A2P SMS regulations in Egypt.
Compliance with the NTRA.
Egypt has one of the region's strictest A2P SMS regimes, overseen by the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA). Every commercial sender must register an alphanumeric sender ID with the operators, route traffic through licensed local channels, and honour Egypt's Personal Data Protection Law (Law No. 151 of 2020). Marketing needs prior consent and opt-out; grey routes are actively prosecuted.
Governing regulator and primary law
Egypt's telecom sector is regulated by the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA), which licenses operators, controls sender IDs and routing, and refers unlicensed bulk senders to prosecution. Data-privacy obligations sit under the Personal Data Protection Law No. 151 of 2020, enforced by the Personal Data Protection Centre (PDPC).
- Regulator: NTRA (tra.gov.eg).
- Data-privacy statute: Law No. 151 of 2020 (PDPL), enforced by the PDPC.
- Unlicensed bulk senders are referred to the Public Prosecution.
- Telecom law: Telecommunication Regulation Law No. 10 of 2003, which established the NTRA.
Sender-ID registration and local routing
A2P traffic must use a pre-registered alphanumeric sender ID approved across all Egyptian mobile networks; two-way (long-code) A2P messaging is generally not supported. Registration is submitted with the company's commercial registration, tax ID, website, sample content and a signed No-Objection Certificate. Traffic must terminate through NTRA-sanctioned local operator/aggregator channels rather than international grey routes.
- Register the sender ID on Vodafone, Orange, e&/Etisalat Misr and WE.
- Generic IDs (INFO, SMS, NOTICE) and special characters are rejected.
- Route only via licensed local channels; grey routes risk blocking and legal action.
- Approval commonly takes around two to three weeks.
Promotional vs. transactional classification
Egypt distinguishes marketing (promotional) messages from transactional/service messages, and the two are treated very differently. Promotional SMS requires prior opt-in consent. Transactional messages — OTPs, order and delivery alerts, banking notifications, appointment reminders — are permitted for users with an existing business relationship.
- Promotional: consent-based, time-restricted, opt-out mandatory.
- Transactional: allowed to existing customers; urgent OTP/alerts less restricted.
- Misclassifying marketing as transactional is a common compliance failure.
- Keep separate sender IDs/consent records per category.
Content rules
Content must be lawful and non-deceptive; political, religious, gambling, adult and other unsolicited content is prohibited by NTRA/operator policy. Message content should match what was registered against the sender ID.
- Prohibited: political, religious, gambling, adult, unsolicited/spam.
- Marketing typically blocked on Fridays, Saturdays and official holidays.
- Content should align with the registered sender ID and use case.
Consent, opt-out and unsolicited messages
Sending marketing without prior, documented consent is prohibited and is the main trigger for NTRA spam complaints. Senders must keep records evidencing each recipient's consent, offer a free, easy opt-out, honour do-not-disturb preferences, and stop on withdrawal. Unsolicited bulk messaging has been referred by NTRA to the Public Prosecution.
- Obtain and log explicit opt-in before any promotional SMS.
- Provide free opt-out (STOP/HELP) in the recipient's language.
- Suppress opted-out and do-not-disturb numbers on every send.
- Unsolicited/unlicensed bulk SMS can lead to criminal referral.
Data protection — Law No. 151 of 2020 (PDPL)
The PDPL requires a lawful basis (typically explicit consent) to process personal data such as mobile numbers for marketing. Its Executive Regulations were issued in 2025 with a one-year compliance grace period running into late 2026. Direct electronic marketing requires a dedicated PDPC permit/licence, separate from general processing.
- Lawful basis (explicit consent) needed to process numbers for marketing.
- Executive Regulations issued 2025; grace period into late 2026.
- A separate PDPC electronic-marketing licence is required for direct marketing.
- Data-subject rights and cross-border obligations apply.
