Protection of buyers and legal business: a new electronic service for checking mobile phone IMEI codes

 Hiding the origin of a phone will become more difficult, and checking its customs clearance will be easier. On the initiative of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine, mandatory recording of mobile phone IMEI codes during import has been introduced.

The initiative was implemented jointly with the Ministry of Finance and the State Customs Service. Since September 4, 2026, the IMEI of each imported phone has been indicated in the customs declaration.

The State Customs Service also launched an open electronic service for checking this information. Using it is simple: it is enough to enter the device's IMEI in the corresponding field. If the phone has several IMEIs, it is worth checking each of them.

https://cabinet.customs.gov.ua/imeicheck

For legal businesses, this service provides an opportunity to confirm the origin of the goods. For buyers, it allows them to check before purchase whether a phone is official and, accordingly, whether it has a manufacturer's warranty, rather than relying solely on the seller's assurances.

For the ESBU, this is an additional tool to counter the shadow circulation of electronics. Such data creates an opportunity to verify the legality of importing phones that are already stored in warehouses or are on sale.

"The mechanism proposed by the ESBU links customs clearance information to a specific device. The phone receives a digital footprint right at the border. This is the first step towards tracing its path from import to sale to the end consumer," noted the Director of the ESBU, Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi.

The ESBU recommends that importers, distributors, and sellers verify the presence of the IMEI in customs clearance data in advance and ensure proper documentary confirmation of the origin of the electronics.

Important: The service displays information on customs clearances carried out since September 4, 2026. The absence of an IMEI, in particular regarding phones imported earlier, does not in itself prove the illegality of the import. The service also does not check the authenticity of the device, its warranty status, operator blocking, or its presence on the stolen list.

Not only to detect violations but also to complicate the very possibility of working in the shadows – this is what the work of the ESBU is aimed at. The introduction of tracking and open verification of IMEIs is a practical step towards a transparent electronics market, consumer protection, and legal business.