Telefonía móvil en méxico Faces a 5 Million Line Drop as CURP Registration Kicks In

People selling things on the busy sidewalks of La Viga in Mexico City weave in and out of traffic jams by holding up their phones during short red lights to check their messages. It’s a normal part of life across the country, where cell phone service has always seemed easy and cheap. But below this busy surface, something that has never happened before is happening in Mexico’s cells. About 4.9 million active mobile lines just disappeared from the national grid between December 2025 and June 2026. This made the total market base drop from 162 million to 157.1 million.

A broad government order enforced by the Regulatory Commission of Telecommunications is what caused this sudden contraction. In a big push to stop criminals and people who use cell phones for threats, officials now require each phone line to be officially registered with the owner’s CURP national identification number. For businesses, accounts must also be linked to tax IDs. As you walk by corner convenience stores that used to sell prepaid SIM cards with no questions asked, you can still feel people’s reluctance. Due to strict registration deadlines that end in late 2026, many prepaid users have decided to either give up on secondary SIM cards or stop buying airtime altogether.

It’s strange that major carriers’ finances haven’t been hurt by losing almost five million accounts. According to data from the industry, mobile sector sales hit a record high of 97.5 billion pesos in the second quarter of 2026, up 5.3% from the same time last year. The average revenue per user rose to 151.4 pesos, which is the highest level since 2021. This was mostly due to heavy data use and more streaming around World Cup events. It’s possible that the crackdown by regulators got rid of inactive or “ghost” lines by accident, forcing people to combine their data use into one primary, higher-tier plan.

Starting with numbers that end in 0 and 1, the phased deadline schedule is now in full swing. Telecommunications companies now have to give final warnings before cutting off service within 72 hours. Seeing this happen brings up bigger issues about digital inclusion and bureaucratic red tape in a country that relies a lot on black market trade. Government officials see the registration drive as a necessary sacrifice for public safety. However, people in the industry aren’t sure if the market will keep shrinking or stop when the final deadline in December comes and goes. For now, millions of regular users have to choose between privacy, administrative hassle, and the need to stay connected.