The head of the parliamentary committee on finance, tax and customs policy, Danylo Hetmantsev, stated that the new iPhone 18s are supposedly already available for sale in the Yabko network, although legal importers, according to him, should receive them only after September 25. Yabko denies this and claims that the batch of smartphones is still undergoing customs clearance.
The head of the parliamentary committee on finance, tax and customs policy, Danylo Hetmantsev, stated that the new iPhone 18s are supposedly already available for sale in the Yabko network, although legal importers, according to him, should receive them only after September 25. Yabko denies this and claims that the batch of smartphones is still undergoing customs clearance.
Hetmantsev published a post in which he stated that he had conducted a "test" for the revamped Bureau of Economic Security and Customs. According to him, both structures failed it.
"Brand new smuggled iPhones 18 are freely available on the well-known network," wrote Getmantsev, adding that smartphones will appear at legal importers only after September 25.
According to the People’s Deputy, the price difference is supposedly about $1,000 per device. "Whose pockets are getting a lot of money? I think everyone understands that they’re not in the army," he wrote.
Hetmantsev also recalled the BEB’s previous statements regarding the Yabko network. According to him, in May, the BEB informed the committee that the relevant case was closed, and customs reported on the seizure of smartphones.
Yabko stated that the information about the alleged start of sales of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max is not true. According to the network, a batch of new smartphones is currently undergoing customs clearance, and they plan to sell them immediately after it is completed.
The network’s website does indeed offer pre-orders for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. The company explains that it allows you to reserve the smartphone before the official start of sales.
Yabko also denies involvement in smuggling. The company claims that it imports the equipment itself, goes through customs clearance, and pays the customs and tax payments required by law. Yabko has scheduled the start of sales for September 25.
According to the network, in 2025 it officially imported and cleared almost 70,000 units of equipment. In the first half of 2026, it imported more than 42,000 units, of which about 27,000 were phones.
Yabko stated that they are ready to confirm this data with customs, tax, and other official documents and provide them to the competent state authorities.
As a reminder, in the Lviv region, customs officers discovered two attempts to import into Ukraine new iPhone 18 Pro Max without declaring, the sales of which began yesterday in Europe. The smartphones were transported across the border by cars through the simplified customs control lane "green corridor".
