Good News for WhatsApp and Telegram Users! Both Apps Will Now Work Even Without a SIM Card
Plans to implement ‘SIM Binding’ for messenger apps like WhatsApp and Telegram in the country have now been postponed due to technical reasons. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has set a new deadline for this initiative: December 31, 2026. This means that until this date, your WhatsApp and Telegram accounts will continue to function even without a SIM card and will not automatically log out.
The guidelines for SIM binding were originally scheduled to come into effect on March 30, 2026. Under these guidelines, it would have become mandatory to link WhatsApp and Telegram accounts to a specific phone number. Once the rules were implemented, apps operating without a SIM card would either cease to function or, if used via the web version, would automatically log out within six hours.
However, the Department of Telecommunications has now postponed this deadline until December 31. The government has stated that, due to technical complexities, app companies have been granted this additional time to prepare their systems. Major corporations, such as Apple, had previously raised objections regarding this regulation. They argued that, given the technical challenges and user privacy concerns involved, immediate implementation of this rule was unfeasible. It is for this very reason that the implementation has now been deferred until the end of the year.
The objective behind the SIM binding rule was to ensure that every user’s WhatsApp or Telegram account remained securely linked to their specific phone number. This measure was intended to assist in curbing the proliferation of fake accounts and preventing fraudulent activities. However, due to the technical and privacy-related issues involved, immediate implementation proved to be a difficult task.
The government had issued these guidelines in November 2025, granting companies a window of several months to update their respective systems. Consequently, users will now be able to continue using WhatsApp and Telegram without any interruptions until December 31.
Experts suggest that while this move will not cause any immediate inconvenience to the average user, companies will need to ensure their systems are fully prepared in the coming months to prevent any technical glitches once the regulations eventually come into force. Overall, users can continue to use their messenger apps safely and conveniently until the new deadline for SIM binding, while companies have gained time to complete their technical preparations.
