Apple’s iPhone 6 has entered the final stage of the approval process in China, according to an interview published on Tencent with a leading Chinese government official.

Mobile World Live previously reported that China was not in the first wave of iPhone 6 launches because of the country’s review process. Other reports were more lurid with theories ranging from a crackdown on foreign companies to a rethink by Apple of  its simultaneous release strategy for key markets.

“The iPhone 6 has entered the final stage of the approval process, now it’s just a matter of time,” said Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) chief Miao Wei. “Netizens, please wait patiently,” he added in the interview that was picked up by Reuters.

According to Mobile World Live’s sources, the delay is a technical issue relating to the addition of NFC for the first time to the iPhone, meaning the approval process has taken longer.

Miao declined to supply a timeline for when the review would be completed, and the iPhone released. However, he did say a result from the review was expected “very soon”.