The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is set to implement an update to its Telecom Identity Risk Management Policy (TIRMP), which will allow mobile operators to recycle inactive phone lines after a 12-month window.
Sources at the NCC revealed to Vanguard that the revised policy framework, expected to be officially launched in the fourth quarter of 2025, is part of a broader strategy aimed at tackling fraud, enhancing telecom services, and safeguarding digital identities.
The source said the new initiative aligned with the commission’s strategic vision plan, which aims not only to meet the quality-of-service expectations of telecom consumers but also address their quality of experience, involving every touchpoint they encountered within the telecommunications ecosystem; from onboarding processes, such as SIM registration, to offboarding, which is when they choose to leave a network.
The new guidelines state that when a phone number has not carried out any revenue-generating event, outgoing or incoming calls or SMS, charged USSD sessions, data use, or any activity on the line that generates income for the operator, for over 180 days, the MSISDN is deemed inactive.
If this inactivity continues for another 180 days, that is a total of 360 days, the line becomes eligible for churning and recycling.
The source said, “The QoS Regulation and Business Rules 2024 provides that after 365 days without any Revenue Generating Event carried out on a line it can be churned by the operator.
“Numbering resources, such as telephone numbers and short codes, are the backbone of modern telecommunications. They are governed globally by the International Telecommunication Union, ITU, under Recommendation E.164, which ensures efficiency, and equitable access to numbers across borders.’’
The NCC stated that numbering resources were inherently scarce because each number must conform to a fixed length and format, yielding only a finite set of valid combinations.
Information on the commission’s website states, “In Nigeria, the NCC, mandated by the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, manages and allocates these critical resources on behalf of the federal government.
“The NCC assigns number ranges to licensed operators and services (mobile, fixed, and special) in a manner that promotes fair competition, protects consumers, fosters innovation, and aligns with ITU standards and global best practices.
“The recycling of lines presents challenges, particularly when the previous owners of reassigned numbers still have those numbers linked to services they used before the numbers were recycled. It presents issues of security and integrity of phone number ownership.”
The new policy will reduce fraud risks and enhance digital and financial services by enabling service providers to proactively detect and respond, particularly for high-risk customers, while updating their customer details as applicable.
“The NCC will host the platform and establish its regulatory and operational framework. We are currently working with the CBN, security agencies, and other key stakeholders, with a beta solution already being tested,” an NCC source revealed to Vanguard.