Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

3033

House Bill no.

Introduced by Representative Alfred Vargas

The number of mobile phone users in the Philippines is expected to reach
75.6 million by the year 2020, and is continue to rise. This means that in one
click of a hand, more information is being shared in an unregulated manner
or not supervised by existing regulations or laws.

The continuous rise in mobile phone users translate to @ high number of
untraceable Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, which are readily
available from direct retailers without any form of documentation procedure
or proof of identity requirements. ‘Anonymity could then lead to bullying or
harassment, criminality, acts of terrorism, and other modus operandi. It is
high time that we establish a registration mechanism that will regulate the
sale of SIM cards to prevent illegal acts, as mentioned above.

‘Through this Bill, consumer interest and public protection will be in place.
Law enforcement agencies and the National Telecommunications Commission
(NTC) should then work hand-in-hand to advance the right to privacy of the
registered mobile subscribers.

This proposed measure should also enable to provide consumers in
maintaining their mobile numbers, as it is registered under their name and
they hold proof of ownership for this effect.

-The version of this Bill has already gathered the approval of the Committee
on Information and Communications and was passed on its third reading
during the 17% Congress.

FRED VARGAS


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Quezon City
EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

3033

House Bill no.

Introduced by Representative Alfred Vargas

AN ACT REQUIRING THE REGISTRATION OF ALL USERS OF
SUBSCRIBER IDENTITY MODULE (SIM) CARDS

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Subscriber
Identity Module (SIM) Card Registration Act.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State recognizes the vital role of
information and communications technology in nation building

The introduction of modern telecommunications technology with the
view of providing the widest information dissemination is greatly encouraged,
but possession of the most modern technology carries with it tremendous
responsibility. Thus, a mechanism must be installed to maximize the benefits
of modern telecommunications technology and to deter illegal or malicious
utilization of the same that benefit only a few.

Towards this end, the State shall require the registration of all users of
subscriber identity module (SIM) cards.

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act:

a) Direct seller refers to a person, natural or juridical, who directly
dispenses or sells a SIM card to an end user;

b) End user refers to any individual/subscriber who directly purchases
a SIM card from a direct seller ;


c) Postpaid subscription refers to the subscription wherein service is
provided by virtue of a prior arrangement with a public telecommunications
entity, and the end user thereof is billed at the end of the monthly billing cycle
according to the use of mobile service;

4) Prepaid subscription refers to the subscription wherein credit is
purchased in advance of service use. The purchased credit is used to pay for
mobile phone services at the point the service is accessed or consumed. If
there is no available credit, then access to the requested service is denied;

¢) Public Telecommunications Entity or PTE refers to any person,
natural or juridical, government or private, engaged in the provision of
telecommunications services to the public for compensation;

f) SIM refers to the Subscriber Identity Module which is an embedded
circuit that securely stores international mobile subscriber identity and
related keys used to identify and authenticate subscribers on mobile devices,
such as mobile phones and computers;

g) SIM card refers to a removable card into which an electronic
integrated circuit is embedded and is transferrable between different mobile
devices;

h) SIM card registration refers to the process of recording and
verifying mobile phone number and personal information of a subscriber, by
a PTE or other direct seller, including the subscriber’s full name, date of birth,
gender, and address.

SEC. 4. Sale and Registration of SIM Cards. - Every PTE or direct
seller shall require the end user of a SIM card to present valid identification
with photo to ascertain the latter's identity. The PTE or direct seller shall
further require the end user to accomplish and sign a control-numbered
registration form issued by the respective PTE of the SIM card purchased. The
registration form shall include an attestation by the end user that the person
appearing before the direct seller is the same person who accomplished and
signed the registration form and that the identification documents presented
are valid and correct. Failure of an end user to comply with the requirements
under this Section shall be a ground for the PTE or direct seller to refuse the

sale and issuance of a SIM card


Except in cases where the PTE is the direct seller, the accomplished
registration form must be submitted by the direct seller to the concerned PTE
within fifteen (15) days from the date of sale. Failure on the part of the direct
seller to comply under this Section shall constitute a violation of this Act.

SEC. 5. Coverage of Registration. - All direct sellers are hereby
mandated to register the following information in the SIM card registration
form:

a) Full name, date of birth, gender, and address of the end user
appearing in a valid government-issued identification document with photo.
SIM card end users shall be required to present the original copy of any of the
following valid government identification documents (ID) with photo:

1. Passport;

2. Digitized Social Security Service (SSS) ID;

3. Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) e-Card;

4. Driver's license;

5. Firearms’ License to Own and Possess (LTOP) ID;

6. Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) ID;

7. Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) ID;

8. Overseas Worker's Welfare Administration (OWWA) ID;
9. Digitized Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) ID;

10. Voter's ID;

11. Senior Citizen's card;

12. Person with Disabilities card; or

13. Other government issued ID.

In the absence of any of the above IDs, a National Bureau of
Investigation (NBI) clearance, Police clearance, or a Philippine Statistics
Authority (PSA) Certified Birth Certificate with an ID picture taken within the
last six (6) months prior to the purchase of a SIM card shall suffice. The direct
seller may make further inquiries or require the submission of additional
identification, if necessary. The purchase of a SIM card may be withheld
pending submission of the additional requirements.

b) Assigned cell phone number of SIM card(s) and its serial number.


