This opportunity has become available to users recently, when the law abolishing “mobile slavery” came into force, implying that one client can be assigned a personal number, regardless of which operator he is connected to. The transition conditions may differ, but its scheme is approximately the same for everyone:
- You need to contact the service operator’s office to make sure whether the contract is issued for you and clarify all your data, as they may become outdated when you replace your passport or other documents.
- With your passport, write an application for the transfer; this can be done at the nearest office of the operator to whom the transfer will be made.
- Receive a SIM card from a new operator, as well as enter into an agreement, after which the date and time for which the transition is scheduled will be known. The period from submitting an application to receiving a new number can range from 3 to 9 days and depends on the operator to which the transition is made.
- On the appointed day, approximately at the time specified by the operator, the SIM card will become inactive, this can last up to 6 hours. After this time, it will start working again, but under the terms of a new tariff, and will be served by a new operator.
There may be more stages of transition, in addition, some operators help new customers transferring their number and offer to do this through online services. Therefore, it is worth analyzing the transition scheme to each operator separately; for example, you can take the 4 largest companies providing communication services throughout Russia:
- Beeline;
- Megaphone;
- Tele 2.
Many of the operators, in order to retain customers, can offer those who are planning to transfer more favorable terms of service. But it is worth remembering that such methods are temporary. As a result, after some time everything will come back, and the price for the service will be increased again to the original level specified in the current tariff. It should also be remembered that when changing an operator while maintaining the number, the latter must belong to the region in which the replacement takes place. Otherwise, the operation is not performed. If the transfer is carried out by a third party, then the owner of the number must give consent to this; this can be done by writing a power of attorney for the person who will fill out the form during the transfer, and have it certified by a notary.
Switching to Beeline while maintaining the old number
This company has many interesting connection conditions that can be beneficial to those who, in addition to a telephone, have television and home Internet connected to this operator. And if the mobile device is serviced by another operator, then Beeline provides the opportunity to switch to them without changing the cell number.
This can be done by leaving an online application or contacting the nearest company office. The fee for such a transition will be standard - 100 rubles. To correctly transfer your number to service by the Beeline operator, you must take the following steps:
- Check with your operator for all your details. If they are outdated, then in this case it is necessary to update them, but if everything is in order, then you can contact a new operator. It is also worth checking whether there are any debts for payment for communication services.
- Contact the nearest mobile phone store or Beeline office, where you can fill out an application to transfer to them while maintaining your number. You can also leave such a request through the online service, but you will still have to come to the branch to pick up a SIM card.
- After submitting the application, you need to select the tariff at which service will begin after the transition is completed, and pay a fee.
- Get a SIM card to which the transition will be made. It will have its own number, it will be active during the transfer period, and after the end of the operation it will change to the one with which the transfer was made.
- Within 8 days, operators will be checking and transferring information about the client; this is the period indicated by the Beeline employee when handing over the SIM card.
- After 7 days, a notification will be sent to the old SIM card in which the client will be asked to insert a card from a new operator.
- On the 8th day, you need to insert a Beeline SIM card, since it is to it that SMS notifications will be sent, which will indicate at what stage the transfer is.
The process itself may not go according to plan starting from the 5th point. There can be many reasons for this, but the main ones are usually the client’s debt or an error when filling out documents by the operator. Also, the transfer period can be changed by the client himself, but only upward.
Transfer to MTS while maintaining the old number
MTS is the largest operator in our country and offers favorable tariff conditions for those who often use mobile Internet or travel a lot around Russia. Not everyone, even from the remaining top three, will be able to offer such conditions, so many users are often transferred to this operator. But how to do this while maintaining the same number?
In order to keep your old number, you will have to pay 100 rubles when switching. This amount is the standard fee for the service of porting a number to a new operator. The company does not provide for the possibility of remote transfer, which means you will have to go to the nearest office owned by MTS. But, most likely, this is temporary and in a few months the operator will have an online service that allows this operation to be performed remotely. In the meantime, you should go through the following steps:
- As in any other case, contact the service operator to confirm all your data, and also find out about the presence of debts for communication services.
- Take your passport to the nearest office or mobile phone store owned by MTS and request the opportunity to transfer to their service while maintaining your old number.
- A company employee will help you fill out an application to transfer your number.
- Choose the most favorable tariff for yourself at which communication services will be provided.
- Pay a commission of 100 rubles.
- Get a new SIM card to which the number will be transferred upon completion of the operation. There will be a number on it that can be used while the operation is being performed, after which it will become inactive.
