Heaptalk, Jakarta — Indonesia’s Minister of Industry (Kemenperin), Agus Gumiwang, clarified why the government banned iPhone 16 sales in the archipelago.
The Ministry of Industry has not issued a distribution permit because Apple, the manufacturer of the iPhone, has not met the requirement. The Minister also noted that any iPhone 16 units that have already entered Indonesia are considered illegal. The Ministry has also requested that e-commerce platforms Tokopedia and TikTok remove listings for Apple’s products.
“We received reports that these platforms are allowing the sale of iPhone 16. “If the listings are not removed, we will pursue legal action, as this could be seen as a violation of Article 35 of Government Regulation Number 45 of 2021. The continued sale of iPhone 16 would make it an illegal product in the market,” Ministry of Industry’s spokesperson Febri Hendri Antoni Arif
Separately, Minister of Trade Budi Arie Setiadi announced, following the opening of the ‘High-Level Policy Dialogue Action on Climate and Trade’ event at Park Hyatt, Central Jakarta, that his office would deploy teams to monitor this newest Apple product sale in the market. Budi also noted that the Ministry of Trade (Kemendag) will coordinate closely with the Ministry of Industry in setting up this monitoring task force. “We will coordinate,” he emphasized.
As information, the Ministry recorded that an estimated 9,000 units of the iPhone 16 series entered Indonesia via passenger carry-on channels between August and October 2024, with taxes paid accordingly.
