February 3-16, 2025 Official Gazette Review

I am sharing a summary of the developments published in the Official Gazette over the last two weeks, between February 3 and February 16, 2025.

Law No. 7539 on Amendments to Certain Laws has been published. This is an omnibus law that includes regulations in the economic field, as well as provisions regarding pension payments and the powers of the State Supervisory Council (DDK). With this law, the minimum monthly payment amount for retirees and beneficiaries receiving old-age, disability, or survivor pensions has been increased to 14,469 TL. The State Supervisory Council has been granted the authority to conduct administrative investigations, inquiries, research, and audits in associations and foundations serving the public interest, cooperatives, unions, and all types of partnerships and subsidiaries of these institutions and organizations. Auditors have also been granted the right to request the suspension of officials of any level or rank who hinder or obstruct the audit. Furthermore, in cases where there is strong suspicion that crimes defined under the Turkish Penal Code—such as "laundering assets derived from crime," "armed organization," "providing weapons," or "financing of terrorism"—have been committed, the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) may be appointed as a trustee for companies or assets for a period of 5 years.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has published the Communiqué on the Packaging and Bandrolling of Ethyl Alcohol (Communiqué No: 2024/13). With the new regulation, ethyl alcohol can be placed on the market in packages under 250 liters, or in containers or tankers over 250 liters, and must be bandrolled beforehand. Ethyl alcohol for general use may be marketed in 1, 5, 10, and 20-liter containers and in white plastic. A certificate of conformity must first be obtained from the Mint for the packaging and containers.

The Constitutional Court (AYM), in a decision published in the Official Gazette, ruled that the excessive duration of a case regarding the return of a child of divorced parents to a foreign country, and the issuance of a return order without sufficiently evaluating the applicant mother's claims, constituted a violation of the right to respect for family life.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism has published the Regulation on Amendments to the Regulation on Supporting the Cinema Sector. Restrictions regarding the payment of support to those who receive multiple types of support have been lifted, provided that an application is made to sign a contract within 30 days for the supported projects. The items that can be shown as expenditure expenses have been expanded.

The Presidential decree accepted by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) regarding the extension of the mission of Turkish Armed Forces naval elements in the Gulf of Aden, off the coast of Somalia, the Arabian Sea, and adjacent regions for another year has been published.

The General Communiqué on Law No. 7440 on the Restructuring of Certain Receivables (Series No: 8), issued by the Ministry of Treasury and Finance (Revenue Administration), states that for taxpayers affected by the February 6, 2023 earthquakes in Adıyaman, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, and Malatya, as well as the İslâhiye and Nurdağı districts of Gaziantep, payments to be made under the relevant law to offices in these locations must be made by September 1, with the first installment, including advance payments, to be paid by September 30, followed by the second installment by October 31, and subsequent installments in the following months.

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure has published the Regulation on Pilotage and Towage Services. Consequently, the previous "Regulation on Pilotage and Towage Services" has been repealed. With this change, the ministry will be able to delegate pilotage and towage services via tender for up to 20 years.

The Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change has published the General Communiqué on National Real Estate (Serial No: 420). Thus, the authority of governorships in the sale, leasing, allocation, free transfer, and easement rights of immovable properties has been increased, and many transactions that previously required Ministry approval can now be carried out directly by governorships or by district governorships with gubernatorial approval.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has published the Turkish Food Codex Communiqué on Sampling and Analysis Method Criteria for Official Control of Trace Elements and Processing Contaminants in Food (Communiqué No: 2024/10). Maximum limits in food have been set for processing contaminants such as lead, cadmium, mercury, arsenic, tin, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol, and glycidyl fatty acid esters. A period until December 31, 2025, has been granted for compliance with the regulation, which was prepared in accordance with the European Commission Regulation.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has published the Turkish Food Codex Regulation on Microbiological Criteria, repealing the previous regulation. The regulation has been harmonized with EU legislation, and microorganisms have been updated with new limits set.

The Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Treasury and Finance have published the Communiqué on Keeping Commercial Books Not Related to Business Accounting in Electronic Environment. According to the communiqué, which will enter into force on July 1, 2025, businesses will be required to keep their share ledgers, board of directors and managers' board decision books, as well as general assembly and negotiation books, in an electronic environment.

The Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) has granted an operating license to Ziraat Finansal Kiralama AŞ for financial leasing, factoring, and financing activities.