Penalties, enforcement and operator landscape
NTRA actively enforces against unlicensed and grey-route senders, referring cases to the Public Prosecution with possible fines and equipment confiscation, and pursues SIM-box/interconnect-bypass fraud. Under the PDPL, breaching the electronic-marketing rules carries a fine of EGP 200,000 to EGP 2,000,000. Egypt has four MNOs — Vodafone, Orange, e&/Etisalat Misr and WE — and full reach requires the sender ID on all four.
- PDPL marketing-breach fine: EGP 200,000–2,000,000.
- Unlicensed bulk SMS: referral to Public Prosecution, fines, seizure.
- Grey-route / SIM-box traffic is targeted by fraud management and blocking.
- Four MNOs: Vodafone, Orange, e&/Etisalat Misr, WE (Telecom Egypt).
- Submit your KYC packTrade licence, authorisation letter and sample messages
- BroadNet files the applicationWith the operators or the regulator, as the market requires
- Review and approvalTypical lead time7-14 business days
- Send under your brandYour approved sender ID on every message
Technical facts for Egypt
Network codes, message lengths and sender-ID rules in one table. Segment lengths are the GSM standard values (3GPP TS 23.038).
| Mobile country code (MCC) | 602 |
|---|---|
| Dialling code | +20 |
| Operators (MCC-MNC) |
|
| SMS length, GSM-7 (Latin alphabet) | 160 characters in a single SMS; 153 per part when concatenated |
| SMS length, UCS-2 (Arabic, Cyrillic and other scripts) | 70 characters in a single SMS; 67 per part when concatenated |
| Regulator | NTRA (National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority) |
| Sender-ID rules | Every alphanumeric ID requires NTRA + operator approval. Latin or Arabic; one ID per use-case per entity. Foreign senders must terminate via an NTRA-licensed local aggregator. |
| Sender-ID lead time | 7-14 business days |
How to register a sender ID in Egypt
What to prepare, who approves it and how long it takes. Send us the documents below and BroadNet coordinates the registration with the operators, the regulator or the registry, as the market requires.
- Who approves
- NTRA and each of the four mobile operators: Vodafone, Orange, e& (Etisalat Misr) and WE. Full reach needs the ID approved on all four.
- Typical lead time
- 7–14 business days once the paperwork is in
- Renewal
- Annual, handled automatically
Document checklist
- Egyptian commercial registration
- Tax card
- Authorisation letter
- Sample message templates in English and Arabic
- Traffic-type declaration
- Binding to an NTRA-licensed aggregator (foreign senders bind through BroadNet's Egypt entity)
Steps
- 1
Choose the sender ID: alphanumeric, Latin or Arabic, up to 11 characters. Use one ID per use case per entity, and keep separate sender IDs and consent records per category.
- 2
Check the category. Gambling, unlicensed pharma and crypto templates are blocked at the operator firewall, and message content must match what is registered against the ID.
- 3
Send BroadNet the documents. BroadNet files with NTRA and all four operators in parallel.
- 4
Approval typically takes 7–14 business days. Renewals are annual and handled automatically.
Common reasons for rejection
- A foreign sender trying to bind directly, without an NTRA-licensed aggregator
- Restricted-category templates (gambling, pharma, crypto)
- A brand that does not match the trade licence
- Templates that mix promotional and transactional intent
Official sources
Requirements are set by the regulator and the operators and can change. Check the official sources, or ask our team, before you file.
Last reviewed
More on Egypt
Compare A2P SMS rules across the region.
Each market pairs a regulatory playbook with its live coverage and operator-direct routing detail.
Egypt rules: promotional vs. transactional SMS
| Capability | Promotional / marketing | Transactional / service (OTP) |
|---|---|---|
| Registered sender ID on all networks | ||
| Prior opt-in consent required | — | |
| Separate PDPC marketing licence | — | |
| Local licensed routing (no grey routes) |
Common questions
Do I need to register a sender ID to send A2P SMS in Egypt?
What's the difference between promotional and transactional SMS here?
What does Egypt's data protection law require for SMS marketing?
Why can't I just use a cheaper international (grey) route?
Do I need to connect to all four operators?
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