Claro activation problems (wrong CEP?)

502POSTS

last year

I recently got myself a Claro SIM card (I already have a TIM , but there are quite a few places where I don鈥檛 get a signal, whereas Claro works well there. And with the eSIM capability of my phone, I can use them both without having to change the SIM all the time). The activation (of the Claro SIM, which is NOT an eSIM, but a 鈥榥ormal鈥� chip) was a bit of a pain at first, but eventually it worked. I don鈥檛 exactly remember what I had to do, but in the end I had a working Claro number (and a good data connection), and I was a happy customer, at least for a few weeks. I have made a few recargas since then, always through PIX. However, I have come to find out that these recargas only accumulated on my account, and now I find myself without data service, even though I have over 300 Reais on my account. Whatsapp still works, but that鈥檚 apparently a feature (that you can use Whatsapp even if you have no more data left otherwise). I have tried every single method (call *1052#, via SMS, via internet ( ) and of course with both apps (Claro M贸vel and Recarga Claro) to buy a data package with some of these credits, but I鈥檓 always getting an error at some point (usually it just says that there was a problem and I should try again later. Which I did, but it has been the same problem for an entire week, so there must be something wrong.)

So yesterday I found out that my number hasn鈥檛 been 鈥渃adastro鈥檈d鈥�, and this seems to be the reason why I can鈥檛 buy new data packages. Naturally I tried to fix that. The simplest way seems to be to just dial *552#, and follow the instructions (enter CPF, enter date of birth, enter CEP), but I get an error each time after having entered my CEP. I do know the CEP of the address where I live, but it just says that it can鈥檛 complete the process with this CEP and that I should try another one. So I鈥檓 wondering why that is? I assume that the CEP that is associated with my CPF is a different one (a wrong one, since I鈥檓 a 100% sure that the CEP (42830-110)I鈥檓 entering is correct) so I guess that when I obtained my CPF, they used a different CEP, but I don鈥檛 know which one. I got my CPF during the pandemic, so it was all done via video call (from a government office), and I understood very little Portuguese back then, and don鈥檛 remember much about it, certainly not what CEP they recorded). I have checked on the gov.br website (where I have an active account) and the app, where I can see that my CPF鈥檚 status is fine, but I haven鈥檛 found a CEP associated to my CPF.

Tomorrow I will try to contact Claro鈥檚 technical support, but in the meantime, I was wondering if there is a way to know what my CEP is? I assume that Claro is checking the data I鈥檓 entering against some other database, so there should be a way for my to do the same. But is there? How (if it鈥檚 possible at all) can I find (and hopefully correct) which CEP is associated with my data (my CPF)? For example I have checked on the Meu TIM app, and used the CEP that is recorded there (under dados pessoais), and I get always the same error (we can鈥檛 complete the process with the CEP you entered, please try again with another one). Has anyone had a similar problem and maybe a solution?

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GuestPoster6669 Contributor

169POSTS

last year

Are you in a house or apt ?

Have you searched the Correios website ? They should have a CEP locator in their site.

Personally, FWIW, Claro is a F-ed company IMHO. In September when I moved here we went to a Claro location and they couldn't sign us up for anything because someone is using our apt # in their system. A common golpe apparently. Dude in the storefront says just use someone else's apt number.

We walked to TIM and had a much better experience.

bepmoht Serial expat

293POSTS

last year

My humble guess is the CEP that is associated with your CPF registration is the one they want to see OR they want the CEP which is associated with your address which is on file with the PF. When I opened my VIVO account (also had a Claro account briefly) I used the CEP associated with my PF registration. My CPF is all dorked up as it shows my mothers maiden name, and my RNE card shows her married name. I have to fix it someday, there鈥檚 a online form to do it but I am absorbing the Brazilian attitude about getting things done. Maybe tomorrow, maybe next week, maybe next month etc鈥�.

Probably best to stop in a Claro shop and inquire.. Good luck..

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Kurterino Serial expat

502POSTS

last year

My humble guess is the CEP that is associated with your CPF registration is the one they want to see OR they want the CEP which is associated with your address which is on file with the PF. When I opened my VIVO account (also had a Claro account briefly) I used the CEP associated with my PF registration. My CPF is all dorked up as it shows my mothers maiden name, and my RNE card shows her married name. I have to fix it someday, there鈥檚 a online form to do it but I am absorbing the Brazilian attitude about getting things done. Maybe tomorrow, maybe next week, maybe next month etc鈥�.
Probably best to stop in a Claro shop and inquire.. Good luck.. - @bepmoht

How do you know which CEP is associated with your CPF (at the Pol铆cia federal)? Because it鈥檚 apparently not the one I thought it should be

bepmoht Serial expat

293POSTS

last year

@Kurterino

Your CPF address CEP is in the Receita Federal鈥檚鈥�(Brazilian TAX people)鈥� database. I never found a way in there website to display the information about the address on file. However, I鈥檓 pretty sure it鈥檚 a common practice that companies query this information when setting up accounts. I stumbled upon an example of this when poking around my Mercardo Livre account data which they had listed. For my primary address they had listed the address where I had my CPF card mailed way back in 2004. I don鈥檛 even live in the same state these days. I read somewhere that you may be able to go to the Post Office and they can look it up.

Good luck with it.

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rocade Contributor

141POSTS

last year

You can also update your address at a Receita Federal branch nearby to avoid future problems. (Maybe online too) I had a similar experience with the address so I just went there and made them correct my address, a simple proof (airbnb printout) was enough.

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abthree Brazil Expert

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12/11/24 You can also update your address at a Receita Federal branch nearby to avoid future problems. (Maybe online too) I had a similar experience with the address so I just went there and made them correct my address, a simple proof (airbnb printout) was enough.
- @rocade

The Receita Federal is amazingly responsive and easy to deal with for a Brazilian agency.聽 I'm currently four months into the process of getting my new ID Card (for citizens only -- permanent residents don't have to worry about this particular annoyance), and I've needed to get my parents' middle names inserted into any documents that didn't have them, no joke.聽 The RF was one of the most cooperative agencies.

When dealing with them online, though, it may still be necessary to follow up in one of their offices.聽 When you make a request to them online, you get back an ambiguous acknowledgement that your request was accepted, but with no further instructions.聽 When I was naturalized I put in a request to change my status from "Estrangeiro" to "Brasileiro", and figured that it was done when I got that receipt.聽 While I was talking to them to insert my mother's middle name into my CPF record during the current drama, I happened to ask, "You show me as a Brazilian in your system, right?", and the officer said, "No, you show as a Foreigner. should we change that?"聽 I told him that I was naturalized in 2019 and gave him the receipt I got when I reported it to the RF.聽 He looked at it, then looked in his computer, and said, "Oh, you were supposed to come in after you did that.聽 When you didn't, your request was canceled.聽 But I can take care if it for you now while we're in the system."

And he did.

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