Service Export 80% Tax Exemption, Holiday Food Package, Commercial Vehicles Under Tax Law, and More

- Income tax returns and the first installment payment have been extended to Friday, April 5, 2024.

- The rediscount rate to be applied in current account (ADAT) interest calculations has been increased to 51.75%. https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2024/04/20240401-4.pdf

- SSI (Social Security Institution) late payment penalties have been increased from 2% to 3%. https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2024/03/20240312-18.pdf

- Amendments have been made to the communiqué on workplace hazard classes regarding Occupational Health and Safety. Certain NACE codes have been reclassified as "Low Hazard". https://www.resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2024/03/20240305-5.htm

- Within the scope of the action plan against the informal economy, lease agreements will be executed via e-Government.

- Loading funds onto personnel meal cards for grocery shopping or providing assistance such as Ramadan food packages are subject to income and stamp taxes, and must be shown on the employee's payroll. Since this constitutes assistance in kind, SSI contributions are not calculated.

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The concept of commercial and passenger vehicles:

- A portion of passenger vehicle expenses (fuel, maintenance, depreciation, Special Consumption Tax (SCT), etc.) cannot be deducted as expenses.

- There are certain conditions for deducting all expenses in full. One of these conditions is that the vehicle in question must be commercial.

- What is meant here as commercial is not the designation written on the vehicle registration. To be considered commercial under tax laws, a vehicle must be classified under the 87.04 group in the customs tariff schedule. Even if "commercial" is written on the vehicle registration, it is not considered commercial under tax laws if it is not in the 87.04 customs tariff group.

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Service export and 80% earnings exemptionarchitecture, engineering, design, software, medical reporting, bookkeeping, call center, product testing, certification, data storage, data processing, and data analysis provided in Turkey to persons not resident in Turkey and whose workplace, legal, and business center are abroad, and which are exclusively utilized abroad, can be deducted from corporate earnings.

- The service provided within the scope of the law must be utilized abroad.

- The service provided to the non-resident must have no relation to their activities in Turkey.

- The invoice amounts issued for these services must have been collected.

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Automatic (mandatory) BES (Private Pension System)

- If the number of employees at the workplace is 5 or more, transition to automatic BES is mandatory in the following year.

- Employers are legally obligated to conclude an agreement with a pension company and include their eligible employees in this plan.

- A deduction of 3% is made from the employees' salaries.

- Automatic BES is mandatory for those under 45 years of age.

- Cancellation of automatic BES is easy and can be canceled after 2 months have passed.

- In the event of a job change, the employee's existing BES is transferred to the pension plan operated by the new workplace.

- Contributions to automatic BES can be suspended for a period not exceeding 3 months.

- Those who opt out of automatic BES can rejoin if they wish.

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Micro-export shipment limits

- The weight of the shipped goods must be less than 300 kg.

- The value of the shipped goods must be less than 15,000 EUR.

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- In part-time employment, if there is work for more than 8 days but less than 30 days per month, the obligation for General Health Insurance (GHI) for the days under 30 has been lifted. For example, an employee insured for 9 days on a part-time basis will be able to benefit from general health insurance even if they do not pay GHI for the remaining 21 days.

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- If real estate (housing, land, etc.) acquired by natural persons for consideration is sold within 5 years starting from the date of purchase, the earnings obtained are subject to income tax. The exemption amount for the year 2024 (87,000 TRY) is deducted from the earnings, and indexing is applied based on the purchase and sale dates.

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