The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has proposed mandatory registration for travel SIM and eSIM providers operating in Pakistan, seeking to bring international roaming services under a formal regulatory framework.
Under the draft International Roaming (Inbound) Regulations, 2026, no person or entity would be allowed to operate as a travel SIM or eSIM aggregator in Pakistan without prior registration with PTA.
Applicants would have to submit registration forms, prescribed fees and supporting documents, while disclosing their associated foreign mobile operators, network providers, distribution channels and a local contact responsible for regulatory coordination.
The proposed rules would require registered providers to distribute, provision or activate travel SIMs and eSIM profiles only through valid arrangements with licensed operators or foreign home operators. The framework also proposes annual registration fees, security deposits and renewal requirements.
PTA would be empowered to suspend or cancel registrations in cases of non-compliance.
Registered providers would also have to establish data-sharing arrangements with the authority and report information about issued or activated SIMs and eSIMs, customer identity verification and usage summaries.
PTA may require providers to connect their systems to a designated portal or application programming interface (API) to enable near-real-time or periodic reporting and help monitor subscriber activations.
The proposed measures follow concerns that foreign travel eSIMs can be activated in Pakistan without local identity verification, creating challenges related to subscriber traceability, financial fraud and national security.
The authority has launched a consultation process to seek feedback from stakeholders. It may revise the draft regulations following the consultation before formally notifying them in the official Gazette, after which the rules would come into effect.
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