Key Regulations in the Economy

Dear Member, 

The text prepared by the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Türkiye (TEPAV) on important decisions and changes concerning the economy is as follows; 

1. The obligation to wear masks in open areas has been lifted. The HES code and PCR requirements in shopping malls, cinemas and transport have been abolished. The circular prepared by the Ministry of Interior within the scope of Covid-19 measures has been sent to the governorships. According to the circular, the application of the provisions on mask use, HES code checks and the requirement to present a negative PCR test result was terminated as of 03.03.2022. The obligation to use masks will not apply in open areas and in indoor places where social distancing can be maintained and suitable ventilation conditions exist. On the other hand, until a new decision is taken, the obligation to use masks will continue to apply in indoor places such as schools, hospitals, cinemas and theatres where the necessary social distance between persons cannot be maintained, and in all kinds of public transport vehicles (including intercity) such as buses, minibuses, shuttles, trains, metros, ferries and aircraft.

2. In FX-Protected Deposits (KKM), a renewal option has been introduced for maturing deposits of domestic resident legal entities, and the shortest maturity for conversion from foreign currency to TL has been reduced from 6 months to 3 months. According to the communiqué of the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye published in the Official Gazette, a renewal option has been introduced for maturing deposits in KKM. Those wishing to continue to benefit from the KKM facility at maturity will be able to continue to benefit from the support on the basis of the foreign currency amount converted at the initial opening and the conversion rate. On the other hand, with the new regulation, the shortest maturity for conversion from foreign currency to TL in KKM for domestic resident legal entities has been reduced from 6 months to 3 months. Thus, companies will be able to convert their foreign currency into KKM for a period of 3 months and will have the option of renewal at maturity.

3. A new regulation has been introduced for overdue tax debts; the overdue tax debts of beneficiaries may be offset against their receivables from public administrations within the scope of the Central Government, without waiting for the entire payment. Pursuant to the General Communiqué of the General Directorate of Public Accounts of the Ministry of Treasury and Finance on the offsetting of overdue tax debts, statutory withholdings and other deductions in payment documents, until the payment process for the entire progress payment of the beneficiary is completed, payment by offset may be made by issuing a payment order document for the portion up to the amount covering the beneficiary's overdue tax debt and other deductions. The procedures and principles for carrying out the transactions related to payments within this scope electronically will be determined by the Ministry. The Ministry will also be authorised to determine different practices by public administration and payment type in transactions within the scope of the communiqué.

The practice aims to ensure the rapid collection of public receivables by offset, to prevent beneficiaries from incurring burdens such as interest arising from the late payment of tax due to the delay caused by waiting for the entire payment, and to prevent grievances such as being unable to participate in public tenders due to tax debt.

4. The principles regarding the sale of seized movable property by electronic auction under the enforcement and bankruptcy law have been determined. According to the regulation of the Ministry of Justice published in the Official Gazette, the sale of movable property will be carried out by auction. The day and time range in which the first and second auctions will be held will be announced at least 15 days before the auction start date. The announcement and specifications to be published on the Electronic Sales Portal will remain accessible until the end of the auction. The start date of the second auction will be set so as not to exceed 1 month from the end date of the first auction. The bidding period in auctions held on the Electronic Sales Portal has been set at 7 days. 

5. Customs duties on canola, safflower, corn, soybean and palm oils have been reduced to zero. Pursuant to the "Presidential Decision on Amending the Import Regime Decision" published in the Official Gazette on 4 March 2022, the customs duty rates applied to the oil raw material canola seed and to canola, safflower, corn, soybean and palm oils, which can substitute for sunflower oil, have been reduced to zero until 30 June 2022. It was stated that the decision was taken to ensure that the Russia-Ukraine War and developments in the Black Sea Basin do not cause problems in the supply of oilseeds and vegetable oils, and to ensure supply security and price stability in basic food products.

6. The list of products included in the scope of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's authority to make periodic arrangements on their export has been expanded; flour, meat and oil have been added to the scope. With the communiqué published in the Official Gazette, certain types of flour and oil expected to face supply shortages due to the war between Russia and Ukraine have also been added to the list. In this context, the Ministry may also impose restrictions on the export of rice, wheat and corn flour, corn grits, wheat semolina, wheat for ashure, soybean oil, sunflower seed oil and corn. Cattle and sheep/goat meat have also been included among the products subject to the permission of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.

The authority granted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry on 27 January 2022 covered 20 products such as potatoes, tomatoes, dry onions and garlic, beans, aubergines, green peppers, olives, oranges, red lentils, lemons, watermelons, apples, olive oil, chicken meat, chicken eggs and butter. Following this authorisation, restrictions were imposed on the export of olive oil, beans and red lentils on 28 February 2022. With the latest renewal, the scope of the list has been expanded to 37 products.

7. Grant support of up to 75 per cent of the project cost will be provided for agricultural production on vacant, idle and fallow land and for the establishment of drying and processing facilities. According to the Presidential Decision on Supporting the Effective Use of Agricultural Land published in the Official Gazette, the production of cereals, legumes and oilseed crops on vacant and idle land, and the introduction into production of high value-added plant species on land unsuitable for cultivated agriculture, have been included in the scope of grant support. In order to reduce post-harvest losses and increase added value, grant support of up to 75 per cent of the project cost will be provided for the establishment of post-primary-production drying and processing facilities and for practices aimed at increasing the yield per unit area of plant species through grafting, variety change and similar technical applications.

