Indonesia will not lift the ban on the iPhone 16 even with $1 billion in investments from Apple

Indonesia has supported the ban on the sale of the iPhone 16, despite Apple’s promise to invest $1 billion in the country after negotiations reached a dead end. In Jakarta, they explained their decision by the fact that the company does not meet the requirements of the domestic market. This is reported by AFP, writes UNN.

Details

In October 2024, Indonesia banned the advertising and sale of the iPhone 16 model due to the company Apple’s failure to comply with local investment legislation, which requires that 40% of phones be made from local components, as the country seeks to increase investments from giant technology companies.

Indonesian Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said that Apple is fully ready to invest $1 billion in the construction of an AirTag factory on Batam Island, which is likely to provide 65% of global supplies.

“To date, the ministry has no grounds to issue a domestic component level certificate for Apple products, especially for the iPhone 16,” said Indonesian Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita at a press briefing on Wednesday.

He had a meeting with representatives of Apple, but, according to him, no agreement was reached.

He also added that Indonesian officials made a counter-offer to Apple, but they did not receive a response from the company.

“If Apple wants to sell the iPhone 16 as soon as possible, then the flag is in their hands, please respond immediately to our counter-offer,” he said.

Earlier, Apple offered to increase its investments in Indonesia by $100 million to lift the ban on the sale of the iPhone 16, but the Indonesian government rejected this proposal.

Despite the sales ban, the import of iPhone 16 devices into Indonesia is allowed if the devices are not used for commercial purposes.

It is reported that about 9,000 units of the new model have entered the country in this way.

In addition, Indonesia has also banned the sale of Google Pixel phones for the same reason.

Last year, despite the ban, about 22,000 Google Pixel phones were imported into the country.

Reminder

Earlier, UNN had already written that the Indonesian government had banned the sale of iPhone 16 due to non-compliance with the requirement for 40% local content. About 9,000 devices have already entered the country through passenger luggage, but their sale will be illegal.