- Within 8 days, operators will check and exchange data, during which time both the old and new SIM cards will be active, but the latter will have a different, temporary number.
- The day before the end of the procedure, you need to insert a new SIM card into your phone, since it will be the one that will receive notifications, by which you can find out at what stage the number transfer is.
At the end of the transition, the last SMS will arrive stating that the operation was successful and the user has become a new MTS client with his old number. If any unforeseen incident occurred during the operation, or the transition did not occur within the appointed time, then you can contact MTS by calling the hot number, which is free for all subscribers: 8-800-25-08-250. Using it you can find out about the reasons for the failure of the set time, both when transferring to MTS and from them.
Transfer to Megafon while maintaining the old number
Like other operators, Megafon has many interesting tariffs, which are more profitable for customers compared to the services provided by other operators. For those who want to become a Megafon client, but do not want to change their current number, this company offers a service for switching to them while maintaining the old number. It is only valid if the old number belongs to the same area in which the client transfer operation is performed.
Megafon has one advantage over some operators: the possibility of online transfer, thanks to which the client can transfer without contacting the company’s offices. In order to perform the operation remotely, you should do the following:
- Come to the office of the current operator, find out if there are any debts for communication services and check the relevance of the data on the documents entered into their database. You need to do this yourself, as otherwise the operation may not be completed.
- Go to the official Megafon website and fill out an online application for a transfer. In it you will need to indicate personal data, as well as the address to which the contract and SIM card will subsequently be delivered.
- After filling out and sending the application, the client will receive a call, and the operator, having specified all the data, will set a time and day on which the courier will deliver all the necessary documents.
- On the appointed date, a specialist will come to the client and bring a SIM card and documents. He will provide an agreement and help fill it out, and will also offer to choose the tariff the client is interested in. Upon completion of the work, he needs to transfer 100 rubles, which is the commission for the transfer while maintaining the number.
- After the specialist arrives and fills out the application, you must wait 8 days during which the data will be exchanged.
- The day before the transition, you need to insert a new SIM card into your phone. It will receive notifications, by which you can find out at what stage the operation to change the operator to Megafon is.
By the evening of the 8th day, the operation will be completely completed, and the client will be able to use the terms of the tariff provided by Megafon from his old number. The client has the right to change the period within which the operation can be performed to a longer one. The interval can be from 8 days to 6 months. The remote transition program is not available everywhere. If in the locality where the transfer is carried out, Megafon employees do not have the opportunity to come to the client in person, then, in this case, you will have to independently contact one of the communication shops of this company and fill out an application for transfer while maintaining the number.
Transfer to Tele2 while maintaining the old number
Tele2 appeared on the all-Russian market of cellular operators relatively recently, but quickly developed and found its customers. Unlike its “big brothers”, this company offers some of the lowest prices for its services.
Every month, the area covered by the towers of this operator covers increasingly larger territories, attracting new customers with improving communications and high data transfer speeds. So far, Tele2 has not launched a program that allows you to remotely transfer from another operator while maintaining your number. Therefore, in order to switch to their service, you must complete the following steps:
- Contact the old operator and find out if there are any debts. If available, you need to deposit the required amount into the account. It is also worth checking whether the information about who the SIM card is registered to is outdated.
- Come to the nearest Tele2 office with your passport and fill out a form there for a transfer from another mobile operator while saving the number. A company employee can help with this.
- Select the desired tariff and receive a SIM card, to which the number will subsequently be transferred.
- Pay a commission of 100 rubles. After this, the transfer process will begin, which will take about 8 days.
- On the 7th day after submitting the application, you must insert a new SIM card into your phone.
- On the day of the transfer, the client will receive notifications. From them it will be possible to find out the stage at which the transfer from the old operator to Tele2 is in progress.
If all the data was entered correctly and there were no debts for the services of the old operator, then by the evening of the eighth day the client will be able to use the phone, and Tele2 will provide communication services to him.
The other day, a friend contacted me with a question about the MNP service. She wanted to transfer the number from SMARTS to MegaFon. I came to the latter’s office in Madagascar, but they refused to accept the application, sending me for a certificate of no debt to SMARTS. This requirement is, of course, illegal. Let's look again at what the subscriber needs to do and what the cellular operator is responsible for.