8. Amendments have been made to the Regulation on the Procedures and Principles for the Determination, Registration and Approval of Protected Areas. With the regulation published by the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change in the Official Gazette dated 5 March 2022, although there is an absolute construction ban in strictly protected areas, according to the assessment to be made by the regional commissions regarding the nature and content of the activities and the state of necessity:

• wastewater, drinking water, natural gas and electricity lines, provided that the existing road route is used, in cases of necessity required by the public interest,
• facilities essential for national security,
• works for opening forest fire roads, the maintenance and repair of forests, and combating biotic pests and abiotic factors (fire, flood, storm),
• and fishing activities carried out with traditional hunting methods arising from the characteristics of the area, in line with the opinions of the relevant public institutions and provided that no structure is built, in order to ensure the continuity of the natural balance in fishing weir and lagoon ecosystems, may be carried out.

9. The Tekirdağ Natural Gas Combined Cycle A and B power plants belonging to Elektrik Üretim AŞ (EÜAŞ), the land belonging to the power plants and the sea areas under the disposal of the state have been included in the scope of privatisation. According to two separate Presidential decisions published in the Official Gazette, both power plants and the immovable properties belonging to them will be privatised by the asset sale method, and the land and sea areas under the sovereignty and disposal of the state will be privatised by the method of granting operating rights. According to the announcements, there are a total of 21 plots of land in Marmara Ereğlisi and 15 sea areas with specified coordinates belonging to the Tekirdağ Natural Gas Combined Cycle A Power Plant, and 5 plots of land and 24 sea areas with specified coordinates belonging to the Tekirdağ Natural Gas Combined Cycle B Power Plant. Both privatisation transactions will be completed by 31 December 2025.

10. The Nuclear Regulatory Law entered into force upon its publication in the Official Gazette. Activities related to nuclear energy and ionising radiation, and the persons, facilities, devices and materials related to these activities, will fall within the scope of this Law. The purpose of the Law is stated as determining, on the basis of the principle of peaceful use, the principles and procedures to be applied for the protection of workers, the public, the environment and future generations from the possible harmful effects of ionising radiation during the conduct of activities related to nuclear energy and ionising radiation, as well as the responsibilities of the parties, the powers and responsibilities of the Nuclear Regulatory Authority, which holds regulatory control authority over these activities, and the legal liability for nuclear damage arising from nuclear incidents.

11. A notification obligation has been introduced by the Competition Authority regarding technology undertakings operating in the fields of digital platforms, software and gaming software, and health technologies. According to the communiqué published in the Official Gazette, the turnover thresholds on which notification is based for mergers and acquisitions have been raised: where the total Türkiye turnover of the transaction parties exceeds 750 million lira and the Türkiye turnover of at least two of the transaction parties each exceeds 250 million lira, or where the Türkiye turnover of the asset or activity subject to the acquisition in acquisitions, or of at least one of the transaction parties in mergers, exceeds 250 million lira and the worldwide turnover of at least one of the other transaction parties exceeds 3 billion lira, it will be mandatory to obtain permission from the Competition Board for the transaction in question to acquire legal validity. In transactions concerning the acquisition of technology undertakings operating in the Turkish geographic market, having R&D activities or providing services to users in Türkiye, the 250 million lira thresholds will not be sought. In the communiqué, "technology undertakings" are defined as undertakings operating in the fields of digital platforms, software and gaming software, financial technologies, biotechnology, pharmacology, agricultural chemicals and health technologies, or assets related to them. 

12. A bill that also includes measures for the protection of consumers has been submitted to the Speaker's Office of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye. The bill envisages: amending the conditions under which the entire remaining debt becomes due in the event of the consumer's default in instalment sales contracts in favour of the consumer; accepting that consumers who repay the entire loan debt early within the withdrawal period have also exercised their right of withdrawal and ensuring the refund of the fees that must be refunded; removing the requirement for notification thirty days in advance for a reduction in the interest rate to take effect in open-ended credit agreements; making compliance with the delivery date set in the contract mandatory for pre-paid housing; imposing various responsibilities on intermediary service providers regarding distance contracts to which consumers are parties through platforms; making it mandatory that timeshare holiday contracts subject to a right in rem be established only in the form of a timeshare property contract within the scope of the procedures and principles set out in the Condominium Law; regulating the consumer's right of withdrawal from timeshare holiday contracts; returning products whose economic life has not ended to the economy by improving their hardware, software or physical features; introducing an obligation for manufacturers and importers to register information on all authorised service stations in the system established by the Ministry of Trade; granting consumers the right to claim compensation for damage if after-sales service for the goods is not provided by manufacturers and importers during the useful life determined by the Ministry; granting the Ministry of Trade the authority to establish consumer arbitration committees as well as to determine their jurisdictions and division of work; making certain arrangements to ensure that consumer arbitration committees work productively and effectively, taking into account their workload; and restructuring administrative fines.

 

 

 

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Date Added :2022-03-10 02:49:00