iPhone 16 is completely banned and illegal in one country for bizarre reason

Many got their hands on a new impressive piece of tech last month - but the iPhone 16 is completely banned and illegal in one country for a bizarre reason.

Apple's CEO Tim Cook took to the presentation stage in early September to announce the newest lineup in the iPhone catalogue.

Apple's 'It's Glowtime' event at Apple's campus in Cupertino, California, saw four new models of iPhone unveiled.

Cook and co spent much of the presentation speaking about AI, alongside improvements made to the tech side of things with the likes of the camera.

Apple even unveiled a new feature that allows iPhone users to create their own emoji, though that did leave some concern among users.

The tech giant sold an estimated 37 million iPhone 16s in the opening weekend of its release, though there is one country where not a single phone was sold. Well, not legally, anyway.

That is because the iPhone 16 model of phones is complete banned and illegal in Indonesia due to the phone not meeting the country's requirements for local investment.

Indonesia has for a long while now used trade regulations to attract foreign investment in the country, with a certification requiring 40 percent of a product's parts to be sourced locally.

Apple has seemingly failed to do this with iPhone 16, and on top of that, reports suggest the company has failed to oblige to its investment promises in Indonesia.

The iPhone maker is said to have invested around $95 million within the Indonesian economy, which falls way short of the agreed deal by some $14.75 million.

The Ministry of Industry said in a statement issued on Friday (25 October): "iPhone 16s imported by registered importers cannot be sold in the country since PT Apple Indonesia has yet to fulfil its investment commitment to obtain ‘local content level’ certification on innovation."

Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita added: "If there is an iPhone 16 that can operate in Indonesia, that means that I can say, the device is illegal. Do report it to us."

"We, the Ministry of Industry, are yet to be able to issue permits for the iPhone 16 because there are still commitments that Apple must realise," the minister concluded.

It is not just the iPhone 16 that is banned in Indonesia, with fellow fresh Apple products such as the iPhone 16 Pro series and the Apple Watch Series 10 not permitted in the country.

UNILAD has reached out to Apple for comment.