New iPhones reach Iran in days, but sanctions and fees send prices soaring
New iPhones and other electronics reach Tehran within days, but smuggling routes, government fees and sanctions are pushing prices beyond many Iranians' reach.
At a glance
- New iPhone 18 models reached Tehran within days of their September 18 US release, despite sanctions and a US naval blockade.
- A Tehran trader says most phones are now smuggled, many via northern Iraq, after UAE trade halted and US sanctions hit Iranian airlines.
- Government registration fees can exceed half a phone's price, and imports fell to about 1 million phones from 3.16 million a year earlier.
New Apple iPhone 18 models were on sale in downtown Tehran within days of their release in the United States on September 18, even though Apple has no physical presence in Iran and a months-long US naval blockade has restricted imports through the country's southern ports.
A phone and accessories trader at Tehran's Charsou Mall, a major electronics hub, told Al Jazeera that such goods always find a way in. "These things can't stop a mobile phone seller," he said, asking to remain anonymous for security reasons. But he added that importing them has become far more complicated, slow and costly.
Trade routes disrupted
Much internationally made electronics enters Iran through Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, but the nearly eight-month war with the US and Israel has disrupted trade through the Strait of Hormuz. The UAE announced a halt to trade, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran on August 19.
Some traders switched to using passengers arriving from Oman. After US sanctions on all Iranian airlines and anyone providing services to them took effect in September, few flights are landing in Iran. "Most of the phones are now smuggled into the country. Many go to Sulaimaniyah and then come in by land," the trader said, referring to the city in northern Iraq's Kurdish region that borders western Iran.
Laptops, graphics and processing units, PlayStation devices and even Starlink terminals reach the market in similar ways.
Prices and fees
In Tehran this week, a 15-inch MacBook Air M4 sold for more than $1,450, about 6 percent above an average retailer in the UAE, while a one-terabyte PlayStation 5 Slim disc edition cost about $730, or 11 percent more than some US retailers.
Mobile phones fare worse. Service on an imported device works for only 30 days unless a registration fee is paid to the government. Introduced nearly 10 years ago, ostensibly to fight smuggling and corruption, the fee scales with value: up to 6 percent for phones worth under 600 euros ($673), up to 15 percent between 600 and 900 euros, and up to 30 percent above 900 euros. With other levies and domestic "warranties", charges on some phones exceed half the total price.
Internet filtering and shutdowns limit access even on registered devices, and global payment methods remain off-limits to Iranians.
Falling volumes
Customs chief Foroud Asgari told state media in mid-August that about one million phones were imported during the first five months of the current Iranian year, against 3.16 million in the same period a year earlier, with import value down roughly 70 percent. State-linked Tasnim reported about $1.6bn of commercial phone imports in the previous Iranian year ending in March 2026, plus $470m carried by air passengers. Smuggled volumes are unknown.
The rial traded at roughly 2.64 million to the US dollar in Tehran on Monday, a slight recovery from the record low hit earlier this month. Minimum wage and basic subsidies for an average married worker total about $83 a month.
Afsaneh, a 27-year-old teacher in Tehran, wants to replace her iPhone 13 with last year's 17 model but cannot afford it. "The only way to get it is to sell my current phone, use my small savings and also borrow from my parents," she told Al Jazeera. She said many of her peers keep old devices alive through repairs. "A lot of people are one failure of a major electronic device away from getting into serious debt."
Source: Al Jazeera.
Questions and answers
- How do new iPhones reach Iran despite sanctions?
- Traders use routes through Dubai and Oman and, increasingly, land crossings via Sulaimaniyah in northern Iraq. A Tehran trader told Al Jazeera that most phones are now smuggled into the country.
- Why are electronics so expensive in Iran?
- Government registration fees of up to 30 percent, other levies and domestic warranty charges can exceed half a phone's price, on top of a weak rial and disrupted trade routes.
- How many phones does Iran import?
- Customs chief Foroud Asgari said about one million phones arrived in the first five months of the current Iranian year, down from 3.16 million a year earlier, with import value down about 70 percent.
