A Communications Officer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Michael Ampadu, has questioned the two-mobile-phone threshold announced by the Commissioner of Customs, arguing that the figure does not appear in any published law or official guideline available to travellers.
Ampadu in a media interview said the announcement which was made at the Accra International Airport warning that passengers arriving with more than two phones risk having the devices treated as commercial imports and charged duty is unfair.
The Commissioner also referenced the high value of the latest iPhone and Samsung models when explaining the measure.
Ampadu rejected the idea that carrying two phones constitutes a luxury in Ghana.
“There are network issues in this country. Carrying two phones is not luxury. It is how the informal economy works,” he said.
“Many people carry one line for business and one for personal use. That is not a luxury. That is ordinary life in a developing economy.”
He further argued that the policy lacks any published legal basis.
He pointed to the Exemptions Act, 2022 (Act 1083), which governs passenger concessions, and to the Ghana Revenue Authority’s own published guidance for travellers.
That guidance requires goods to be for the passenger’s personal use, not for sale or intended for other persons, and states that electrical goods should have been in genuine use for at least six months.
“Nowhere in those guidelines does it say you should bring two phones or fewer,” Ampadu said
“Ghana is a sovereign country governed by laws. If they want to introduce this, publish it, take it through the proper process, and let Ghanaians know.”
He warned that the practical effect falls hardest on travellers who can not verify the rule before departure.
“You do not want a passenger to fly 10 hours to Ghana and then be surprised at the airport.”
Ampadu also questioned whether a simple headcount of handsets achieves the stated policy goal noting that budget phones such as Motorola and Tecno can be bought in the United Kingdom for £40–£60, while a single high-end iPhone can exceed £1,000.
“So a man bringing three or four cheap phones to give out as gifts is stopped, and the man with one expensive iPhone is not…if the concern is value, counting phones does not do that job,” he said.
He extended the same logic to other devices.
“Laptops and other electronic gadgets cost far more than phones. So why is it only phones?”
He also linked the announcement to broader pressure on revenue collection.
“The Bank of Ghana’s July 2026 Monetary Policy Report showed total revenue and grants at GH¢99.388 billion (6.2 per cent of GDP), 10.0 per cent below the programmed target of GH¢110.412 billion. Tax revenue stood at GH¢97.577 billion (6.1 per cent of GDP), 10.1 per cent below target, while non-tax revenue was 13.0 per cent below target.
“The same report recorded strong year-on-year growth, with tax revenue up 25.9 per cent and total revenue and grants up 16.1 per cent.
The Ghana Revenue Authority has previously defended its treatment of phones brought in by travellers. In December, a passenger at Kotoka was assessed duties on 18 undeclared handsets; the Authority publicly denied allegations of extortion and stated that due process was followed.”
Ampadu stressed that the party does not oppose the charging of duty on genuine commercial imports.
“Nobody is saying commercial importers should not pay. What we are saying is publish the rule,” he said.
“Publish the legal basis, publish the threshold, and publish how the assessment is calculated, so a traveller who is charged can check the working.”
He urged the Authority to issue clear, publicly available guidance before December, when large numbers of Ghanaians abroad return home for the festive season.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh
