A method is provided in one example embodiment and may include determining that a periodic timer for a user equipment (UE) is about to expire; communicating to an application service, prior to expiration of the periodic timer for the UE, an indication associated with an availability of the UE to receive data from the application service; and communicating the data from the application service to the UE upon receiving the indication. In some cases, the method can include registering, by the application service, to receive the indication from a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or a serving General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) support node (SGSN), wherein the registering is performed via a service capability exposure function (SCEF) in communication with the MME or the SGSN and the application service.