ETECSA forces you to spend up to $45 USD to replace a SIM card in Cuba: no options in pesos and sales only from abroad

Users report that ETECSA is forcing them to spend up to $45.14 USD to replace a SIM card in Cuba: no options in Cuban pesos and sales only available from abroad. More details to follow. Users complain that the state-owned company does not offer SIM cards in national currency and that the only alternative is to pay in foreign currency through external sites such as Suena Cuba.

The technological and economic crisis in Cuba continues to directly impact citizens. In recent weeks, several users have reported on social media that ETECSA, the country's only telecommunications company, does not have SIM cards available in Cuban pesos.CUP), not even for replacement of stolen or lost lines.

A young Cuban woman recounted that, after the phones were stolen from her home, she went to an ETECSA office to recupIt was their mobile lineBut the response was discouraging: “There are no SIM cards available in local currency, and the only way to get one is by buying it from abroad.”.

The official alternative offered by ETECSA staff is to use the Suena Cuba website, an external platform authorized to sell services of the state monopoly, but whose prices are in foreign currency. On the site, the cost of an eSIM is listed. It reaches $45 USD, which is equivalent to more than 39 euros.

This situation leaves thousands of Cubans completely dependent on the outside world, since those without family or friends abroad cannot replace their mobile phone lines. This is compounded by the shortage of physical SIM cards and the lack of transparent information from the company, the only one of its kind in the country.

While ETECSA promotes its services as part of the country's digital advancement, the reality in the offices shows another side: inaccessible prices, mandatory payments in foreign currency, and a service that is increasingly distant from the real needs of users.