Pakistan Customs says Rs520 billion mobile phone import bill mostly reflects local assembly kits

Pakistan Customs has said the increase in the country’s mobile phone import bill during FY2025-26 was driven mainly by components used for domestic assembly rather than a surge in finished handset imports.

The clarification followed media reports that characterised the entire Rs520 billion import value recorded during the year as completed mobile phone imports.

Customs data showed that Pakistan imported approximately 32 million mobile phones in FY26, compared with around 33 million units in FY25, indicating that total volumes remained broadly stable.

The value of imports across all mobile phone categories increased to about Rs520 billion from Rs427 billion a year earlier.

However, nearly Rs420 billion, or around four-fifths of the total, represented completely knocked down and semi-knocked down kits imported by registered local manufacturers and assemblers.

Completely built units imported for direct retail sale accounted for approximately Rs100 billion, or less than one-fifth of the total import value.

Finished smartphone imports rose from around 290,000 units in FY25 to 1.04 million units in FY26. Industry feedback indicated that Apple iPhones and Google Pixel devices, both new and used, accounted for nearly 60% to 70% of the increase.

Pakistan Customs said neither brand was assembled locally, meaning the rise reflected demand for products unavailable through domestic production rather than the displacement of locally manufactured handsets.

The authority also attributed the shift towards formal imports to lower costs through commercial channels. A commercially imported iPhone attracts approximately Rs150,000 in duties and taxes, compared with around Rs190,000 when registered against a passport and nearly Rs210,000 when registered against a CNIC.

Duties and taxes collected from mobile phone imports increased by more than 36% to approximately Rs121 billion in FY26 from Rs89 billion in the previous year. Revenue from completely built smartphones more than doubled year-on-year.

Pakistan Customs said tighter action against smuggling and misdeclaration, improved clearance procedures and coordination with the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority had shifted more trade from informal channels to documented, duty-paid imports.

It added that domestic assembly continued to account for the overwhelming majority of mobile phone import volume and value.