Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ____ 
Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.,  
HON. MIGUEL LUIS R. VILLAFUERTE, HON. TSUYOSHI ANTHONY G. HORIBATA 
AND HON. NICOLAS ENCISO VIII 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Philippines is dubbed as the fastest growing digital economy among major ASEAN 
member states, registering a whopping 93% year-on-year expansion from 2020 to 2021.1
This figure speaks volume of how Filipinos have become reliable on the advances of 
technology especially when it comes to convenience on transactions. The use of cellular 
phones is in fact attached to our everyday lives from entertainment to utilities and 
communications. Daily contacts are being made in the screens of our mobile phones. We 
communicate miles away and pay our bills with just one tap. Our reliance with technology 
has been undeniable for the past decade. Hence it is high time that we secure our mobile 
Subscriber Identity Module or SIM cards from possible frauds and protection through 
registration.  
This proposed measure will serve as a blanket, clothing our mobile phones with proper 
identity and contact in cases of loss and for future ease of transactions. Aligned with the 
goals of the Filipino National ID System Act, which are to lower costs, streamline 
transactions, and provide ease and convenience, this bill is timely in coordination with the 
progress of modern times. 
The approval of this bill is highly sought. 
LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR. 
MIGUEL LUIS R. VILLAFUERTE 
TSUYOSHI ANTHONY G. HORIBATA 
NICOLAS ENCISO VIII 
1 Google, Temasek and Bain & Company. (2021). e-Conomy SEA 2021 Roaring 20s: The SEA Digital 
Decade. 
July 18, 2022
5:29 pm
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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ____ 
Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.,  
HON. MIGUEL LUIS R. VILLAFUERTE, HON. TSUYOSHI ANTHONY G. HORIBATA 
AND HON. NICOLAS ENCISO VIII 
AN ACT  
REQUIRING THE REGISTRATION OF SUBSCRIBER IDENTITY MODULE 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”.  
SECTION 2.  Declaration of Policy. – The State recognizes the vital role of information 
and communications technology in nation-building and encourages its growth and 
development.  It is equally cognizant that as beneficial as modern technology is, its illegal 
or malicious use endangers people’s lives, damages property, poses hazards to public 
order, and even threatens the security of nations. Thus, there is a need to promote 
accountability in the use of Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card and provide law 
enforcement agencies the tools to resolve crimes which involve its utilization and the 
platform to deter the commission of wrongdoings. Towards this end, the State shall 
require the registration of SIM cards by all users.  
SECTION 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 
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thereof is billed at the end of the monthly billing cycle according to the use of mobile 
service;  
(d) 
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;  
(e) 
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; and  
(h) 
SIM card registration refers to the process of recording and verifying the 
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.  
 
SECTION 4.  Sale and Registration of SIM Cards.  –  Every PTE or direct seller shall 
require the end user of a SIM card to present a valid identification document 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.  
 
SECTION 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 
document (ID) with photo:  


 
(1) Passport;  
(2) National ID;  
(3) Digitized Social Security Service (SSS) ID;  
(4) Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) e-Card;  
(5) Driver’s license;  
(6) Firearms’ License to Own and Possess (LTOP) ID;  
(7) Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) ID;  
(8) Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) ID;  
(9) Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) ID;  
(10)Digitized Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) ID;  
(11)Voter’s ID;  
(12)Senior Citizen’s card;  
(13)Person with Disabilities (PWDs) card; or  
(14)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 and its serial number.   
In the 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:  
(1)  For foreign nationals visiting as tourists for not more than thirty (30) days:  
(i) Passport;  
(ii) Proof of address in the Philippines; and  
(iii) Return ticket to own country of the tourist or any other ticket showing the 
date and time of departure from the Philippines.   
(2) For foreign nationals staying for more than thirty (30) days either as workers or 
students:  
(i) Passport;  
(ii) Full name as indicated in the passport;  
(iii) Proof of address in the Philippines;  
(iv) Alien Employment Permit issued by the Department of Labor and 
Employment (DOLE);  
(v) Alien Certificate of Registration Identification Card or ACRI-Card issued by 
the Bureau of Immigration (BI); or  


(vi) School registration and ID for students.  
 
SECTION 6.  Submission of Registration Form.  – The registration form shall be 
accomplished in triplicate, and forwarded by the direct seller to the concerned PTE. The 
required registration form and copies thereof shall be certified by the direct seller                    
or any other duly appointed officer of the PTE.  
 
SECTION 7.  Submission of Verified List of Dealers or Agents. – The PTE shall submit 
to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), 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 NTC every quarter of each year an updated list 
of the same.  
 
SECTION 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.  
 
SECTION 9.  Disclosure of Information. – Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 8 
hereof and in accordance with Section 12(e) of Republic Act No. 10173, otherwise known 
as the “Data Privacy Act of 2012”, the PTE 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.  
 
SECTION 10. SIM Card Register. – All PTEs are required to maintain a SIM Card 
Register of their subscribers containing information required under Section 5 of this Act.  
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. All PTEs are required to 
keep the data of their subscribers and shall ensure that this data is kept with utmost 
confidentiality.  
 
SECTION 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 no longer than one hundred twenty (120) days shall be allowed 


upon a valid written request to the Department of Information and Communications 
Technology (DICT).  
Failure to register within the prescribed period shall authorize the PTE to 
automatically deactivate its services to the concerned prepaid SIM card subscriber.  
 
SECTION 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 responsible officers of 
the PTE shall be held liable, and the following penalties shall be imposed:  
(1) First offense: a fine not exceeding Three hundred thousand pesos (P300,000.00);  
(2) Second offense: a fine not exceeding Five hundred thousand pesos 
(P500,000.00); and  
(3) Third and subsequent offenses: a fine not exceeding One million pesos 
(P1,000,000.00) 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 (P5,000.00) to Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000.00) 
shall be imposed; and  
 
(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.  
 
SECTION 13. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). – Within ninety (90) days 
from the effectivity of this Act, the NTC, in coordination with the DICT 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.  
 
SECTION 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 liable for the penalties 
prescribed in this Act.  
 
SECTION 15. Separability Clause. – Should any part of this Act be declared 
unconstitutional or invalid, the other provisions hereof that are not affected thereby shall 
continue to be in full force and effect.  
 


SECTION 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.  
 
SECTION 17. Effectivity.  –  This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication 
in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.  
 
Approved,