People who come to Cyprus for a long stay face the problem of blocking imported cell phones. The mobile network is blocked and shut down after 90 days in the country. This, of course, does not affect the rest of the device's functionality: all features continue to work, and you can access all messengers and social networks via Wi-Fi. However, incoming and outgoing calls and text messages are not available. This is extremely inconvenient since many banking transactions have to be confirmed via SMS.
The problem is temporarily solved on a dual-sim phone by changing the slot, but that only lasts for 90 days and does not always work. We will explain how to legalize the imported phone and solve any problems that may arise.
First of all, the applicant must go to Nicosia/Lefkosa to the specialized center "Bilgi Teknolojileri ve Haberlesme kurumu". The mobile device itself and your passport are required (for citizens of the TRNC). Students must present a certificate from their place of study or a student ID showing that they are studying in North Cyprus in order to receive an impressive discount. Fill out the questionnaire (in English) with your name, passport details and the IMEI number (serial number) of your cell phone. You can find out your IMEI by calling *#06#.
The office of "Bilgi Teknolojileri ve Haberlesme kurumu" is open from 8:30 am to 14:00 on weekdays; online appointments are not available. Fill out the application form, hand it in at the application window, pay the application fee of 14 TL and receive the payment check. The next step is the evaluation of the mobile device, which is done by a customs specialist. You can inquire about the approximate cost of registering the device in our "North Cyprus" Telegram chat.
In our experience, Apple products are the most expensive for registration, and the larger the memory of the device, the more expensive it is to "legalize" it. You will have to pay this tax there in cash and in TL only (you will receive a receipt for the total amount).
