TEHRAN - According to the data released by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), 2.803 million cell phones worth $574.28 million were imported into the country in the first three months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-June 21).

Based on the customs data, of the total imported phones, 2.654 million were imported into the country by commercial importers and 149,000 were imported by passengers, IRNA reported.

Accordingly, the value of the mobile phones imported by trading companies in the mentioned period was $483.601 million, while the value of those imported by passengers stood at $90.679 million.

Customs statistics show that the import of mobile phones in the previous Iranian year 1401 (ended on March 20) was 14,315,000 units, of which 13,764,000 units were imported commercially and 550,000 units were imported by passengers.

Also, the value of the mobile phone imports by commercial companies in 1401 was $2.871 billion and by passengers was $346.73 million.

With the implementation of Iran’s National Mobile Registry Plan back in October 2017, Iranians now must register all new mobile phones to be eligible for use in the country. This law is to fight smuggling phones to Iran. As a result, all people who want to use their phones for more than one month in the Islamic Republic will need to register their phones as a way to pay customs fees.

In April 2021, the Iranian Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) had announced the launch of a five-year plan for the domestic production of 14 million cell phones and tablets.

According to the ministry, the mentioned program is going to create job opportunities for over 43,000 people and save the country over $1 billion during the said five years.

EF/MA