This practical tutorial shows how you can Port From Vodacom To Cell C and still keep your number. In my previous article, I talked about how you can port your Cell C to Vodacom.
What is porting? My Experience
I like the South African network provider’s flexibility of changing your network provider at will without it affecting your mobile number. I didn’t believe I could change my Vodacom number to Cell C until I tried it, and it worked.
I was using a Vodacom mobile network carrier, and I noticed their service was a little bit expensive. I was dissatisfied and needed to use a low cost service provider with better signal. At first, I thought of buying another line (Cell C), but when I remember the stress of informing all my contact list that I had stopped using my previous line weakened me.
While I was deliberating on what to do, I saw a prompt from the television that we could port our sim. Just to clear my doubt, I went to the Cell C dealer because I desired to change to their service provider just to clarify if it was indeed possible to port from Vodacom To Cell C. I learned about the possibility of changing my mobile network provider.
I like to think that the option of porting is only available in South Africa. During my last visit to some other African countries, I asked the network provider if the porting option was available. I got a big “NO” response.
In case you don’t know what porting is, porting allows you to retain your phone number when changing your mobile network provider without losing your phone number. That’s to say that if you are using a Vodacom number and you want to change to Cell C, you don’t have to be given a new number. All you have to do is to transfer your mobile network provider without losing anything.
Porting is actually the safest thing to do with no stress at all.
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Just in case you are in doubt as to whether you can truly Port From Vodacom To Cell C here in South Africa, I’ve come with the good news that you can change it. I’m sure you are like, how is it possible? Well, that’s why I wrote this article just for you.
Currently, there are four (4) recognized mobile service providers in South Africa. We have Cell C, Telkom, Vodacom and MTN. The beautiful thing about these service providers is the high level of competition among them. They are all looking out for a competitive edge to leverage on, so they have a relaxed approach in their service provision.
In other words, porting your Vodacom number to Cell C is not a hard nut to crack. It is so easy.
In the next paragraph, I shall provide you with a proven step-by-step method to Port From Vodacom To Cell C in South Africa.
I assume you have your Vodacom sim card intact in your phone. Be informed that you will not be able to proceed to the next step without having your Vodacom sim card you want to port to Cell C.
If you have the sim card with you, you can commence the process of porting your Vodacom number to Cell C.
10 steps to Port From Vodacom To Cell C
Step-by-step process to port your Vodacom number to Cell C in South Africa
1. Keep your Vodacom sim card number in your phone
To Port From Vodacom To Cell C, the first step you need to take is put your Vodacom inside your phone. Do not remove it yet.
2. Clear your Vodacom debt and Credit
If you are a debtor to Vodacom, then your desire to Port From Vodacom To Cell C will not be successful. Pay your credits before moving ahead.
3. Load airtime on your Vodacom ( because you are going to send SMS)
Make sure you have an airtime on your Vodacom Sim card. The reason is because we are going to send SMS to Cell C network from your Vodacom SIM. R1-R5 is okay.
4. Make sure your Vodacom is not a contract line
To Port From Vodacom To Cell C works if your Vodacom starter pack sim card is a prepaid Vodacom SIM card. If your Vodacom line is a contract line, then it will not be successful.
5. You cannot port a lost Vodacom to Cell C
This might not be a good thing to know. You cannot Port From Vodacom To Cell C while your Vodacom is lost. How will you send the SMS? The first thing to do is to do the SIM swap before porting.
6. Buy a new Cell C starter pack and get it rica’d
There is a law in South Africa it is called the Regulation of Interception of communications and Provision of communication-Related Information Act (RICA). This law makes it mandatory for every sim card in South Africa to be registered with the user’s personal information.
If you do not RICA your Cell C starter pack, you will not proceed with the porting process because your Sim Card will not be activated.
To Port From Vodacom To Cell C, buy a new Cell C starter pack sim card, get it registered i.e rica’d it with your name and ID. Check out this guideline on how to Rica Cell C Sim Card and have it activated.
Cell C starter pack is available in Cell C dealer outlet in South Africa. I got mine from a dealer, I didn’t have to go to their head office. Or you can get it from the freelance agents giving free sim cards on the street, but make sure they rica it in your name, do not collect the ones already ricad.
After you register it, put the Cell C into a separate phone and make sure it is activated, i.e. you get the welcome messages. After this, remove the Cell C sim card from the phone and note the rica serial number. This is very important or else you will get a message that the Cell C needs to be ricad
7. Send an SMS text from the Vodacom sim card in the phone
With your Vodacom sim card inside your phone, text the serial number on the Cell C card to 0847678287 e.g. 021487635868 to 0847678287. See the image below
8. Get confirmation message
After you have sent the SMS to the above phone number, you will get two messages. The first message is an acknowledgment, and the second message will prompt you to respond to the message by expressing your intention to continue the porting process, so you will have to respond with either a YES or NO response.
Wait a while. When I did mine, it took 24hours for me to port my Vodacom number to Cell C. The porting doesn’t take more than 24hours. Once your Vodacom number stop working, it means you have successfully ported your Vodacom number to Cell C. But from experience after my first issue, porting from Cell C to Vodacom takes less than 5 hours.
In addition, if you Port From Vodacom to Cell C on weekends, it will not be successful or it will only take effect on weekdays.
Do not remove the Vodacom from your phone, leave it inside, wait till you discover that you are not able to check your Vodacom balance or even call ( network will disappear); at that point, it means you have been moved to the Cell C network.
Then, remove the Vodacom from your phone and insert the Cell C sim card. Once the Cell C sim card is in your phone, wait for about 5 minutes, then dial *147*9#, it will show your number. You will now see your Vodacom number is now the same as the cell C number ( under the MSSD).
Are you still in doubt as to whether it will work or not i.e. to port From Vodacom To Cell C? I was in doubt too, and I took the bold step of porting, and it worked!
So, take the bold step and start enjoying a better network service provider service.
Once you try out the steps written in this article, let me know how this article has helped you in the comment box. I look forward to hearing from you.
Do you know anyone trying to understand how to Port From Vodacom To Cell C? Don’t hesitate to share this article with them.