SIM cards · Mobal · Updated October 2026Ad · Affiliate links
Keeping your number with Mobal (MNP)
A Japanese number can move to Mobal only on the Voice+Data 5G eSIM with a monthly plan. A number can move out of Mobal from MyAccount, using a porting form that is not the cancellation form. If you cancel first, the number is lost. MNP (mobile number portability) is Japan's name for moving a number between carriers.
Read from Mobal's help center and terms on October 2, 2026.
On this page
What each Mobal product allows
Mobal sells several voice products at once, and the rules differ. Your product name and purchase date are in MyAccount under Services (Mobal's guide to SIM Card versions).
| Mobal product | Number in | Number out |
|---|---|---|
| Voice+Data 5G eSIMbought after 18 March 2026 | Yes, on a monthly plan | Yes, MyAccount form |
| Voice+Data 5G SIM Cardbought after 21 July 2026 | No, new number | Form for "a later version" of the SIM Card (see below) |
| Voice+Data 4G eSIMbought before 18 March 2026 | Not covered | Yes, MyAccount form |
| Voice+Data SIM Card v1the original | Not covered | Email support |
| Voice Lite SIM or eSIM | No, new number | Email support |
From Mobal's porting article. "Not covered" means the article says nothing for that product. The 5G SIM Card is not named in the port-out steps, which cover "a later version" of the SIM Card; Mobal's terms say porting works on all its voice services.
This page fits you if
- You want to bring a Japanese number to Mobal, and have an eSIM phone
- You use Mobal as your first number and plan to move it to another carrier later
- You are replacing a phone and want to keep your Mobal number
Not for you if
- You want to keep a number from abroad. Mobal's porting pages cover Japanese numbers only
- You want to review Mobal before you buy: see the Mobal review
What happens after you click: Mobal's eSIM page opens in English. You pick a monthly plan and order. Mobal posts the eSIM access code to the address on your ID, or you collect it at a pickup point in Japan with your passport (Mobal's eSIM page). You then activate in MyAccount and enter your MNP reservation code.
Order the Mobal eSIM, which can take your existing number
Can I bring my number to Mobal?
Yes, only on a Voice+Data 5G eSIM and only on a monthly plan (Mobal's porting article). The 30-day plan does not qualify. A Voice+Data 5G SIM Card or a Voice Lite SIM or eSIM gives you a new Japanese number once the line is active.
- Get an MNP reservation code and its expiry date from your current carrier. Mobal asks for both, and the code comes from the carrier, not from Mobal.
- Order the Voice+Data 5G eSIM and a monthly plan.
- When the eSIM access code reaches you, log in at www.mobal.com/myaccount, open Services and press Activate.
- Enter the eSIM access code and your phone's EID (the 32-digit number that identifies its eSIM chip; dial *#06# to see it).
- Choose "Yes, I want to keep my existing phone number". Enter your current number, the code, its expiry date, your name and your date of birth (Mobal's steps).
Mobal processes activations in set hours, and an eSIM that will not install or activate holds up the move. The hours and the fixes are in the activation and troubleshooting guide.
How do I take my number out of Mobal?
Use the porting form in MyAccount, not the Cancel Service form. Mobal warns that filling in the cancellation form disconnects the line and loses the number (porting article).
- Log in at www.mobal.com/myaccount, open Services and press More Information next to your SIM or eSIM.
- Press Cancel Service to open the screen. Do not fill in the form on it.
- Press the link at the top of that screen that opens the number porting form.
- Enter your full name as on your residence card, your name in katakana (the script Japanese uses for foreign names), your date of birth and your new carrier's name (what the form asks).
- Press "I'm sure I want to port-out". Mobal emails you the porting details.
- Give those details to your new carrier right away. Mobal advises doing this because carriers work to strict timelines (Mobal's advice).
When the new carrier confirms the number moved, Mobal ends your plan for you (porting article). You do not cancel it. The month it ends in is charged in full, not prorated (activation guide), and calls and texts you made can still be billed for months afterward (termination article).
If the port fails
You cannot get a new code until the first one expires. The expiry date is in the email that carried it (porting article). Mobal's terms add that a number not ported by that date is permanently disconnected and can no longer be ported (terms). The note in the terms opens with V1 and Voice Lite and does not say the rule stops there, so assume it covers you. Take the code to your new carrier as soon as you get it.
If you have a Voice Lite or an original v1 SIM Card
The form is not for you. Email support@mobal.com with your request and your reason for porting (porting article). Mobal's terms say porting is supported on every voice service, and its termination article says neither product can have the number transferred, only terminated (termination article). Three Mobal pages, three answers. Ask Mobal in writing which one applies to your line before you cancel anything.
Order the Mobal eSIM, which can take your existing number
Can I change from a SIM card to an eSIM, or move to a new phone?
