SIM registration extended for 90 days: DOJ

MANILA (UPDATE) — The SIM registration deadline has been extended for 90 days, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla announced on Tuesday.

Remulla said telco services would be limited for those who failed to register. Telcos have yet to issue a statement regarding the extension.

Department of Information and Communications Technology Secretary Ivan Uy is expected to hold a press conference, following a meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. on Tuesday morning.

The SIM Registration Act mandated that all SIMs in the country be registered by Wednesday, April 26, to help eradicate SMS-linked scams. However, the country’s major telcos lamented the low registration turnout and have requested an extension, citing the lack of valid IDs and digital literacy as obstacles.

DITO Telecommunity, Globe Telecom and Smart Communications have lobbied for the extension of the deadline to accommodate all their subscribers who have yet to complete the requirements in order to register their SIMs.

Less than 60 percent of the total 168 million active SIMs in the Philippines have been registered, the DICT said last Saturday.