The MTN welcome back special data plan has been the cheapest data bundle on the MTN network for over a year now. It is, in fact, the cheapest data plan in Nigeria, offering you 1 gigabyte of data for only 200 Naira, valid for 1 week.
The three data options on the MTN welcome back special data plan menu that is accessible by dialling *131*65# are:
- 250 MB, 3-Days plan; Costs 100 Naira
- 1 GB Weekly plan; Costs 200 Naira
- 4 GB Monthly plan; Costs 1000 Naira
You would agree with me that there is no other network in the country that has data bundles that are as cheap as what MTN is offering on its welcome back program.
The MTN welcome back offer has been running since 2018 and is still effective at the time of this post.
The MTN welcome back offer has been running since 2018 and is still effective at the time of this post.
The only comparable data offers from other Nigeria telecoms to the MTN welcome back special data plan are:
- The Etisalat Blaze-On time bundle of 200 Naira for 1 GB
- The new Airtel night plan which offers 1.25 GB data for 125 Naira
- Glo's 3 GB for 500 Naira weekend and night plan
The welcome back offer was meant to be exclusively available to MTN customers who haven't been active on the network.
However, some customers have reported their eligibility for the data plan despite their lines being active, while others have also reported being ineligible as expected since their lines haven't been dormant.
However, some customers have reported their eligibility for the data plan despite their lines being active, while others have also reported being ineligible as expected since their lines haven't been dormant.
How to be Eligible for the MTN Welcome Back Offer
I've been making use of the MTN special data plan since last year to date. You may be wondering how I could achieve this since every eligible line is only meant to be eligible for a maximum of three months after which it would lose its eligibility.
The trick is simple, I have more than one MTN line which I swap when the other loses its eligibility.
The trick is simple, I have more than one MTN line which I swap when the other loses its eligibility.
What to do when you have exceeded your limit to buy the Welcome Back special data plan
Before now, one could resubscribe and renew the welcome back data plan as many times as you wish, that is no longer the case (hence my reason for writing this post).
A few days ago, I tried to renew my welcome back data plan of 200 Naira for 1 GB only to be greeted with an unusual response that read "Oops, you have exceeded your limit to buy the WelcomeBack 1GB Data Plan special data bundle. No worries, simply dial *131*65# to buy this bundle on 02/10/2019 08:54:22. Thank you!" as seen in the screenshot below.
A friend of mine also tried to renew his and was greeted with the same response.
A friend of mine also tried to renew his and was greeted with the same response.
What does this unusual response mean for users of the MTN welcome back offer? It's very simple to understand what the response above means, MTN has set a limit to the number of times that a customer can renew the welcome back data every month.
I am not yet sure of the number of times that MTN has restricted the number of renewals to because I had already renewed the data plan on my line several times before the limit on renewals was put into effect.
Read also... How to borrow data from all Nigerian networks
From my past experience with MTN Nigeria, I wouldn't be surprised to find out that they've restricted customers from renewing the data plan at all every month, which would mean that we would only be able to purchase the welcome back data bundle once per month without the option to renew it until the next month.
If that should be the case, then it would mean that each eligible line would only be able to purchase the welcome back special bundle thrice in 3 months before it loses its eligibility.
Unless you make use of the workaround that I've shared below which would enable your line not to lose its eligibility for the MTN welcome back special data plan.
Unless you make use of the workaround that I've shared below which would enable your line not to lose its eligibility for the MTN welcome back special data plan.
How to renew the MTN welcome back special data plan and sim eligibility
There's a trick I've been using to maintain my line's eligibility for the MTN welcome back offer plan for over a year now and I will share it with you now.
This trick would also enable you to renew the welcome back special plan more than once every month now that MTN has introduced a limit to its renewal. Simply follow the steps below.
This trick would also enable you to renew the welcome back special plan more than once every month now that MTN has introduced a limit to its renewal. Simply follow the steps below.
- Get two or more MTN SIM cards (it doesn't matter if they're new or old, so you could skip this if you already have more than one MTN SIM). You should recharge and make calls with the sim cards if they are newly registered before moving on to the second step.
- Remove both SIM cards from your phone and keep them in a safe place for 30 days. You should make sure to leave them inactive for 30 days, which means that you shouldn't put any of the sim cards back into a mobile device until after 30 days.
- After 30 days, bring out one of the sim cards and put it on your mobile phone, recharge with a 100 Naira voucher and you would discover that the 100 Naira would be debited and instead, you would be given a bonus of 500 for voice calls and 1500 for data. This is a confirmation that the line is now eligible for the welcome back offer.
- Recharge with the required amount to purchase any of the welcome back data bundles that suit you (I advise that you go for the monthly plan so you may not have any need to renew it before the next month), then dial *131*65# to purchase the data bundle. Check your data balance to be sure that your purchase was successful.
- Continue making use of the first sim until after 3 months when it would no longer be eligible then you can pick up the second sim and repeat steps 3 and 4. Make sure you keep the first sim in a safe place, in an inactive state while you use the second, by doing so the first sim will have regained its eligibility for the data plan by the time the second sim becomes ineligible in 3 months.
- Continue to repeat step 5 after each sim loses its eligibility to continue using the MTN welcome back special data plan.
I hope that was helpful, believe me, it looks more tasking in writing than it actually is in practice.
Ran out of airtime? See how to borrow airtime from popular Nigerian networks.
I will probably update this post once I am sure about the number of times that MTN has restricted the welcome back data plan renewal. Nonetheless, the trick I shared above would enable you to keep enjoying and staying eligible for the special data plan until MTN finally discontinues it (if they do).
Share this post with your friends using the share buttons, comment, and share your experience with us.
Don't forget to drop your suggestions in the comment box if you have a better trick that would enable us to keep using this awesome MTN data plan without exceeding the limit.
Don't forget to drop your suggestions in the comment box if you have a better trick that would enable us to keep using this awesome MTN data plan without exceeding the limit.
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