The era of duty-free orders has ended: Tax exemption for overseas shopping terminated
With a Presidential decree, the duty-free shopping opportunity for goods brought from abroad has been abolished; new tax rates have been increased for the European Union and other countries.
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With the Presidential Decree published in the Official Gazette, changes have been made to the exemptions for non-commercial goods brought by passengers from abroad. With the latest regulation, the tax rates to be applied between European Union countries and other countries for products not exceeding 1500 Euros have been redefined.
According to the decision, the single and flat tax rate for goods coming from EU countries with a value under 1500 Euros has been set at 30 percent. For similar goods brought directly from other countries, this rate has been increased to 60 percent. Additionally, for goods included in the list under the Special Consumption Tax Law No. 4760, an additional 20 percent tax will be applied on top of the determined rates.
The 30 Euro customs exemption previously applied to overseas shopping has been completely abolished. As a result, all individual purchases made from abroad will now be subject to customs duty, and a detailed customs declaration will be prepared for each order. In addition to taxes, consumers will also be liable to pay an extra fee for the declaration preparation service.
Following the decision, the opportunity for affordable overseas orders is coming to an end. Even low-value products will now cost consumers significantly more due to high taxes and additional costs. For example, even for a 100 TL product, the total of taxes and expenses could reach thousands of liras.
The published Presidential Decree will enter into force 30 days after its announcement. Implementation and monitoring will be under the authority of the Ministry of Trade.