November 20, 2024, 6:09 am | Read time: 2 minutes
The iPhone 16 was unveiled in September. In Indonesia, the trade of the new Apple smartphone and other devices from the Google Pixel series is currently prohibited. What does this mean for travelers who want to enter the country with one of these devices?
Apple’s recently introduced iPhone 16 is still not allowed to be sold in Indonesia (read more about this from our colleagues at TECHBOOK). The Pixel models from Google have also been banned by the government. However, tourists who enter the country with one of these smartphones are allowed to use them – it is only forbidden to sell them. This has been clarified by the Ministry of Industry.
Entry to Indonesia possible with iPhone 16
Previously, there had been reports that use in the country was generally prohibited. In some cases, it was said that tourists in possession of the iPhone 16 or a Google Pixel phone should use a different smartphone when traveling to the country to avoid problems. However, this is not necessary, according to a clarification from a ministry spokesperson.
Locals who import the iPhone 16 or a Google Pixel phone must declare it to customs and pay import tax. Tourists are exempt. However, it was initially unclear whether the smartphones would work properly in the island state – which includes the popular vacation island of Bali – without special activation.
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Dispute over the proportion of locally produced components
The background to this ban is that, according to the ministry, the smartphones do not meet certain requirements. Specifically, this is about a proportion of locally produced parts that they would have to contain in order to be traded in Indonesia. The new iPhone as well as the phones in the Google Pixel series do not meet this requirement. In this context, Apple is accused, among other things, of failing to meet investment obligations amounting to the equivalent of around 109 million euros.
With material from dpa