Legal Steps: Importing Vehicles to Turkey
December 2020
In this new legal writing series called “LEGAL STEPS”, we are going to summarize the legal requirements you should be aware of before you go into that specific business. For the first article of this series, we are going to talk about “Importing Vehicles to Turkey”.
First thing first, importing something into any country is not easy that is why you should always work with legal consultants to understand all the requirements you shall comply with your specific case; and tax and customs consultants to comply with all tax requirements and custom duties. Make sure that the tax and customs consultants that you are planning to work with are specialized in the good that you are planning to import and the country from which the good will be imported.
Below, you will read about the legal steps which shall be taken for importing vehicles to Turkey (as of the date of 13 December 2020), think of this list as an introduction for your business and always look for trustable professionals to comply with all necessary requirements for your specific conditions.
1. Obtaining the Type Approval Certification
Type Approval Certifications are required in order to be able to sell the imported vehicles in Turkey. Please consider this as the most important requirement to be completed before all steps.
There are two types of Type Approval Certifications valid in Turkey. 1. EC Type Approval Certificate: It is issued by the EU Approval Bodies. It is valid in EU countries and in Turkey.
2. National Type Approval Certificate: It is the Type Approval Certificate that is regulated in the national legislation and whose validity is limited to the Turkey borders.
Applications can be made online and according to the explanations made by the Turkish Standards Institution, Type Approval Certification applications are evaluated between 2-7 days and some delays are possible due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.
2. Complying with the Regulation on the Type Approval, Market Surveillance and Inspection of that Specific Type of Vehicle
Regulations, which you shall comply with, change depending on the type of vehicle you are planning to import. There are many regulations but most of these regulations are reflections of the related regulations in the European Union. (Names of the related EU regulation are also mentioned in the titles of the similar Turkish regulations. For example, )
Please don’t forget that some of the requirements are production requirements that is why to be careful about the products that you are choosing to import.
3. Tax and Customs Consultancy
While calculating custom tariffs, basically the following 3 points are taken into consideration:
- Classification of the good
- Origin of the good
- Customs value of the good
Please do not forget custom tariffs are not the only tax that will be paid during the import. Even importing a vehicle on which radio is attached can cause some additional taxes. Please consider taking customs and tax consultancy services from a tax and customs consultant who is specialized specifically in vehicles. This is a very technical and complicated area which is why taking a service from a professional will make it safer for the future and easier to understand the tax incentives as well.
In case of doubt, apply to the Ministry of Commerce in writing to take written opinion to your specific questions.
4. Obligation to Establish After Sales Service Stations
According to Article 5 of the After Sales Services Regulation, the manufacturers or importers are under the obligation to establish authorized service stations in Turkey to be able to sell vehicles in Turkey. Producers or importers may establish authorized service stations themselves or benefit from already established service stations or service organizations.
The number of services, which you should establish in 7 Geographical Regions in Turkey, changes depending on the type of vehicle you are importing. For example, you should establish 20 services if you are importing passenger cars; 10 services if you are importing motorcycles.
The manufacturers or importers are under the obligation to obtain an after-sales service qualification certificate approved by the Turkish Republic Ministry of Trade. (According to the Article 6 of the After Sales Services Regulations). Your after-sales services shall also fully comply with requirements of the After Sales Services Regulation while providing after-sales services.
All in all, these are the 4 main steps to be completed in order to import and sell vehicles in Turkey. As I mentioned too many times above, the good that you are importing may also require some additional steps to be completed that is why it is crucial to work closely with the legal consultants together with tax and customs consultants specialized in that specific good you are importing.