WhatsApp works, because all it needs is the internet: over WiFi, or over a roaming data eSIM. What stops without registration is local SIM service, not the internet. On a phone that is getting data, WhatsApp messages, media and in-app calls all work. What does not work is everything that needs a Pakistani number: ordinary calls, SMS, and the OTP your bank sends by text.
What works and what does not
One question settles it: does the thing run on the internet, or on a phone number? Everything on the internet works.
- WhatsApp messages, photos, voice notes and status: they work.
- WhatsApp, IMO and Messenger calls: they work, because those run over data.
- Browsing, YouTube, maps, ride and food apps, email: they work.
- Ordinary phone calls and SMS: no. There is no Pakistani number here at all.
- An OTP text from a bank or an app: no, because that arrives on a number.
- A carrier-locked (JV) phone: no eSIM works on one, which is a separate problem.
So everyday contact carries on; anything tied to a number still needs a number from somewhere else.
Setting it up
The full steps with screenshots are in the install guide. These are the four people get stuck on.
- Scan the QR to install the eSIM profile. With only one phone, the code can be typed in by hand instead.
- Turn Data Roaming ON for that line. This is a roaming eSIM, so with roaming off there is no internet.
- Set mobile data to use the eJugaar line, or the phone keeps looking for the internet on the old one.
- If WhatsApp is already signed in, there is nothing else to do: it starts using this data.
If you have to verify WhatsApp again
A new phone, or a fresh install: WhatsApp verifies your number, and how it does that changes over time, so read their own page for the current steps: WhatsApp Help Center.
Our side of it is one sentence, and it is worth knowing before you buy: an eJugaar eSIM has no Pakistani number and no SMS, so no verification code can arrive on it.
The practical way round it: put the SIM for that number into a phone that still has service, take the code there, and type it into WhatsApp on your own phone. After that WhatsApp keeps running on this data eSIM.
If the internet does not come on
- Data Roaming: is it ON for the eJugaar line?
- Default data line: is that line the one chosen for the internet?
- Turn airplane mode on and off once, or restart the phone.
- Still nothing? Talk to us, and send your order number with the message.
Questions
Do WhatsApp voice and video calls work?
Yes. WhatsApp, IMO and Messenger calls run over the internet, so they work on a data eSIM. Where the signal is weak, voice holds up better than video.
Will my bank OTP text arrive on it?
No. There is no Pakistani number and no SMS here. For a bank OTP you still need the number your bank texts.
Does my WhatsApp number change?
No. WhatsApp stays on the number you already use; this eSIM only carries the internet, and gives no new number.
And how long does a local SIM keep working?
Sixty days from the day it goes in, per PTA’s DIRBS FAQ. The details are in this guide.
If you only need internet
Data-only plans start at Rs 380. Check your phone first: if it cannot take an eSIM, we will say so before you pay.
