On September 25, sales of the new iPhone 18 line will officially start in Ukraine. Despite martial law and economic challenges, demand for Apple flagships remains traditionally high. We spoke with retailers about the fully booked first batches, and how importers first tested the new IMEI declaration system.
On September 25, sales of the new iPhone 18 line will officially start in Ukraine. Despite martial law and economic challenges, demand for Apple flagships remains traditionally high. We spoke with retailers about the fully booked first batches, and how importers first tested the new IMEI declaration system.
According to leading Ukrainian electronics chains, the hype around the iPhone 18 exceeded expectations, and a significant part of the first batch was sold out before it officially hit the shelves.
As noted by the CEO of the Citrus chain, Artem Shevchenko, the company had collected over 7,000 pre-orders on the eve of the start of sales. The COMFY chain also confirms that demand has traditionally exceeded the volume of the first delivery, which is why virtually all smartphones from the first batch have already been distributed among those who placed reservations.
iPhone 18 Pro (256 GB): starts at UAH 77,999.
iPhone 18 Pro Max: the price varies from UAH 84,999 for the basic memory capacity to UAH 169,999 for the top version with 2 TB.
The absolute bestseller among Ukrainians was the iPhone 18 Pro Max in the new Burgundy color (256 GB) - this modification accounts for the largest number of orders from all retailers. In addition, COMFY noted the high interest of buyers in the flexible iPhone Duo smartphone, which is significantly ahead of competitors in its segment in terms of the number of pre-orders.
According to Ivan Pavlik, General Manager of ASBIS-Ukraine (an authorized Apple distributor), the market is showing high activity, but the final sales picture will be assessed later, since at the start, buyers often leave applications with several sellers at the same time.
The main intrigue of the current release was customs clearance. From September 4, 2026, new rules came into force in Ukraine: when importing smartphones, information about the IMEI of each device must be provided.
Retailers note that official distributors take care of import and clearance, but confirm that all ordered batches arrived in Ukraine on time and are ready for delivery.
The general manager of ASBIS-Ukraine, Ivan Pavlik, commented on the registration situation:
"As far as we know, the first batches of new iPhones have passed customs clearance under the new rules in the normal mode. For us, this is an important practical test of the new system: from September 4, during the official import of smartphones, the IMEI of each device is included in the customs clearance data.
Of course, the new requirements mean an additional data set that needs to be correctly transmitted and processed. But for a system-based authorized importer who has information about each device in the supply chain, this is primarily a technical change in the process, and not a fundamental complication of import.”
To make the transition to a new line more affordable, retailers are massively introducing profitable bonus and credit programs.
Artem Shevchenko from Citrus told dev.ua: "Trade-in will be available from the first day of sales. Also, all new Apple gadgets can be purchased in installments of up to 25 payments."
COMFY shared with dev.ua the details of their strategy: “This year, financial instruments that allow you to spread the costs of purchasing equipment are becoming especially relevant. Therefore, the demand for loans and installment payments is increasing significantly.” They also said that their clients can profitably combine the Trade-in service with the “Payment in installments” program (up to 25 payments) in order to maximize the costs over time when switching to a new model.
Along with the appearance of new models on the market, illegal ("gray") imports traditionally become more active. ASBIS-Ukraine named four main signs by which a buyer can verify the legality of a smartphone:
