# summary

- Link: https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/
- Published: 2026-11-02T18:26:44+02:00
- Author: dearSA

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[ have your say](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/#havasay)

The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) has published the
Draft Numbering Plan Fifth Amendment Regulations, 2026 for public comment.

This proposed legislative overhaul shifts the registration of mobile SIM cards from
a paper-based ID system to a strict, live biometric framework. The primary intent
is to combat cellular fraud, extortion, and identity theft by ensuring that every
active mobile number in South Africa is biologically linked to its true owner via
the Department of Home Affairs (DHA).

Here are the five core structural changes proposed in the draft:

 1.  a. _Mandatory Biometric Verification: _
         Network operators must verify the identity
        of every subscriber by capturing biometric data (such as facial images or fingerprints)
        and checking it in real-time against the DHA national population register upon
        the activation or re-activation of a mobile number.
     b. _The 5-Number Limit: _
         The regulations cap the assignment of mobile numbers to
        a maximum of five (5) per natural subscriber per network. Registered companies(
        juristic persons) are explicitly exempted from this cap and the biometric requirements.
     c. _Strict SIM-Swap Defences: _
         A mobile network is legally prohibited from approving
        a SIM-swap request if the applicant’s biometric identity cannot be successfully
        verified against their original subscriber record.
     d. _Foreign Visitor Restrictions: _
         Mobile numbers assigned to foreign nationals
        visiting the Republic will only remain active for the duration of their issued
        visa validity, or a maximum of 90 calendar days, to prevent abandoned SIMs from
        entering the black market.
     e. _The Two-Year Retroactive Mandate: _
         Under the “Transitional Measures” clause,
        mobile networks are given a strict two-year window to retroactively verify the
        biometric identity of all existing subscribers currently active on their networks.

### _Questions and answers_

[What exactly does "biometric verification" mean in this context?](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/#1763554389233-fdb8fee6-6da45520-2543f29e-d4f8)

Under the draft regulations, it means capturing the physical characteristics of 
a natural person—specifically facial images or fingerprints. This data will be checked
in real-time against the Department of Home Affairs to confirm you are who you say
you are before a SIM is activated or swapped.

[I already gave my ID and proof of address. Why is this happening?](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/#1763554389265-aa09206a-77665520-2543f29e-d4f8)

ICASA states that these new rules address a critical loophole. The current paper-
based system is heavily abused by criminals using stolen IDs. Moving to live biometric
verification ensures the person holding the SIM is the actual registered citizen.

[Does the 5-number limit mean I can only have 5 SIM cards in total?](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/#1763554389298-fbc55a3c-817c5520-2543f29e-d4f8)

**No**. The limit of five numbers is applied per licensee (per network). This means
a single individual could theoretically hold five numbers with MTN, five with Vodacom,
and five with Cell C. Juristic persons (registered companies) are completely exempt
from this limit.

[What happens to my current, active SIM cards?](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/#1771840733358-e4b2d08e-b226f29e-d4f8)

The regulations include a “Transitional Measure”. Mobile networks will be given 
two years from the implementation date to contact all existing subscribers and legally
verify their biometrics against the DHA records.

[How long will the networks keep my fingerprint or facial data?](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/#1771840767171-e194ee95-bf82f29e-d4f8)

According to the draft, biometric data can only be used for identity verification.
Once a mobile number is deactivated, networks must delete these records within 30
days unless a specific law, contract, or the subscriber’s consent requires longer
retention.

[I am a foreign visitor. How do these rules affect me?](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/#1793635626803-649b42d2-181c)

If you are entering the Republic on a short or long-term stay, a network can only
keep your mobile number active for a period not exceeding the validity of your issued
visa, or a maximum of 90 calendar days.

[What legal obligation does ICASA have to consider my public input?](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/#1793635652510-ce914cb3-d1eb)

Under the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA) and Section 33 of the Constitution,
public participation is not a mere tick-box exercise. Regulatory bodies cannot rubber-
stamp predetermined outcomes; they are legally bound to apply their minds to the
substantive facts, privacy concerns, and operational evidence contained in your 
individual public representations before passing these regulations into law.

