Iran, where eggs are a better bet than cash

Within six weeks, two of Iran’s neighbors have opened their markets to the satellite internet service. Iraq authorized Starlink on July 17. The United Arab Emirates granted it a 10-year general license on Aug. 28, and public sales began on Sept. 3.

SpaceX reportedly waived subscription fees for terminals operating inside Iran during the January 2026 internet shutdown, leaving access to the illegal hardware itself as one of the main obstacles.

Until now, Starlink terminals reaching Iran have largely had to pass through black-market supply chains involving multiple intermediaries. Legal sales in two nearby countries could shorten those chains, increase the supply of terminals and ultimately drive down prices inside Iran.

A standard Starlink kit now sells for around $400 in the UAE. At the end of August, the same model was selling for around $2,100 on Iran’s black market, while the smaller Starlink Mini was selling for around $1,850, according to data collected by Starlink4Iran.

During the January shutdown, the price of a standard kit surged to around $3,000, while the Mini reached around $2,300.

The premium reflects more than profit. Equipment entering Iran passes through intermediaries facing the risks of confiscation and punishment, along with the costs of moving devices covertly across the border.

Legal markets next door will not eliminate those risks. But they could reduce the number of intermediaries involved and make terminals cheaper and more plentiful.

A new route from Iraq

The potential impact is particularly significant in Iraq, which shares a long land border with Iran and has extensive trade and passenger traffic with its neighbor.

Ahmad Ahmadian, an internet freedom activist and director of the nonprofit Holistic Resilience, which works to expand Iranian access to Starlink, said Erbil has already been an important source of communications equipment reaching Iran through informal channels.

Legalization could broaden that network to include traders and people who regularly travel between the two countries, he said.

During periods such as Arbaeen, the annual Shiite pilgrimage when millions of travelers move between Iran and Iraq, thoroughly inspecting everything they carry becomes more difficult, Ahmadian said.

Ahmadian expects some travelers to bring Starlink equipment into Iran for their own use or resale. The devices, he said, could even become a kind of “souvenir” brought back from Iraq.

The smaller Starlink Mini could prove particularly attractive. Roughly the size of a laptop, it is easier to transport than a standard dish, although its official availability in Iraq has yet to be confirmed.

There are still significant obstacles to an Iraqi Starlink market.

The license was issued by Iraq’s Communications and Media Commission, but the Communications Ministry says it has not signed a separate agreement with SpaceX and has raised objections over pricing and routing traffic through Qatar.

The Kurdistan Region has separate regulations, and as of early September no final agreement with SpaceX had been announced.

According to Iraqi officials, around 40,000 unauthorized terminals were already operating in the country before the license was issued, reportedly serving around 200,000 people, including government and security users.

Regulatory disputes may therefore slow the development of the legal market, but they are unlikely to eliminate an existing network of sellers, installers and users.

The UAE offers another potential source.

Starlink equipment was already available in Dubai’s free-trade zones before the general license was issued, and some terminals in Iran have previously been sourced there through intermediaries. Legal public sales could make the equipment easier to obtain.

One dish, many users

More terminals inside Iran would not necessarily benefit only those wealthy enough to buy one.

Some Starlink owners already share their connections with other users, including through VPN and other circumvention services.

Tools such as NasNet Connect can use Iran’s own National Information Network, or NIN, to connect users to a local gateway whose route to the international internet is provided by Starlink. That matters because Iranian authorities have repeatedly cut access to the global internet during periods of unrest and crisis while leaving the NIN and approved domestic services functioning.

A user’s connection to the local gateway can therefore still travel over Iranian telecommunications infrastructure, while the gateway’s route to the outside world exits through Starlink, beyond conventional international connections controlled by the state.

For relatively light uses such as messaging and web browsing, a single terminal can potentially support around 20 to 30 users, according to Ahmadian. Video calls, streaming and large downloads substantially reduce that number.

There is also a financial incentive.

Dish owners can sell VPN or other internet access to recover their costs or even generate income. If cheaper hardware reduces the initial investment, more terminals could potentially become gateways for groups of users rather than individual connections.

None of this makes such networks invisible. Iranian authorities can attempt to identify servers and dishes, disrupt communications and interfere with satellite signals.

But a growing number of privately operated connections would make the task of sealing Iran off from the international internet more complicated.

Free, for now

There is another important limitation: a Starlink terminal bought legally in Iraq or the UAE is not guaranteed to work once brought into Iran.

SpaceX retains control over which terminals are activated and whether they remain connected. It reportedly waived subscription fees for terminals operating in Iran during the January 2026 blackout but did not say how long the arrangement would last.

Ahmadian said active terminals in Iran have continued to operate without subscription charges in recent months. Some accounts previously disconnected for non-payment have also been restored, he said.

It remains unclear whether that policy will continue indefinitely or whether newly arrived terminals bought in Iraq or the UAE will automatically receive free service.

Using Starlink also carries significant personal risk inside Iran. The Islamic Republic considers the equipment illegal and has sought to disrupt satellite connections, locate terminals and punish users.

Nor can satellite internet come close to replacing Iran’s conventional internet infrastructure. Even if black-market prices fall substantially, the hardware will remain beyond the reach of many households.

But for journalists, activists, businesses and families who have lived through repeated internet shutdowns, Starlink increasingly serves as something different: a backup route to the outside world when Tehran cuts conventional connections.

The arrival of legal Starlink markets in Iraq and the UAE does not take Iran’s internet kill switch out of the government’s hands. But it could mean fewer doors close when the switch is thrown.