The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Tuesday released the Telecom Consumer Protection (Thirteenth Amendment) Regulation, 2026, aimed at expanding affordable recharge options for consumers who use telecom services primarily for voice calls and SMS.

The amendment follows TRAI’s consultation on the draft regulations issued on April 7, 2026. The regulator had observed that the availability of Voice-and-SMS-only Special Tariff Vouchers (STVs) remained limited, with most such vouchers offering longer validity periods. This, it said, restricted affordable short-duration options, particularly for low-income consumers.

“Since the implementation of TCPR (Twelfth Amendment), 2024, the Authority observed the limitation in the availability of Voice-and-SMS-only Special Tariff Vouchers (STVs) being offered by telecom service providers, where only a limited number of such STVs, concentrated on longer validities were being offered and making low-income consumers deprived of affordable shorter duration choices,” TRAI, under the Ministry of Communications, said in an official statement on September 22, 2026.

TRAI said it received 1,132 responses from stakeholders on the draft amendment and subsequently held an Open House Discussion on June 15, 2026. After considering the stakeholder submissions and conducting its own analysis, the regulator finalised the amended regulations.

Under the new framework, telecom service providers will be required to offer Voice-and-SMS-only STVs, with an appropriate reduction in tariff, corresponding to each validity period of 30 days or less for existing Voice, SMS and data STVs.

Providers will also have to offer an STV whose validity can be renewed on the same date every month. If that date does not occur in a particular month, the renewal date will be the last day of that month.

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