The draft ICASA regulations

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### _In the News_

    - TechCity — [South Africa may check your fingerprint or face before you get a SIM. Here’s what the plan says](https://www.techcityng.com/icasa-sim-rules-biometric-five-numbers/)
    - TechCentral — [Icasa wants your fingerprint before you can get a Sim card](https://techcentral.co.za/icasa-biometric-sim-verification-fingerprint/287770/)
    - MyBroadband — [New rules to close a big SIM card fraud loophole proposed in South Africa](https://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/674648-new-rules-to-close-a-big-sim-card-fraud-loophole-proposed-in-south-africa.html)
    - News24 — [Icasa punts new biometric rule for SIM cards – and what it means for you](https://www.news24.com/business/tech/new-biometric-rule-on-the-cards-in-sa-and-what-it-means-for-your-phone-20261029-0655)
    - TechCentral —[ Icasa’s fingerprint Sim plan runs into major telco resistance](https://techcentral.co.za/icasa-fingerprint-sim-plan-telco-resistance-act/287826/)
    - MyBroadband — [Rules proposed to limit people to five SIM cards per mobile network in South Africa](https://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/674641-rules-proposed-to-limit-people-to-five-sim-cards-per-mobile-network-in-south-africa.html)

### _Statements and media releases_

Click on a logo to view.

Want to display your organisation’s statement? [Click here. ](https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/icasa-biometric-regulations/summary/ icasa@dearsouthafrica.co.za?subject=org info for ICASA regulations info page)

Close

### Cape Independence Party

 **CAPEXIT Party strongly opposes the Business Licensing Bill in its entirety on
all points:**

**Preferential licensing**
 The Bill explicitly empowers the Minister to grant licences
on a “preferential” basis and to impose conditions that advance “historically disadvantaged
individuals” or other designated groups. This is nothing less than state-sanctioned
racial and ideological discrimination dressed up as transformation policy.

CAPEXIT rejects the notion that the state has any legitimate role in deciding which
racial or social group may or may not operate a business. Such preferential licensing
will:

    - Reintroduce apartheid-era economic controls under a new ideological banner;
    - Create a cronyist system where access to markets is determined by political
      connections and demographic criteria rather than merit, innovation or consumer
      demand;
    - Discourage both domestic and foreign investment, as investors will rightly
      fear that their businesses can be denied licences or subjected to arbitrary
      conditions on racial or political grounds.

No free society licenses businesses on the basis of the owner’s skin colour or historical
narrative. This clause alone renders the entire Bill unconstitutional and morally
indefensible.

**Principles of business licensing**
 The Bill fails to articulate any coherent,
objective, or proportionate principle for requiring a general business licence in
the first place. Instead, it presumes that every enterprise – from a street vendor
to a multinational corporation – must seek prior permission from the state simply
to exist and trade.

This reverses the fundamental principle of a free economy: citizens should be free
to engage in lawful economic activity without state permission unless there is a
clear, evidence-based justification (e.g. public health, safety or environmental
protection).

The Bill provides no such justification. It is a blanket assault on economic freedom,
reminiscent of the licence-permit raj that crippled India’s economy for decades.
Requiring a general “business licence” in addition to existing sector-specific permits(
liquor, health, zoning, etc.) serves no legitimate public purpose – only the purpose
of expanding state control and creating new opportunities for rent-seeking and corruption.

**Powers of inspectors**
 The Bill grants inspectors extraordinarily broad and invasive
powers, including warrantless entry into private premises, seizure of documents 
and goods, and the ability to close businesses on the spot. These powers are ripe
for abuse and will be weaponised against political opponents, non-compliant businesses,
and any entrepreneur who refuses to pay bribes.

In a country already plagued by corruption scandals, handing unelected officials
the power to enter and shut down businesses without judicial oversight is an open
invitation to extortion. Small businesses, spaza shops, and informal traders – many
of them immigrant-owned – will be particularly vulnerable to harassment and shakedowns.
Far from promoting transformation, this will simply create a new class of “licence
inspectors” who enrich themselves at the expense of the poor.

**More red tape**
 South Africa already ranks poorly on the World Bank’s Ease of
Doing Business index, largely because of regulatory overreach. This Bill adds yet
another layer of costly, time-consuming bureaucracy on top of SARS registration,
municipal permits, B-BBEE compliance, UIF, COIDA, sector SETA requirements, and 
dozens of other licences.

The compliance costs – application fees, mandatory consultations, endless paperwork,
and the risk of arbitrary refusal – will crush startups and force thousands of small
businesses to close or remain informal. Jobs will be lost, investment will flee,
and the tax base will shrink. The Western Cape, which has consistently outperformed
the rest of South Africa precisely because of lighter and more efficient regulation,
will see its competitive advantage deliberately sabotaged by Pretoria.

**Conclusion**
 The Business Licensing Bill is not reform – it is economic sabotage.
It centralises power in the hands of an already overreaching and underperforming
national government, reintroduces racial criteria into commerce, and erects new 
barriers to entrepreneurship at a time when South Africa desperately needs growth
and jobs.

CAPEXIT calls for the complete withdrawal of this Bill. The people of the Western
Cape, and indeed all South Africans who believe in freedom, will not accept a return
to a permit-based economy controlled by bureaucrats and political gatekeepers.

For a free, prosperous, and non-racial future, this Bill must be rejected in its
entirety.