Wondering what the Zong SIM card activation process looks like? They are among the top mobile network service providers in Pakistan, making this procedure important for millions of users. Moreover, the carrier is merely a subsidiary of China Mobile in the country, making the total user base astonishingly large. Unsurprisingly, activating SIM cards differs from country to country, and Pakistani users will find the method below is not replicable in China. That’s what makes our guides on this topic so significant. Besides precise steps, it provides users a glimpse into how things work worldwide. With all that said, let’s dig into how to activate a Zong SIM card.
1. Activate your Zong SIM card in person
Unlike many remote activation techniques we demonstrate, you’ll only find one for Zong SIM cards. While inconvenient, time-consuming, and costly if you live far away, this is for security purposes and has to do with laws in the country. More specifically, only the agent at one of Zong outlets, authorized franchises, registered retailers, or licensed Customer Service or Sales Centers can perform the activation. This is because you must provide your CNIC (Computerized National Identity Card) if you’re a resident of Pakistan. Alternatively, you must show a passport with a visa, Proof of Residence (POF) card, NADRA ID, or POC (Pakistan Origin Card).
Furthermore, the representative at a physical location must take your thumb finger impression using a biometric scanner. Zong typically takes up to 24 hours to perform an identity check and, if approved, hands over a preactivated SIM card to the user. Users may insert the SIM card immediately afterward and wait for the signal to come on with no additional steps. Our research shows the activation takes between a few minutes and a few hours after the SIM card leaves the carrier’s premises. To put all that concisely, activation of a Zong SIM card works like this:
- Visit an official Zong store, franchise, or authorized location
- Request to become their user
- Provide personal details and one of the documents above to the representative
- Leave a thumb impression on their biometric scanner
- Ask the spokesperson to begin the activation process
- Wait up to a day for authentication to finish
- Pick up your SIM, insert it into your device, and wait as long as 2 hours
Note. If you transfer from another Pakistani carrier, the procedure is nearly identical. The key difference is that you may have to wait a couple of days for the porting operation (MNP or Mobile Number Portability) to finish during step 6.
2. Reactivating old Zong SIM cards or activating special plans
The only exception to the rule above is old users and when you don’t let the Zong representative activate a plan for you. According to their policy, Zong has the right to deactivate the SIM cards they issued after 180 days of inactivity. However, they’re among the carriers that value loyalty. Additionally, some franchises choose to run limited-time deals after offering a free SIM card. Here are three examples of common plans:
- Internet SIM: After the procedure above, you need to dial *6666# to activate the Internet SIM.
- New SIM Offer: Prepaid SIM some franchises offer for free. After activation above, you must call *10# to begin using the bundle.
- Lagao Offer: After your SIM becomes inactive (30 or more days of no activity), Zong lets you dial *2244# to enable a special 60-day plan and reactivate your SIM card.