Apple seeks govt’s approval to sell refurbished iPhones in India
US-based tech giant Apple has sought approvals from the Indian government to import and sell pre-owned iPhones in India.
“An application from Apple regarding import of certified pre-owned iPhones for sale in India and manufacturing certified pre-owned iPhones for sale in India has been received in the Ministry of Environment and Forests,” Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a reply to Rajya Sabha.
The announcement came in the backdrop of the government’s decision to impose an excise duty on domestically-manufactured as well as imported mobile components such as charger, battery and headsets.
In the recently-concluded Union Budget 2016, the Finance Ministry had announced that there will be a 12.5% excise duty on imports of these components while the domestic manufacturer will incur just 2% charge.
The decision was taken with an aim to encourage the domestic manufacturer produce and assemble these articles, make the Indian IT hardware industry globally-competitive, reduce the country’s electronics import bill, and attract foreign hardware-makers in the domestic market— all as part of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Make in India initiative.
“This will "reduce costs and improve competitiveness of domestic industry in sectors" like IT hardware, capital goods, defence production and textiles among others,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitely had said in his annual budget speech on February 29.
In addition, the budget has also proposed to withdraw Basic Customs Duty (BCD) by 10% and Countervailing Duty (CVD) by 12.5%. With a CVD of 12.5%, BCD of 10% and SAD of 4%, the accumulative duty cost exceeds 29%.
Some industry experts have remarked that the decision will result in mobile phone becoming costly by about 2-4%, but will considerably propel domestic production of these components, thereby improving competition in the domestic market as well as stimulate the Make in India campaign.
The Telecom Minister further said the government has not made any decision on this matter yet. However, the IT giant had sought the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) approvals for setting up retail outlets in India.
March 05, 2016 | 04:25pm IST
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