The NCC Device Management System gives phone makers, importers, dealers and vendors until October 6, 2026 to register the IMEI numbers of every SIM-enabled device they hold in stock. The deadline was originally September 7 and was extended after some traders couldn’t complete registration, and once the system is fully enforced, unregistered devices won’t work on Nigerian networks.
If you already have a phone in your hand, the good news is that the first phase isn’t aimed at you. The Nigerian Communications Commission says it’s focused on onboarding devices already held in stock and making sure future imports are registered properly, so the Tecno, Infinix or Samsung you’re using today isn’t about to go dead overnight. The people who need to pay the closest attention are anyone planning to buy a phone in the coming weeks.
How the NCC Device Management System decides which phones can connect
Every phone has an IMEI, a 15-digit number that identifies the handset itself rather than your SIM. Under the new system, those numbers go into a Central Equipment Identity Register, and networks use that register to check whether a device has been properly approved. In the NCC’s statement on type approval compliance, Engr. Edoyemi Ogoh, Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity, said a central IMEI registry would put the Commission in a better position “to ensure effective and efficient compliance”.
The legal basis isn’t new. Section 132(2) of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 already required equipment to be type-approved before sale, and the DMS simply gives the NCC a way to enforce that rule at network level. The Commission has also said the platform doesn’t access anything on your phone or monitor your calls and messages, since it only deals with the device’s identity number.
Will phone prices go up because of the IMEI registration fee?
Importers pay a validation fee for each IMEI they register. Figures shared during the rollout put it at about N670 for budget and feature phones and a little over N3,700 for high-end devices, and the NCC isn’t charging validation fees on existing stock during the onboarding period.
Those fees are small next to what most phones cost, but there’s a real concern that some sellers could use the policy to justify bigger increases. An official involved in the stakeholder meetings warned that importers might add N15,000 to N20,000 per device. If a seller quotes a sudden jump and blames the NCC, it’s fair to compare prices across a few shops before you pay.
Buying a phone before or after October 6? Check these first
Dial *#06# on any phone you’re about to buy and make sure the IMEI on screen matches the one printed on the box and under Settings > About phone. A mismatch is a red flag whether the DMS existed or not, because it can point to a refurbished board, a cloned IMEI or a phone that isn’t what the box says it is. Keep your receipt too, since it’s your proof of where the phone came from if a problem shows up later.
Be careful with phones that came into the country outside the usual channels, including some foreign-used and “UK used” units, because the system is designed to catch devices that were never registered. Buying from an authorised brand store or a dealer who can show where the stock came from is the safer option for now. For Transsion phones, a unit sold through official channels also comes with Carlcare after-sales support. Our guides on buying used flagship phones online without getting scammed and the checks to run before buying a refurbished phone are worth reading before you spend money on a pre-owned device.
What’s still unclear as the deadline gets closer
The NCC hasn’t yet published a date for when networks will start blocking unregistered devices in full, and traders have raised concerns about the short timeline, the lack of a clear appeal process for flagged devices and extra costs on shipments already in transit. It’s also not yet clear how a phone bought abroad and brought in by a traveller will be treated once enforcement is complete.
For now, the sensible approach is to keep using your current phone as normal, buy your next one from a seller who can account for it, and watch for the NCC’s next announcement after October 6. If you’re comparing new phones in the meantime, it also helps to avoid the common buying mistakes Nigerians make with new Android phones, since a registered phone is only a good buy if it’s the right phone for you.
