An apparatus and method for Equivalent Public Land Mobile Network (EPLMN) list management in a mobile terminal are provided. The method includes receiving a message from a network after storing an EPLMN list having at least one PLMN entry, determining whether an EPLMN list is present in the received message, and performing EPLMN list management by maintaining, when an EPLMN list is not present in the received message, the stored EPLMN list. As a result, the mobile terminal may retain an accurate EPLMN list and efficiently perform cell selection/reselection.