On December 1, 2013, the MNP service began operating in Russia. It allows you to change your mobile operator without changing your phone number. This is very convenient if your number is known to a large number of people and/or various companies. The number is also linked to SMS notification services of banks, social networks, online stores, etc. Therefore, changing the number will entail a lot of inconvenience.
However, today a little more than 950 thousand numbers have been transferred in the country (0.4% of the total number of active SIM cards).
Basic transfer conditions:
1. Only a federal number can be transferred. It is impossible to port a landline number.
2. Numbers can be transferred only within one region of Russia.
3. You can transfer numbers no more than once every 60 days.
Additional terms:
1. You should not have any debts to the previous operator. To do this, you just need to check your balance or call the helpline (if other numbers are registered in your name). In any case, your future operator will check this information independently. The number is usually transferred after eight days, so it is advisable to leave a small amount in your old account.
2. The personal data that you provide in the application must match the data that appears with the previous operator. If your number is registered to another person, you can transfer the number in his personal presence or with a notarized power of attorney.
Step 1: write an application
All you need to do is come to the office of the future operator and write an application. It is better to contact your own offices and service centers rather than intermediary companies. Apart from a passport, no certificates or documents are needed. Don't forget to take 100 rubles. They will be added to your phone account and written off a few days after the number is transferred.
Step 2: choose a tariff
After completing the application, you need to select the tariff on which you will be served by the new operator. I recommend choosing it in advance rather than taking the one that is offered to you. In this case, you will receive a SIM card with a temporary number.
Transition period
Now we will have two SIM cards: old and new. And both are working. It is not necessary to use a new SIM card before the transition, but if any services are connected there, money will be debited from you. So I lost 6 rubles in 8 days because of the “Stay informed+” option (Beeline), which connects automatically. Be carefull.
Step 3: receive SMS
Before the transition, you will receive several SMS from your future operator. For example, I received five SMS from Beeline:
1. November 28 (1 day). Your application has been accepted and a number has been assigned to it. It will be useful for communicating with support (if necessary).
2. November 28 (1 day). Your details have been successfully verified.
3. November 28 (1 day). There is no debt to the previous operator.
4. December 2 (day 5). The transition will take place on the night of December 5-6. In fact, the transition occurred only two days later for unknown technical reasons. I had to call support three times.
5. December 8 (day 11). Congratulations on a successful transfer and a warning that in three days 100 rubles will be debited from the number.
Step 4: change SIM cards
After the transition, your new SIM card with a temporary number will receive your previous number. The old SIM card should stop working. There may be some interruptions in communication for some time.
How to get money back from your previous operator?
There is no automatic method. The only option is to personally come to the office of your old operator and write an application for a refund. They should be transferred to your bank account.
What to do if you receive a refusal?
It all depends on the reason. If it is not indicated, you need to contact the help desk of your future operator. The main reasons: negative balance, data mismatch, blocked number, etc. If personal data does not match, you will have to find out this information from your current operator. After eliminating the reason for the refusal, you will have to write the application again.
How to find out which operator a particular number belongs to?
Previously, you could find out which operator it belonged to by the first digits of a phone number. Now, for example, when you call an MTS number, you may end up with a call to another operator. Accordingly, you will spend a different amount of money. There are no warnings provided.
Commands for checking number ownership
Beeline: *444*9ххxxxxxxx#
MegaFon: *629*9ххxxxxxxx#
MTS: *916*9ххxxxxxxx#
31.07.18
61 168
12
A year ago I had to change my mobile operator.
Grigory Yaroshenko
changed telecom operator twice and kept the number
There was no signal in the office of the company where I got a job. The building was out of range of my cellular network. Colleagues who used the services of other operators were fine.
It turned out that changing a mobile operator is easy. I stopped by the service office, chose the appropriate tariff, signed an agreement and after 8 days connected a new SIM card. My number remains the same.
I'll tell you how to do the same.
Why change your telecom operator?
In addition to the quality of communication, as was the case in my case, there is another reason to change the cellular operator - money. Not all operators have convenient tariffs and packages: in my case, I had to pay for call minutes that I did not use, and pay extra for Internet traffic, which was often not enough.
Understanding this problem, operators come up with more favorable tariffs and thus try to compete with each other for subscribers’ money. For example, Tinkoff Mobile has an individual tariff constructor, using which I can clearly determine how much traffic, minutes and services I need.
What do you need to port your number?
In Russia, at the legislative level, it is possible to change the operator and retain the number. Even the three digits at the beginning of the number will not change. Everything will remain as before: data in your Google account, in the bank and in the newsletter of your favorite store.