In case of end users who are foreign nationals, they shall register their
full name, passport number, and address in the SIM card registration form
upon presentation of the following:

a) For foreign nationals visiting as tourists for not more than thirty (30)
days:

fi Passport;
2 Proof of address in the Philippines;
3. Return ticket to own country of the tourist or any other

ticket showing

the date and time of departure from the Philippines; and

4. Any other information as may be required by the
Department of Information and Communications
Technology (DICT).

b) For foreign nationals staying for more than thirty (30) days either as
workers or students:
4 Passport;
Full name as indicated in the passport;
Proof of address in the Philippines;
Alien Employment Permit issued by the Department of

Ben

Labor and Employment (DOLE); school registration and
ID for students; and
5. Any other information as may be required by the DICT.

SEC. 6. Submission of Registration Form. - The registration form
shall be accomplished in triplicate, and forwarded by the direct seller to the
concerned PTE. The concerned PTE shall submit a copy of the duly
accomplished registration form to the DICT within fifteen (15) days from the
date of sale or receipt of such form from their respective direct sellers. The
required registration form and copies thereof shall be certified by the direct
seller or any other duly appointed officer of the PTE.


SEC. 7. Submission of Verified List of Dealers or Agents. - The PTE
shall submit to the DICT, within thirty (30) days from the date of effectivity of
this Act, a verified list of their current authorized dealers/agents nationwide.
The PTE shall submit to the DICT and National Telecommunications
Commission (NTC), every quarter of each year an updated list of the same.

SEC. 8. Confidentiality Clause. - Any information in the SIM card
registration shall be treated as absolutely confidential, unless access to
information has been granted upon written consent of the subscriber:
Provided, That the waiver of absolute confidentiality shall not be made a
condition for the approval of subscription agreements. The confidentiality
clause in the SIM card registration shall take effect at the point of sale.

SEC. 9. Disclosure of Information. - Notwithstanding the provisions
of Section 8 hereof and in accordance with Sec. 12(e) of Republic Act No.
10173, otherwise known as the “Data Privacy Act of 2012”, the PTE or the
DICT shall be required to disclose the full name and address contained in the
SIM card registration, upon a duly issued subpoena or order of a court upon
finding of probable cause, or upon written request from a law enforcement
agency in relation to an ongoing investigation, that a particular number is
used in the commission of a crime or that it was used as a means to commit
an unlawful act.

SEC. 10. SIM Card Register. - Al] PTEs are required to maintain a SIM
Card Register of their subscribers containing information required under
Section 5 of this Act and to submit the same to the DICT every six (6) months.

In case of loss of a SIM card or any change in information contained in
the registration form after purchase of the SIM card, the subscriber shall
notify the PTE within forty-eight (48) hours from such loss or change in
information. Within fifteen (15) days from receipt of notification from the
subscriber, the concerned PTE must notify the DICT of such loss or change
in information.

All PTEs are required to keep the data of their subscribers and the DICT
shall ensure that this data is kept with utmost confidentiality

SEC. 11. Registration of Existing Prepaid Mobile Phone
Subscribers. - All existing mobile phone subscribers with prepaid SIM cards


are required to register with their respective PTE within one hundred eighty
(180) days from the effectivity of this Act. An extension period of not longer
than one hundred twenty (120) days shall be allowed upon a valid written
request to the DICT.

Failure to register within the prescribed period shall authorize the PTE
to automatically deactivate its services to the concerned prepaid SIM card
subscriber.

SEC. 12. Penalties. - The following penalties shall be imposed for
failure to comply with any of the provisions of this Act:

(a) If the offense is committed by a PTE, the President and other
executive officers shall be held liable, and the following penalties
shall be imposed:

(1) First offense: a fine of Three hundred thousand pesos (Php

300,000.00)

(2) Second offense: a fine of Five hundred thousand pesos (Php 500,

000.00)

(3) Third and subsequent offenses: a fine of One million pesos (Php
1,000,000.00) for every offense.

(b) If the offense is committed by a direct seller, a penalty of suspension
of its operation and a fine of Five thousand pesos (Php 5,000.00) to
Fifty thousand pesos (Php 50,000.00) shall be imposed.

(c) If the offense is committed by an officer or employee of an
implementing agency under this Act, a penalty of suspension or
dismissal from service and a fine to be determined by the court shall
be imposed without prejudice to the filing of an appropriate criminal,
civil and administrative case.

SEC. 13. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). - Within ninety

(90) days from the effectivity of this Act, the DICT, in coordination with the
NTC and other concerned agencies, shall promulgate the rules and
regulations and other issuances as may be necessary to ensure the effective
implementation of this Act.

SEC. 14. Transitory Provision. - Only direct sellers who have been
duly authorized by the PTEs and the NTC, shall be allowed to sell prepaid SIM


cards. Upon the effectivity of this Act, all PTEs are mandated to recall all
prepaid SIM cards for sale to the public by those establishments not
authorized by it. Otherwise, they shall be imposed the penalties prescribed in
this Act.

SEC. 15. Separability Clause. - Should any part of this Act be
declared unconstitutional or invalid, other provisions hereof that are not
affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect.

SEC. 16. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders,
proclamations, rules and regulations, and issuances, or parts thereof which
are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, are hereby repealed, amended
or modified accordingly.

SEC. 17. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
its publication in the Official Gazette or in any newspaper of general
circulation.

Approved,