Pakistan has reduced regulatory and additional customs duties on imported mobile phones for the fiscal year 2026-27. The move is expected to lower the overall duty burden on imported handsets, particularly premium smartphones priced above $500.
Regulatory Duty Reduced on Smartphones
Under the revised tariff structure, Additional Customs Duty (ACD) has fallen from 6% to 4% across listed smartphone categories.
The government has also reduced regulatory duty (RD) on completely built-up (CBU) smartphones.
The revised RD rates are:
- Up to $30: Rs240, down from Rs300
- $30–$100: Rs2,400, down from Rs3,000
- $100–$200: Rs6,000, down from Rs7,500
- $200–$350: Rs8,800, down from Rs11,000
- $350–$500: Rs12,000, down from Rs15,000
- Above $500: Rs17,600, down from Rs22,000
For smartphones above $500, the reduction amounts to Rs4,400 per handset. This represents a 20% cut in regulatory duty.
Duties Also Cut on CKD and SKD Phones
The government has also revised duties on phones imported in completely knocked-down (CKD) and semi-knocked-down (SKD) condition.
Regulatory duty has been reduced from 5% to 4%. Meanwhile, ACD has also dropped from 6% to 4%.
The Ministry of Commerce said the changes were introduced under the FY2026-27 Budget.
The reductions form part of wider tariff rationalisation under the National Tariff Policy 2025-30.
Mobile Phone Imports Surge
The tariff changes come after Pakistan recorded significant growth in mobile phone imports during FY2025-26.
Total imports of smartphones and cellular phones increased from $1.497 billion to $1.888 billion.
Meanwhile, CBU smartphone imports more than doubled, reaching $357.7 million.
The ministry also noted that the Mobile Device Manufacturing Policy 2020-25 has expired. A replacement policy has yet to receive federal government approval.
However, incentives granted to mobile manufacturers and assemblers remain protected under the Fifth Schedule of the Customs Act, 1969.
The latest duty cuts could make imported handsets more affordable while supporting the government’s broader push toward local mobile-device assembly and manufacturing.
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