There is a cap, it is set per operator rather than across the country, and the published policy deliberately does not name a figure. Here is what is actually written down, and how to check what is already registered against your name.
Is there a limit? Yes, but not the single national number people expect. The regulator's policy requires each operator to ensure no consumer is registered for more than the maximum number of SIM cards with that operator, and it says that maximum is determined by the Authority from time to time. The figure is not stated in the policy itself. So the cap is per operator, it can change, and anyone quoting you a hard number without naming a source and a date is guessing.
The relevant line in the regulator's mobile registration policy is short. Each operator must ensure that each consumer is not registered for more than the maximum number of SIM cards with that operator, as that maximum is determined by the Authority from time to time.
Three things follow from that one sentence, and all three matter.
The honest answer to the question in the title is therefore: ask e& for the current figure, or ask the Authority. We are not going to invent a number and put it in a table just because that is what the question wants. What we can tell you precisely is how to see what you already have, which is the part most people actually need.
You have two routes, and both are free.
Hesabati shows the mobile and fixed line numbers registered under your Emirates ID number with telecom providers in the UAE. It is free, it is open to anyone holding an Emirates ID, and you reach it by logging in to the Authority's website with UAE Pass. The stated purpose is transparency and preventing misuse of an identity, specifically making sure no SIM is registered under your ID without your knowledge.
Separately, every operator is required to provide a free, confidential and secure service through which you can determine the details of any subscription contract you are party to, the status of any pending registration or renewal, and the registration details of any SIM registered to you. In practice that is the e& app, or a business centre with your original Emirates ID.
The common reasons are worth naming, because the fix differs.
| Why you are checking | What to do about it |
|---|---|
| You suspect a SIM was registered against your ID without your knowledge | This is precisely what Hesabati exists for. Check it, and raise anything you do not recognise with the operator concerned. |
| You are at the counter and were told you have reached the limit | The ceiling is per operator, so ask what your current count with that operator is, and which lines make it up. Old lines you forgot about are the usual answer. |
| You want to add a line and are not sure you can | Find out your count first. If you are at the ceiling with one operator you are not necessarily at it with another. |
| You are leaving the UAE and want to close things cleanly | List everything in your name before you go. Lines you forget will expire, suspend, and be reused. |
That last row is the one that quietly costs people numbers. A line you have forgotten is still on a registration clock, and the sequence from expiry to the number being reused is fixed and unforgiving.
These are not the same thing and the distinction matters when you hit a ceiling. What counts against you is what is registered to your identity document, regardless of who is walking around with the handset. A line you took out for a family member, a driver or a domestic worker is your registration, your ceiling, and your responsibility when the documents expire.
If that is the situation you are in, two cleaner options exist. Move the line properly into the other person's name, which is a regulated transfer the operator has to allow once five conditions are met. Or, if the lines genuinely belong together as a household, put them on a family arrangement built for multiple lines rather than stacking unrelated registrations on one ID.
Assuming you are inside the ceiling, a second line is an ordinary new subscription: original Emirates ID plus one supporting document, the same list as any first line. The one thing worth knowing is that a second line does not have to be a throwaway number. Every postpaid plan carries a free number from a tier, Silver on plans up to AED 360, Gold on the AED 500 plans, Platinum at AED 1,000. If the second line is going to be the one you hand out for business, it is worth choosing rather than accepting whatever comes up. The available numbers are here.
The registration, suspension, deactivation and contract transfer rules described on this page are set out in the UAE Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority's Regulatory Policy, Registration Requirements for Mobile Consumers, version 1.0, issued 27 September 2011, which is the version published on tdra.gov.ae as checked on 8 August 2026. The policy states that the Authority may amend its provisions, and operators apply their own procedures on top of it, so confirm the current position with e& or the Authority before you act on anything time critical. Plan prices are the authorized dealer prices offered by uaepremiumnumbers.com, monthly, before 5 percent VAT. The Hesabati service description is from the Authority's published service page, checked on 8 August 2026.
There is a maximum, but it is set per operator rather than nationally, and the regulator's published policy does not state the figure. The policy requires each operator to ensure a consumer is not registered for more than the maximum number of SIM cards with that operator, as determined by the Authority from time to time. Ask e& for its current figure.
Per operator. The rule is written as a maximum with that operator, so your e& count and your du count are separate ceilings rather than one shared national total.
Two free routes. Hesabati, run by the regulator, shows the mobile and fixed line numbers registered under your Emirates ID with UAE providers, accessed through the Authority's website using UAE Pass. Separately, every operator must provide a free confidential service showing the registration details of any SIM registered to you.
It is free and it is available to anyone holding an Emirates ID. You log in to the regulator's website with UAE Pass. Its stated purpose includes making sure no SIM is registered under your identity without your knowledge.
That is the specific problem Hesabati was created to surface. Check the list, then raise anything you do not recognise with the operator it sits with. Operators are also required to keep registration information secure and confidential.
Yes. What counts is what is registered to your identity document, not who uses the handset. If a line really belongs to someone else, transferring it into their name is a regulated process the operator has to allow once the conditions are met.
Yes, provided you are inside your operator's ceiling. It is an ordinary new subscription needing your original Emirates ID plus one supporting document, and it carries the same free premium number tier as any other postpaid plan.
It stays on its registration clock. When the registration expires the operator suspends the line, and three months after suspension it can deactivate it and reuse the number. Forgotten second lines are the most common way people lose a number.
Tell us what you are trying to do on WhatsApp. We will tell you what a second line needs, and if you want the number on it to be worth handing out, we will show you what is available today.