iPhone Users Report iMessage Deactivation Issue Linked to T-Mobile eSIM Accounts [Updated]

Some iPhone users on T-Mobile's cellular service are reportedly experiencing an eSIM bug that causes iMessage and FaceTime to deactivate for their phone number, with no way to reactivate it.

General Apps Messages
Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman brought the issue to light by tweeting about his own experience with the issue. Gurman said the only solution that worked for him was getting a physical SIM card.

There is a very nasty iPhone and @TMobile bug where iMessage and FaceTime for a device's phone number will randomly deactivate and there is no way to reactivate it. The only solution that worked for me is getting a new physical SIM card. An extremely disappointing issue.

In a follow-up tweet, Gurman said another solution that had worked for some was to remove the eSim account from the ‌iPhone‌ and then set it up again. "But that's complex for most people and shouldn't need to ever be done," he added.

Gurman said the T-Mobile store representative who helped him quickly activate a physical SIM for his ‌iPhone‌ revealed that other customers had visited the store with the same eSIM issue after Apple had been unable to resolve it, suggesting it could be an increasingly widespread problem.

"This issue for sure has existed on iOS 15.4, iOS 15.5, and iOS 15.6 beta 1," Gurman continued in another tweet. "Potentially earlier too, but that's all I can confirm right now."

The Twitter thread has since received replies from other T-Mobile customers chiming in with similar experiences, with some reporting that Apple is aware of the issue but the company has not been able to resolve it. We'll update this post if we learn more about the eSIM issue, which appears to be limited to T-Mobile customers at this time.

Update: T-Mobile said they are working with Apple to try to resolve the issue, according to a follow-up tweet from Gurman.

Tags: eSIM, T-Mobile

Top Rated Comments

Sheepish-Lord Avatar
24 months ago

.... FIRST !! Annnnd this is why you should stick with a physical SIM card.
One of the reasons. I tried the e-SIM route with Verizon and it was a headache. The rep didn't even really know how to do it or what I was talking about even though it had been available for years at this point. Then when I did get one I found myself in a position where I was swapping between phones so an eSIM was absolutely worthless as I had to call customer service EVERY time I swapped devices or bought a new phone. This needs to be something you can do online, without a customer rep, in order to make things easier. I went back to a physical SIM and don't regret it.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
neuropsychguy Avatar
24 months ago
If this is only affecting T-Mobile customers, it's unlikely to be only an Apple issue (i.e., there's something with T-Mobile's network or its network settings also playing a role). Hopefully Apple and T-Mobile engineers can figure it out.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reason077 Avatar
24 months ago

Inability to swap phones at will, without dealing with CS is why I switched from Sprint to GSM/SIM only, somewhere in the early 2000s. Long before iPhone.

When Apple announced eSIM, I was like "Nope... NEVER!"
You don't have to deal with CS in order to switch eSIMs around between devices. The idea is that you can manage eSIM profiles on the device itself. If anything, eSIMs make switching carriers easier because you don't have to physically visit a store to get a SIM card (or wait for it to be delivered in the mail!).
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Canezmd Avatar
24 months ago
I had this issue about 2 months ago... iPhone 13 pro max esim on t-mobile. Did software update and lost iMessage. Spent 2 days on the phone with apple who had me do every reset known to man. Apple was about to have me wipe the phone and reinstall the OS, but then I went onto the apple forums.

On the apple forums there were MANY people with the same issue and several of them had solved it by getting a physical SIM card. I posted about this in the macrumors forums too. I got a physical sim, turned off esim, and everything has been fine since then.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
xpxp2002 Avatar
24 months ago
I used to use eSIM on AT&T, but it was always a bit flaky. The most memorable bug: SMS character count always said 0/0 unless you had a physical SIM in the device as well. There is an open (and surprisingly, acknowledged) bug report with Apple. But as far as I know, it has been well over a year since I first reported it with iOS 14 and remains unfixed.

It surprised me that Apple shipped their iPhone 13 models with eSIM, given how unreliable and buggy eSIM has proven to be.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apleeseed84 Avatar
24 months ago
I swapped my physical SIM card to esim on my iPad Pro and I too can’t log into iMessage, no matter how many times I type in my password I get that error, I have AT&T
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18: What to Expect From 'Biggest' Update in iPhone's History

Wednesday March 27, 2024 11:10 am PDT by
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
maxresdefault

Apple to Launch New iPad Pro and iPad Air Models in May

Thursday March 28, 2024 11:07 am PDT by
Apple will introduce new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in early May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman previously suggested the new iPads would come out in March, and then April, but the timeline has been pushed back once again. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Apple is working on updates to both the iPad Pro and iPad Air models. The iPad Pro models will...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

Apple Releases Revised Versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 With Updated Build Number

Wednesday March 27, 2024 5:59 am PDT by
Apple on late Tuesday released revised versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 with an updated build number of 21E237, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The updates previously had a build number of 21E236. The revised updates are available for all iPhone and iPad models that are compatible with iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, but they can only be installed via the Finder app on macOS...
applephilschiller

Apple's Phil Schiller Works 80 Hours a Week Overseeing App Store

Wednesday March 27, 2024 2:03 pm PDT by
With the App Store and app ecosystem undergoing major changes in the European Union, The Wall Street Journal today shared a profile on App Store chief Phil Schiller, who is responsible for the App Store. Though Schiller transitioned from marketing chief to "Apple Fellow" in 2020 to take a step back from Apple and spend more time on personal projects and friends, he is reportedly working...