A Voice+Data 5G SIM Card or a v2 SIM Card can become a Voice+Data 5G eSIM and keep its number. In MyAccount open Services, More Information and Replace SIM, then pick the eSIM option with 5G Connectivity (Mobal's guide). The other direction does not work: an eSIM changed to a physical SIM Card gets a new number (same guide).
On a new phone, a physical SIM Card moves with a swap. Check the new phone against Mobal's compatibility list and install Mobal's APN profile again (the mobile data settings; new phone guide). A Voice+Data eSIM is tied to the old phone's EID, so you ask for a replacement in MyAccount: Services, More Information, Replace eSIM. Enter the new phone's EID, and pick the eSIM option with 5G Connectivity to keep the number (new phone guide).
The replacement is free only if you signed up for Mobal's All-Risk Protection Plan when you first activated the eSIM. Otherwise you pay the eSIM price on Mobal's site. A ¥200 processing charge can appear either way, and Mobal says it comes back as an account credit. Reissue can take up to 24 hours (cost and timing).
Can I keep my Mobal number if I leave Japan or stop using Mobal?
A normal cancellation ends the line for good, and the number is lost (termination article). A later Voice+Data SIM Card or a Voice+Data eSIM can be suspended instead (suspension note). The original Voice+Data SIM Card and Voice Lite cannot be suspended (same article), so for them canceling loses the number unless Mobal's support agrees to port it.
Mobal's public pages that we read do not say what a suspension costs or how long it can last, and we did not read the suspension guide itself. They also do not say how to keep a number once you are abroad. Ask support@mobal.com before you fly.
What Mobal's pages do not say
These are open on the pages we read. Ask support@mobal.com for each, and keep the reply.
- How long Mobal takes to send the porting details. The article says "as soon as possible".
- How long the MNP code stays valid. The email carries the expiry date; the article gives no number of days.
- Whether the 5G SIM Card uses the porting form. The article names "a later version" of the SIM Card.
- Whether the Voice+Data 4G eSIM can take a number in. The article covers only the 5G eSIM.
- Whether a fee applies. We found none, on the porting article or in the terms.
- What a carrier's MNP code costs or how fast it comes. That is each carrier's own rule, and we did not check any carrier.
How we checked
Every rule on this page comes from Mobal's help center (helpdesk.mobal.com) or its terms (mobal.com/terms, updated 21 July 2026), read in a browser on October 2, 2026. Each is linked where it is used and quoted in our data file with the page it came from. We read Google results for "mobal sim mnp", "mobal esim mnp" and "mobal sim keep my number" in Japan that day: Mobal's own pages held most of the top results, and the other answers were forum threads from 2019 to 2024. We have not used a Mobal SIM or ported a number, so none of this is our own experience.
The Mobal order buttons on this page are affiliate links: if you buy through one, Mobal pays us a commission and your price stays the same. Mobal did not see this page before it went up. Read our editorial policy.
Keeping your number with Mobal: FAQ
Can I keep my phone number with Mobal?
Yes, in both directions, with limits. Only a Voice+Data 5G eSIM on a monthly plan can take a number from another carrier. You can move a number out of Mobal from MyAccount, but a normal cancellation loses the number for good.
Can I transfer my Japanese number to Mobal?
Only to the Voice+Data 5G eSIM, and only on a monthly plan. The Voice+Data 5G SIM Card and Voice Lite give you a new number instead. You need an MNP reservation code (a code for moving a number) from your current carrier before you activate.
How do I port my number out of Mobal?
In MyAccount open Services, More Information and Cancel Service, then use the porting link at the top of that screen, not the cancellation form. Mobal emails the porting details and ends your plan once the new carrier confirms the move.
Does Mobal charge for MNP?
Mobal's porting article and terms, read on 2 October 2026, name no fee. Your new carrier may charge its own, and we did not check any carrier's. If the move fails and you are out of time, the number can be lost, so read the section on failed codes.
Can I move my number from a Mobal SIM card to a Mobal eSIM?
Yes. A Voice+Data 5G SIM Card (or a v2 SIM Card) can change to the 5G eSIM and keep its number, using Replace SIM in MyAccount. The reverse does not work: an eSIM changed to a physical SIM gets a new number.
How do I move my Mobal eSIM to a new phone?
Ask for a replacement eSIM in MyAccount (Services, More Information, Replace eSIM) and enter the new phone's EID. The plan must be active. It costs the eSIM price unless you took the All-Risk Protection Plan, and a ¥200 processing charge can appear and is credited back.
What happens to my number if I cancel Mobal?
It is gone. Mobal says a cancellation permanently disconnects the line and the number is lost, so port the number out first. A later Voice+Data SIM Card or a Voice+Data eSIM can be suspended instead.
Set Up in Japan is an independent guide, not Mobal's site.
Order the Mobal eSIM, which can take your existing number