How to receive Canara Bank OTP in UK? Keep your Indian SIM on roaming for SMS, and set up email OTP and the Offline OTP app before you fly

Keep your Indian SIM (the one registered with Canara Bank) switched on in the UK with incoming SMS allowed, and use a UK data eSIM for internet. If the SMS does not arrive, Canara Bank's own net banking offers three backups: OTP over a phone call (offered after 100 seconds), OTP over email, and the Canara Offline OTP app. Set up email OTP and the app in India, before you fly.

This page is for Indian students and visitors in the UK who bank with Canara. Canara sends transaction OTPs to your Registered Mobile Number (RMN), so that Indian number has to be reachable. The facts below come from Canara Bank's official pages on canarabank.bank.in and from Vi's roaming page. We could not open Airtel's or Jio's current roaming rate pages on 12 November 2026 (they did not load for us), so we do not quote their prices.

Your options for Canara OTP in the UK

Option	Indian SIM needed in the UK?	What it costs you	Set up before leaving India?
SMS OTP to your RMN	Yes, on and roaming	Depends on carrier. Vi prepaid: Rs 118 or any IR pack with validity just to receive SMS abroad. Vi postpaid: Rs 149 IR pack. Airtel and Jio: check the app	Activate roaming on the SIM
OTP over call	Yes, it calls the RMN	Incoming call while roaming, carrier rates apply	No, appears automatically after 100 seconds
OTP over email (net banking)	No	Free, uses your UK data	Yes, takes 24 hours to activate
Canara Offline OTP app	Needed once, for the activation SMS	Free app	Yes, strongly advised
Canara ai1 mobile banking	RMN SIM in the phone for registration	Registration sends an SMS from the RMN	Yes, register in India

What Canara's pages say, in short:

• Email OTP: log in to net banking, go to Pay & Transfer, then "Register/De-Register Email OTP", choose Registration. You can get the OTP as a plain or password protected PDF. It is enabled after 24 hours.
• Offline OTP app: register in net banking under Pay & Transfer, "Register/De-register Offline OTP". You get a 16 digit activation code and a Registration ID. The app then sends an encrypted SMS from your RMN, after which you set a 5 digit passcode and can generate a 9 digit OTP. It is tied to one handset and your RMN. Three wrong passcodes block it. Canara's terms do not say whether the app works with no network at all, so do not rely on that.
• ai1 app registration: you pick the SIM slot with your RMN and the app sends an SMS, so you need balance on that SIM. Canara says registration "will not work on Wi-Fi", only mobile data, and the app blocks use when a VPN is on. Doing this in the UK means roaming SMS, so register at home.
• NRI accounts: Canara says mobile banking is available for resident and non-resident accounts, subject to account level rules.

What YatraSim uses in the UK

YatraSim's UK eSIM runs on EE (5G) and 3 (4G). It is data only, with no UK number, so it never receives your Canara SMS. Its job is to keep the Indian SIM free for OTPs while all your internet goes over UK data. Prices checked 12 November 2026, in USD:

Plan	Price
10GB / 30 days	US$7.49
20GB / 30 days	US$12.49
50GB / 30 days	US$25.99
50GB / 180 days	US$42.49

To be fair to students: if you are staying a full year, a UK SIM with a UK number may suit you better after the first weeks. A data eSIM is best for arrival week and short stays. See the UK eSIM plans.

Dual SIM setup for students

• Keep the Canara RMN SIM in the physical slot. Set the eSIM as the line for mobile data.
• Turn data roaming off for the Indian SIM and on for the eSIM, so the Indian SIM never uses expensive roaming data.
• Keep the Indian line on for calls and SMS. Check with your carrier that incoming SMS works abroad on your plan. On Vi prepaid that means a Rs 118 or other IR pack with validity.
• Before leaving: register email OTP (wait 24 hours, then test it), install and activate Canara Offline OTP, and register the ai1 app on Indian mobile data.
• If an OTP does not arrive in the UK, wait for the "OTP over call" option, then switch to email OTP.
• Save Canara's UK toll free number: 448081699978 (as listed by Canara). From other countries: +91-080-22064232 / 68212121, with call charges.
• If you lose the phone or the SIM, report it to the bank straight away. Canara's offline OTP terms make you responsible for transactions from your registered phone until the service is stopped.

Sources: Canara Bank, Alternatives for SMS OTP in Internet Banking, Canara Offline OTP terms, Canara Bank Mobile Banking, Canara international toll free numbers, Vi international roaming packs. Official pages, undated, all opened 12 November 2026. Checked 12 November 2026.