Low Income? Free Wireless Prepaid Cell Phones & Free Prepaid Cell Phone Minutes By Virgin Mobile

SafeLink Wireless is not the only company offering free prepaid cell phones and free prepaid cell phone minutes. Virgin Mobile through it's subsidiary company Assurance Wireless is also providing a free prepaid cell phone and monthly free prepaid cell phone minutes for low income families and individuals. It is the same federal public assistance program called Lifeline that made it possible.

I wrote a previous article about the Lifeline program, but I will provide a summary of the program here. The Lifeline program was created in 1984 by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) during the Reagan Administration. The program was upgraded in 1996. It was created to insure that low income customers be provided basic telephone service at a reasonable, and affordable cost.

Lifeline was intended for land line telephone service, but the FCC approved the Lifeline program to also be used for wireless telephone service. So, Tracfone created their SafeLink program. Tracfone provides free prepaid cell phones to eligible customers, but uses the Lifeline programs in providing monthly free prepaid cell phone minutes.

Virgin Mobile created Assurance Wireless to administer it's free prepaid cell phone program. It's program is very similar to SafeLink Wireless' program, but Virgin Mobile only has 22 participating states. However, they do plan to add more states in the near future. The current participating states in Virgin Mobile's Assurance Wireless free prepaid cell phones program are listed below.

To qualify for the program applicants income must be at or below their state's poverty level. Typically, if the applicant is already eligible for public assistance they will qualify to receive one of the free prepaid cell phones and monthly free prepaid cell phone minutes. Customers must re-qualify for the program each year.

Qualified customers will received their choice of two Virgin Mobile cell phone models; the Kyocera Jax or the Kyocera Marbl.

The number of monthly free prepaid cell phone minutes varies, but they can be up to 250 voice minutes per month. Free phone features include voice mail, call waiting, caller id. 911 calls are also free.

Additional cell phone features and extra prepaid cell phone minutes can be added at a cost.

No fees and no contracts needed.  

Applicants can apply by going to website www.assurancewireless.com or by calling their toll free phone number 888-898-4888.

More information can be found on my blog.