Xiaomi has turned a blind eye to this for years, although it expressly forbids this in the company’s terms and conditions for certain areas. Now reports are rolling in (via XDA developer) that the company will change its attitude. Users in Cuba, Iran, Syria, North Korea, Sudan, and the Crimea region report that Xiaomi will remotely disable their phones, along with a message explaining why:
Xiaomi policy does not allow the product to be sold or made available in the area where you tried to activate it. For more information, please contact the dealers directly.
If you see this message, your imported Xiaomi phone is essentially a soft-bricked one.