New iPhones arrive in Tehran despite sanctions and soaring costs

New electronics are finally reaching Iran, yet soaring prices mean most people cannot afford them. The latest iPhone models appeared in downtown Tehran just days after Apple launched the line in the United States on September 18. This happened even though Apple has no physical presence there and US sanctions remain strict. The ongoing naval blockade of southern ports also blocks the usual route for bulk imports.

One anonymous trader at Charsou Mall, a major electronics hub, told Al Jazeera that nothing can stop a phone seller. However, he admitted the process is now much more complicated. Bringing goods in has become costly and time-consuming due to external pressures and domestic rules. Many items used to flow through Dubai in the UAE. But an eight-month conflict with the US and Israel has disrupted trade through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran attacked the UAE repeatedly during this fight, and the UAE halted all commercial exchanges on August 19.

Some traders tried using passengers from Oman to bring phones in. That option failed after US sanctions hit Iranian airlines and anyone helping them in September. Few flights land in the country now. The trader said most phones are smuggled in. Many go to Sulaimaniyah, a city in northern Iraq, then enter Iran by land. This difficult story applies to laptops, graphics cards, PlayStation devices, and even Starlink terminals found on Iranian shelves this week.

Prices have jumped sharply. A MacBook Air 15-inch with an M4 chip sold for over 1,450 rials per dollar in Tehran. That is about six percent higher than the average price at a retailer in the UAE. A one-terabyte PlayStation 5 Slim disc-edition console cost around $730 here. That price is roughly 11 percent more expensive than what some US retailers charge.

Mobile phones face even worse conditions. Imported devices stop working after only 30 days unless users pay a registration fee to the Iranian government. This specific tax was introduced nearly ten years ago. Officials claimed it aimed to fight smuggling and corruption, but the result is higher costs for ordinary citizens trying to keep their connections alive.

Import duties on mobile phones in Iran scale directly with the device's price tag. The government charges up to 6 percent for units worth less than 600 euros, or about $673. Fees jump to 15 percent for phones between that figure and 900 euros, roughly $1,010. Devices priced higher than 900 euros face a maximum duty of 30 percent.

Once other levies and warranty fees from local companies are added, the final cost can exceed half the total price paid by consumers. Even if a phone is officially registered, users cannot freely access the internet. The state imposes severe filtering and occasional shutdowns while blocking global payment methods for Iranian citizens. International firms refuse many services due to US sanctions.

The state-linked Tasnim news site reported that roughly $1.6bn worth of phones were imported commercially during the previous Iranian year ending in March 2026. About 20 percent of those imports were priced above $600. Passengers brought in another $470m worth of devices, mostly high-spec models via aeroplane. There are no clear figures for smuggled phones entering the market.

In mid-August, customs chief Foroud Asgari told state media that approximately one million phones had been imported during the first five months of the current Iranian year. That figure is down from 3.16 million in the corresponding period a year earlier. The import value for these devices fell by approximately 70 percent according to his statement.

The government reserves the right to stop phone registration whenever it deems necessary. Authorities halted registration for newer iPhone models between 2023 and 2024 because they were made by an American company. Officials claimed these imports drained precious foreign currency reserves. They did not ban similarly priced high-end models from other manufacturers under those same circumstances.

Skyrocketing charges and local restrictions make it harder for customers to afford new phones now. The monthly minimum wage for an average married worker plus basic government subsidies amounts to just $83 equivalent in Iran. The rial continues its downward spiral, trading at about 2.64 million per US dollar in Tehran on Monday. Prices have surged across the board, especially for food and other essentials. Domestic mismanagement, war damage, sanctions, and a blockade squeeze the economy while making most of the 90-million population poorer.

Afsaneh is a 27-year-old teacher from Tehran who considers replacing her iPhone 13 with last year's 17 model. She balks when she sees the prices required to make such a switch. "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. Many of her peers are forced to keep old devices alive by repairing them or replacing parts if possible since they cannot afford upgrades. A lot of people are one failure of a major electronic device away from getting into serious debt.