Ukraine is introducing mandatory declaration of mobile phones’ IMEI numbers during import, with the relevant order already signed by the Finance Ministry, Tsytrus CEO Artem Shevchenko has said.
"In my view, this is the most important decision for Ukraine’s mobile phone market in recent years. The order has already been signed by Ukraine’s Finance Ministry and registered by the Justice Ministry. This means the decision has been made and the practical implementation stage is beginning," he said on LinkedIn.
Shevchenko said that, according to estimates by the Economic Security Bureau (ESB), the rule change could bring in more than 5 billion hryvnias in additional state budget revenue annually and significantly reduce opportunities for "gray" smartphone imports. Tsytrus took an active part in consultations with the ESB on the initiative, discussing technical aspects of implementation and mechanisms to make the new system as effective as possible.
Until now, IMEI numbers were not recorded during customs clearance, meaning the state had no way to trace a given mobile phone’s path from import to sale to the end buyer.
"Now the foundation for such a system has been created. The first stage is mandatory IMEI declaration during import. The next step should be displaying the IMEI on the fiscal receipt. The ESB is already working on this mechanism together with Ukraine’s Finance Ministry and State Tax Service. In effect, this means every mobile phone will have a traceable path from crossing the border to sale. Once this mechanism is fully implemented, legal sale of a mobile phone will become practically impossible unless the IMEI declared at import matches the IMEI shown on the fiscal receipt," Shevchenko said.
