normal transfer. Operators typically require the death certificate plus proof that you are the rightful heir (a warisnama or relationship/succession document) alongside your own ID. Because rules and documentation can change, confirm the exact list with the operator's customer care before visiting.

Ownership transfer moves a number from the current registered owner to a new owner and is essentially a fresh KYC for the new holder, backed by proof that the number really was being used. To discourage fraud, operators ask the applicant to prove usage - for example by correctly listing several recently dialled numbers or recent outgoing calls - and set a minimum period the number must have been in use before it can be transferred.

For Nepal Telecom (NTC), prepaid transfers can be started through the online KYC-update/ownership-claim portal (log in by OTP, fill the form, provide a live photo with your ID, and enter your recent outgoing calls), but a final in-person verification at a designated NT counter is still required; the service began rolling out from selected Kathmandu offices such as Babarmahal and Sundhara. A small counter fee applies to the prepaid name-change (commonly cited around NPR 50). For postpaid transfers, both the outgoing and incoming owners usually need to be present with originals and photocopies of their IDs and a passport-size photo.

For Ncell, ownership transfer (also described as re-verification) is done at an Ncell centre: the current owner fills the Transfer of Ownership form while the new owner completes a Subscription form and submits an original ID plus a passport-size photo. The new owner is asked to prove usage by listing several frequently dialled numbers, and both parties are generally expected to be present. Fees and exact usage thresholds are set by the operator and can change, so verify the current amount at the centre or with Ncell customer care.

Foreign visitors can buy a Nepali SIM but must register it under KYC just like residents. You need your passport, your valid Nepal visa or the entry stamp (a visa-on-arrival stamp is fine), and usually one passport-size photo; shops can often take a photo on the spot for a small charge. You fill a short form with your name, passport number, nationality, a local address (your hotel works) and signature. Foreigners are generally limited to two SIMs and can buy at operator counters, authorised retailers or the arrivals area of Tribhuvan International Airport.

Numbers that are never properly registered - or whose KYC is invalid - are the ones most exposed to blocking when the regulator tightens enforcement. Because the connection cannot be tied to an accountable person, operators can suspend service and eventually reclaim and recycle the number. The safest position is simple: hold your SIM in your own name with correct, current KYC.

If you are unsure of your status, spend two minutes checking your registration (*922# on NT, *9966# on Ncell). If the name is wrong, blank or belongs to someone else, complete a KYC update or ownership transfer promptly. Doing so keeps your number active during any NTA re-registration drive and preserves access to services - from banking OTPs to the Nagarik App - that assume the SIM matches your own identity.