Change in the Scope of the Prohibition of Payment in Foreign Currency

The "Communiqué (Communiqué No: 2024-32/69) Amending the Communiqué on the Decree No: 32 on the Protection of the Value of the Turkish Currency (Communiqué No: 2008-32/34)" ("Amendment Communiqué"), which amends the implementation principles of the prohibition of payment in foreign currency, was published in the Official Gazette dated 28 February 2024 and numbered 32474.

With the Amendment Communiqué, the following transactions are exempted from the scope of the provision that allows the determination of agreement price and other payment obligations arising from the agreement in foreign currency or indexed to foreign currency, but obliges the payment obligations to be fulfilled in Turkish currency in movable sale agreements to be executed between the residents in Türkiye, except for vehicle sales agreements:

1. Payment obligations within the scope of negotiable instruments denominated in foreign currency that came into circulation before 19.04.2022 within the scope of the performance of movable sales agreements concluded before 19.04.2022,
2. Payment obligations under invoices issued before 19.04.2022,
3. Precious metals and precious stones trading transactions carried out in foreign currency in Borsa Istanbul Precious Metals and Diamond Market and payment obligations within the scope of settlement of these transactions,
4. Payment obligations under movable sale agreements for exports to be realised based on an intermediated export agreement through companies with the status of Foreign Trade Capital Companies (FTSC), Sectoral Foreign Trade Companies (SFTC), Export Consortium and E-Export Consortium according to the relevant legislation,
5. Payment obligations within the scope of movable sale agreements concluded for the delivery of goods to which the transit and customs warehouse regimes and the provisions for the temporary storage and free zone of the Customs Law dated 27.10.1999 and numbered 4458 are applied, including the sale and delivery of bunker fuel subject to customs declaration, and
6. Payment obligations regarding the delivery of goods subject to the movable sale agreements concluded with companies operating in free zones within the scope of foreign trade transactions.

The first three exceptions above are deemed to enter into force as of 21.04.2022 and the remaining exceptions entered into force on the date of publication in the Official Gazette, 28 February 2024. Therefore, the possibility of making the above-mentioned payment obligations in foreign currency has been enabled.