Official Gazette – March 17-30, 2025

I am sharing a summary of the developments published in the Official Gazette over the last two weeks, between March 17 and March 30, 2025.

Law No. 7545 on Cybersecurity was passed by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) and published in the Official Gazette. With this law, a Cybersecurity Board was established. It stipulates a prison sentence of 8-12 years for those who carry out cyberattacks against national power in cyberspace or who store such data in cyberspace, and a prison sentence of 10-15 years for those who disseminate, send to another location, or offer such data for sale. Furthermore, a prison sentence of 4-8 years was stipulated for those who fail to fulfill their obligation to maintain confidentiality. Additionally, the sale of cybersecurity products, software, hardware, and services abroad has been made subject to Board approval.

The Ministry of Health published the Regulation on the Independent Practice of Health Professionals. Under this regulation, health professionals such as clinical psychologists, nurses, physiotherapists, audiologists, dietitians, speech and language therapists, pedologists, and occupational therapists will now be able to open a "health professional service unit" by obtaining a license from the Ministry, but they will not be able to work in another health institution. A maximum of three health professionals may jointly open a health professional service unit, and a separate license will be issued for each health professional. They will be required to begin operations within 6 months of receiving the license, and only procedures specified in a prescription or treatment plan may be performed in these units.

The Ministry of Treasury and Finance published the Communiqué (Communiqué No: 2025-32/75) Amending the Communiqué (Communiqué No: 2008-32/34) on Decree No. 32 regarding the Protection of the Value of Turkish Currency. The limit for taking cash abroad was increased from 25,000 TL to 185,000 TL. It has become mandatory for securities traded in foreign financial markets to be transacted through banks and brokerage firms authorized by the Capital Markets Board (SPK). It was regulated that persons residing in Turkey may only buy and sell leveraged transactions and similar derivative instruments through institutions authorized by the SPK, and unauthorized persons are prohibited from brokering these transactions or making transfers abroad.

The relevant chambers of the Court of Cassation issued a decision to overturn for the benefit of the law, ruling that since an objection cancellation lawsuit is subject to a one-year statute of limitations, the amendment (islah) will be void if it is not made within the same one-year period, even if the lawsuit itself was filed on time.

The Constitutional Court, with its decision within the scope of the Expropriation Law, annulled the provision of the law that stipulated that an annulment lawsuit filed in administrative court against an expropriation action must be treated as a prejudicial issue in judicial court "only in the event of a stay of execution." 

The Constitutional Court annulled certain regulations made in the Tourism Encouragement Law No. 2634. Following the annulment decision, which will enter into force in 6 months, the authority to issue licenses to simple accommodation facilities such as apartment hotels and pensions, as well as the authority for tourism zone zoning planning, has reverted to the municipalities.