GlossaryRemote SIM provisioning
What is an eUICC?
eUICC embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card
An eUICC is a SIM that can hold more than one operator profile and be reprogrammed over the air. eSIM is what people call the experience; eUICC is the chip specification that makes it possible.
The chip
One eUICC, several profiles
Form factor
Soldered MFF2, or a removable card.
Capability
Remote provisioning. That is the part that matters.
A capability, not a form factor
The usual assumption is that an eSIM is a SIM soldered into a device. The soldering is a separate thing: MFF2 is a form factor, and so is the removable card in your hand.
What makes a UICC an eUICC is remote provisioning. It can receive, store, enable and delete operator profiles after the device has shipped. A removable card can be an eUICC, and a soldered chip can be a plain SIM.
Profiles, and switching between them
An eUICC holds several profiles and has one enabled at a time, unless the device supports multiple enabled profiles. Adding one does not remove the others, which is what makes the switch cheap.
Two plans, one phone
A home plan and a local plan installed together, enabled as the traveller needs them.
A fleet that changes carrier
New profiles pushed to thousands of devices without anyone visiting one of them.
A build with no carrier yet
Hardware finished and shipped, the network decision left until it has to be made.
The three provisioning architectures
One chip, three GSMA architectures around it, chosen by what the device is.
SGP.22 · Consumer
A person taps through a download. The LPA on the device talks to an SM-DP+.
SGP.02 · Machine to machine
An operator-controlled SM-SR pushes profiles to devices with no user.
SGP.32 · IoT
An eIM drives profile changes on devices with no screen, reusing the SM-DP+.
What it means for a product
The eUICC is why a mobile plan can be delivered in seconds instead of posted. It is also why a plan is more than a billing line: something has to build, deliver, enable and later remove a profile on one specific chip.
eUICC questions, answered
- What is an eUICC?
- An eUICC (embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card) is a SIM that can hold several operator profiles and be reprogrammed remotely after the device has shipped.
- What does eUICC stand for?
- embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card. A UICC is the formal name for a SIM, and the “e” marks one that supports remote provisioning.
- Is an eUICC the same as an eSIM?
- In everyday use, yes. Precisely, the eUICC is the chip that can hold and switch operator profiles, and eSIM is the product experience built on it.
- Can an eUICC be a removable SIM card?
- Yes. Remote provisioning and form factor are independent. Removable eUICC cards are common in IoT, where a device is often built before its carrier is chosen.
- How many profiles can an eUICC hold?
- That depends on the chip’s memory and the size of the profiles, not on the specification. Consumer devices typically hold several, with one enabled at a time unless the device supports multiple enabled profiles.
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