Editor's note: this story was translated from the original VOA Persian article.
Iranian mobile operators MCI and Irancell have announced increases of up to 40% in the tariffs for calls, text messages, and mobile internet packages, as the government continues to impose restrictions on internet access.
The companies said in separate statements on Friday that the new rates would take effect at midnight on October 23.
Irancell has also increased the prices of its fixed internet and fiber-optic services by the same amount.
According to the operators, internet packages purchased before the new rates took effect will remain valid at their original prices until their expiration dates.
The sharp increase in internet costs comes as the Iranian government continues to impose widespread censorship and restrictions on internet access.
In its annual Freedom on the Net 2026 report, U.S.-based nonprofit Freedom House gave Iran just 9 points out of 100, placing it alongside China and Myanmar among the world’s worst countries for internet freedom.
The report said Iran experienced the steepest decline in internet freedom among the 38 countries assessed.
During the suppression of nationwide protests in January 2026, Iran almost completely shut down internet access across the country for 20 days.
In February, coinciding with the start of the joint U.S. and Israeli military operation, the government imposed another nationwide restriction on internet access that lasted approximately 88 days. The measure was described as the longest nationwide internet shutdown in Iran’s history.
Freedom House also warned that the Iranian government has turned the country’s internet into a “two-tier” system in which most citizens are denied unrestricted access to the global internet, while a limited group retains that access.
The organization also cited disruptions to Starlink satellite communications, restrictions on virtual private networks (VPNs), and the arrest of internet users. It noted that internet freedom worldwide had declined for the 16th consecutive year.
Earlier, the deputy political commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed that if Iran's infrastructure were targeted, internet cables beneath the Strait of Hormuz would not be safe.
The International Cable Protection Committee said five active cable segments belonging to submarine cable systems pass through the strait, a route that carries less than 1% of the world’s international bandwidth.
According to the committee, damage to these cables would primarily disrupt regional communications.