You can transfer your number to another operator only within your region. It is technically impossible to transfer a number to another city. Phone numbers are tied to the region - this is provided for by the Russian telephone numbering plan.
Number porting will be refused if it is registered to another person. Several years ago, my colleague bought a SIM card at a cellular operator counter in a shopping center. She did not have a passport with her, and in order not to lose the buyer, the seller included his data in the contract - now this is illegal, but then it was still possible.
When she wanted to change the operator, she was offered to reassign the number to herself. To do this, it was necessary to find the same seller and bring him to the office with a passport. It was impossible to do this, so the number could not be transferred.
But if the contract is signed to you and you are not moving anywhere, the number can be transferred. Here's what you need to do for this.
Pay off debts
First, you need to make sure that the number is not blocked and there is money in the account.
There are different ways to check your balance. You can send a USSD command or download the application. In the latter case, access to the balance will always be at hand.
How to check balance on your phone
MTS
Some payments are charged once a month, for example, for roaming services. If they are charged after the number has been transferred, you will receive an SMS from the new operator asking you to pay the debt. In accordance with the Rules for the provision of telephone services, 10 days are given for this. Then the number will be blocked.
Check passport details
To switch to a new operator with your number, you need to fill out an application. You will need to provide your passport information. They must match those contained in the service agreement with the current telecom operator. Therefore, first you need to find this agreement among your papers and check it.
If the contract is lost or the data does not match, you need to go to the operator’s office with your passport.
I had to do exactly this, because in seven years I managed to change my registration, and then my passport. According to the rules, I should have informed the mobile operator about this, but I forgot. I only remembered when I filled out the application to port the number.
Write an application for number porting
If you don’t have a computer at hand, it’s convenient to fill out an application in the mobile application. I’ll show you how to do this using the Tinkoff Mobile application as an example.
Install the application on your smartphone:
Select the call, SMS and Internet traffic packages you need:
Select the number porting option and fill in your passport details:
After this, the courier will bring your application and SIM card to your home or office.
Before signing the application, you must carefully read the terms of the transfer. They differ for different operators. For example, Beeline and MTS charge 100 rubles for number porting.
Transferring a number to MTS costs 100 RUR
At Beeline - also 100 R 
Select date and time for number porting
The client has the right to choose the date from which his new SIM card will begin to operate. If the current tariff is paid for a month in advance, it makes sense to wait until it ends.
The former operator does not need to write additional statements. The contract with him ceases to be valid automatically; there is no special procedure for its closure. If there is money left in the account, it will not be burned, and to return it, you need to come to the office of the previous operator with your passport.
Wait eight days
Telephone rules allow eight days to port a number. All this time, both SIM cards will work - both the old one and the new one with a temporary number. Use this to test your connection quality. If you are not satisfied, you can refuse the transfer. Tinkoff Mobile generally suggests taking the card for a test first, and then making a decision: to port the number or not.
Within eight days, the new operator will inform you about the progress of the transfer. It doesn’t matter which SIM card is in the phone, messages will be sent to both numbers.
A day before the transfer, the operator will inform you that tomorrow you will need to install a new SIM card in your phone. On the first day, the connection may fail, you will also be warned about this. Outgoing calls and SMS may not work in the first half hour after installation, and incoming calls may not work for up to six hours after installation.
What to do if you change your mind about changing operator
You can refuse to port your number after submitting your application. This case is also provided for by the Rules for the provision of telephone services:
You have six days from the date of application to make a final decision. If you change your mind, notify either of the two operators.
If we simply leave the mobile operator, no one remembers us. Another thing is when we leave with a number transfer. The current operator receives a request from a new one, and we come to the attention of unknown managers. They see the outflow of money from the company and rush at us like vultures.
When I left MTS, I suddenly got a personal manager. He informed me of my status as a VIP client and offered to consider new terms of service. I needed the transition for technical reasons, so I refused. But a friend of mine in a similar situation accepted an offer from her current operator. She switched to a tariff that was not publicly available. Now 15 GB of Internet costs her 300 rubles.
Remember
- The ability to port a number to another operator is established by law.
- Only the person to whom the number is registered can do this.
- The number cannot be transferred from one city to another.
- To port a number, you don’t need to go to the operator’s office - everything is done on the Internet.
- You choose the date of transition to the new operator.
- Money for unused communication services can be returned.
- Number porting can be used as a way to get discounts from your current operator or sign up for a custom plan.
