The Ministry of Customs and Trade ("the Ministry") has prepared the Communiqué according to Article 11 of the Regulation about the Organization of e-Trade and the e-trade enabler supplier and Art. 16 of the intermediary service providers published on 26/8/2015 in the 29457 numbered official gazette, for agreements for the sale of goods and services or for orders of service and intermediary service providers. The Communiqué defines further the requirements for natural and legal persons to register for e-commerce and relevant information, which needs to be provided. The Communiqué was published in the official gazette and entered into force on August 11, 2017.

The Communiqué provides that before starting to conduct economic activities, the registration over the trade electronic data system ("ETBİS") is required for (i) service providers operating in their own e-commerce environment; (ii) intermediary service providers and (iii) providers resident and conducting e-trade activities within Turkey together with providers resident outside of Turkey contracting or ordering through an intermediary service provider.

Natural and legal corporate persons sign into ETBIS with their MERSIS number and tax identification number, as for merchants and craftsman with their Turkish identification number and tax identification number and moreover regardless of being tradesman and merchants, persons conducting activities with e-commerce or intermediation through the mobile application and entering the field name.

To ELBIS registered service and intermediary service providers must notify within 30 days from the date of registration to ELBIS in general the following matters, if the Ministry has not asked for additional information:

  • A sufficiently registered e-mail address for the Communiqué,
  • E-commerce type,
  • Economic activities outside of e-commerce,
  • Types of goods and services provided within e-commerce,
  • Patterns of payment provided within e-commerce,
  • Second hand goods, whether these goods are offered on the market, and if so which types have been put on the market within e-commerce,
  • Information regarding services of banks showing activity according to the Banking Law No. 5411 passed on 9/10/2005 and receiving services from payment and electronic money institutions according to Law No 6493 on payment and security settlement systems, payment services and electronic money institutions
  • Information from other institutions than those mentioned above, such as institutions providing services and where the previously mentioned institutions are not providing intermediary payment methods
  • Information regarding services received from cargo and logistics operators receiving M type authorization certificates according to the road transport regulation published on 11/6/2009 in the official gazette 27255,
  • Information on providers of e-commerce infrastructure services,
  • Information from country and address databases where personal data and customer information are kept

In addition to the first paragraph, the service providers operating in their own e-commerce environment shall provide information for the manufacturing places, warehouse addresses and names of the intermediary service providers engaged in cross-border e-commerce activities.

Notice regarding the annual volume of trade on the basis of the country and payment methods used in cross-border e-commerce transactions within the e-commerce environment shall be given by the end of March of each year.

The aforementioned notice will be declared by natural persons them self or their authorized representatives and in the case of legal persons by their authorized representatives through e-state to ETBIS. TO ETBIS registered service and intermediary service providers and information deemed to be necessary shall be announced on the Ministry's website or on www.eticaret.gov.tr, the official web site which will be created by the Ministry in a while.

According to Art. 1 of the Communiqué, service and intermediary service providers, conducting activities from the 01/12/2017 onwards, shall fulfil their obligations stated in the Communiqué within thirty days from the date stated before.

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