Keep your Kenyan number active while you're abroad
Studying or working in the UK, the Gulf or the US? A small top-up keeps your Safaricom, Airtel and Telkom prepaid line alive, so M-PESA stays tied to your number, bank OTPs arrive and the line is not recycled while you are abroad.
- ✓ Recharges from KSh 100, delivered in about a minute
- ✓ Pay in rupees, pounds, dollars or euros: card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, UPI in India, bank in the UK
- ✓ Email receipt with the operator's transaction ID
- ✓ Your own number, your own line: nothing to install
Questions
How long can a Safaricom prepaid line stay inactive before the number is recycled?
Under Safaricom's Conditions of Use a prepaid line expires after 120 days of inactivity counted from the end of the validity period of the last recharge; after expiry Safaricom may deactivate the line and recycle the number, and airtime is forfeited (M-PESA balances are not). Any recharge restarts the clock. Safaricom's Daima service keeps a line active without top-ups: KSh 200 for 6 months, KSh 500 for 1 year, KSh 1,000 for 2 years, via *100*4#. Keeping a small balance on the line before you fly, and topping up during a long trip, avoids losing the number.
Do I need the SIM in a phone?
No. The recharge lands on the line whether or not the SIM is in a phone. For OTPs and calls you do need it in a phone with roaming on, or in the second slot of your travel phone.
How fast is it?
About a minute from payment. You get an email receipt with the operator transaction ID.
Can I pay from India or the UK?
Yes. Pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay from anywhere, by UPI in rupees if you are in India, or from your bank in pounds if you are in the UK. Prices are shown in your currency.
Can you top up my number every month?
Set a reminder for the validity date, or keep a Slashtel Balance so the next recharge is one tap.
Sending credit to someone in Kenya instead? Use the full Kenya recharge page. Keeping another number alive: UAE · Philippine · Saudi · Qatar · Nigerian · what it costs by country.