The Ministry of Finance of Ukraine has prepared a draft order on the mandatory inclusion of IMEI codes of smartphones in customs declarations. The reform was initiated by the BEB , and its main goal is to combat "gray" imports and tax evasion schemes.
The Ministry of Finance of Ukraine has prepared a draft order on the mandatory inclusion of IMEI codes of smartphones in customs declarations. The reform was initiated by the BEB , and its main goal is to combat "gray" imports and tax evasion schemes.
According to estimates by Apple's authorized distributor Asbis-Ukraine, the share of illegally imported iPhones in Ukraine is about 60% (at the end of 2025 it reached 80%). The volume of the unofficial market for "apple" smartphones is estimated at $1 billion, while the official one is only $350 million. Due to smuggling and sales without receipts, the state budget loses UAH 5–6 billion every year, writes Forbes Ukraine.
Currently, a common scheme is when a seller legally imports 1,000 smartphones and sells 10,000 - law enforcement officers cannot verify the origin of a specific gadget during searches.
The new mechanism involves two stages:
Entering IMEI into the customs declaration will allow you to trace the path of the smartphone from the border.
entering IMEI into the fiscal receipt and integrating the Customs and Tax databases.
This is expected to make fraud more difficult for retailers and push out those who trade exclusively for cash without documents from the market.
Top managers of leading chains ("Foxtrot", Comfy) support the initiative, but note that the result will not be immediate. After the system is launched, regulatory authorities will need from 6 to 12 months to accumulate a database. Legal businesses will have to restructure warehouse accounting, update software, and train personnel.
Foxtrot assures that the innovation will not affect the cost of official smartphones, and additional operating costs will be minimal.
