TRAI: Online filing for interconnect agreements from 2027

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has notified an amendment requiring telecom service providers to register interconnect agreements through an online portal from 1 January 2027, according to Voice&Data. The publication reported that agreements in force on that date, as well as newly executed agreements and subsequent modifications, will be subject to 15-day submission requirements.

Voice&Data identified the notification as the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Register of Interconnect Agreements) (Fourth Amendment) Regulations, 2026. It reported that the changes replace submissions of printed documents and soft copies on physical storage media with online registration and text-searchable PDF documents.

Interconnection is the arrangement that allows customers of one telecom network to communicate with customers of another. TRAI’s original Register of Interconnect Agreements Regulations, dated 31 August 1999, define it as the commercial and technical arrangements through which providers connect their equipment, networks and services.

The register records those arrangements. The reported amendment concerns how operators submit agreements, how TRAI maintains information about them and how members of the public seek access to the portions available for inspection.

Online filing and the 15-day requirements

According to Voice&Data, service providers must submit agreements that remain in force on 1 January 2027 within 15 days from that date. For newly executed agreements, the registration period will be 15 days from execution. Modifications to existing agreements must likewise be registered within 15 days of the modification.

The publication reported that providers must also furnish electronic copies of agreements and modifications in text-searchable PDF format within the prescribed timelines. It described the format requirement as intended to simplify examination, record maintenance and retrieval.

TRAI’s original 1999 regulations illustrate the document-handling system from which the register developed. Regulation 6 required two authenticated printed copies of each agreement and its modifications, together with a Microsoft Word copy on a floppy or diskette. It also allowed TRAI to prescribe other submission formats.

The original regulation 5 provided 30 days for registration following execution or modification. That is the timetable in the original document, rather than confirmation of the requirements immediately preceding the 2026 amendment. Voice&Data’s account of the new notification sets out the 15-day periods that will apply from January.

The amendment also allows TRAI to specify formats and timelines for disaggregated information, according to Voice&Data. This means information broken down into specified fields rather than supplied only as part of an agreement.

Such information was already contemplated in regulation 7 of the original framework. TRAI could prescribe formats covering technical specifications, quality of service, fault-resolution procedures, downtime, access and port charges, revenue-sharing arrangements, areas of operation and consumer-related information. Voice&Data reported that the amended provision is intended to support more structured and standardised information for regulatory oversight.

Public access alongside confidentiality

Voice&Data reported that applications to inspect the register, access prescribed portions and obtain copies or extracts will be possible through the designated portal. The electronic facility will operate alongside physical inspection, subject to the applicable regulatory requirements.

Public inspection is not a new purpose of the register. TRAI’s 1999 regulations established a three-part structure separating basic agreement details, confidential material and contents available for public inspection.

Under that original structure, Part I lists agreements, the names of the interconnecting providers, their service areas and execution dates. Part II contains portions that TRAI directs should remain confidential. Part III contains the other agreement contents and is open to public inspection.

The original confidentiality procedure required a provider seeking protection for part of an agreement to supply a non-confidential summary. Where TRAI accepted the request, that summary was to be included in the publicly accessible part of the register.

The 1999 document also required TRAI to record reasons when refusing confidentiality and allowed the affected provider to make a representation or be heard. It permitted disclosure of protected information in the public interest after giving the provider an opportunity to be heard.

These provisions explain why access to the register is distinct from unrestricted access to every contractual term. Voice&Data’s report describes the new portal as a route to prescribed portions of the register, not as automatic publication of all agreements in full.

The original regulation 11 already allowed TRAI to provide website access on prescribed conditions and payment of fees. The reported amendment sets out an online application mechanism for inspection and document access.

Review process and enforcement changes

TRAI’s pre-consultation paper of 3 April 2025 placed the register regulations within a broader review of interconnection rules. The authority said it was examining their continued relevance and effectiveness as the telecom sector evolved.

The paper invited stakeholders to identify implementation challenges, the effects of emerging technologies, possible lessons from international frameworks and the role of interconnection in consumer experience and network efficiency. It listed the 1999 register regulations among the instruments stakeholders could consider.

According to Voice&Data, a consultation paper followed on 10 November 2025. The publication reported that 17 stakeholders submitted comments, nine submitted counter-comments and TRAI held an Open House Discussion on 28 January 2026 before finalising the amendment.

Voice&Data also reported two changes affecting the cost of access and non-compliance. Inspection and copying fees have been revised, with TRAI describing them as broadly aligned with its Access to Information Regulations, 2005. A graded framework of financial disincentives has been introduced for contraventions.

The publication described the enforcement approach as intended to make consequences proportionate to the nature and seriousness of non-compliance. Its report does not specify the revised inspection and copying fees or the amounts and thresholds under the financial-disincentive framework.