🇹🇷How to import into Turkey
To import into Turkey, most goods clear customs freely, but specific sectors need a permit, product registration or import licence from a named regulator before the shipment lands. A legitimate importer of those goods holds the current document, ask for it and check it at the source.
Importing into Turkey: the basics
- Customs identity: Tax number and customs registration
- Importers register with the Ministry of Trade and clear goods under their tax number through a customs broker. Ministry of Trade, Turkey
- Import tax at the border
- Standard KDV in Turkey is 20%, charged on goods plus freight plus duty. GIB (Revenue Administration) Duty depends on the product's HS code, so we do not state a rate: look it up in Turkish customs tariff search , then put both into the landed-cost calculator.
- Documents that travel with the shipment
- Commercial invoice · Packing list · Transport document (CMR, bill of lading or air waybill) · Customs declaration, filed by you or your broker · Proof of origin, when claiming a preferential duty rate
- Incoterms a small supplier will actually agree to: EXW or FCA
- Small and artisan producers normally sell EXW (you collect at their workshop) or FCA (they hand the goods to your carrier). Expect to arrange freight, insurance and customs clearance yourself, or through a forwarder. DAP and DDP shift carriage and import formalities onto the seller, and a small maker will usually decline them: under DDP the seller must even be able to pay import taxes in your country. Larger exporters more often quote FOB or CIF for sea freight. Compare all Incoterms.
- Worth knowing before the first shipment
- The EU-Turkey customs union covers industrial goods: those move with an A.TR movement certificate rather than an origin declaration.
- Agricultural goods and coal/steel are outside the customs union and follow ordinary tariff rules.
Reviewed 2026-07-21. Factual pointers to public rules, not legal advice; confirm with customs or a broker before shipping.
Sector import rules
These sectors carry their own import requirement in Turkey. For each, a legitimate importer holds the document named below, issued by the named regulator. Ask for it, then verify it at the source.
- medical devicesRegistration required
product registration from the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (TITCK).
Importer must register the medical devices in the UTS (Product Tracking System) database before marketing.
Official source - pharmaceuticalsRegistration required
product registration from the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (TITCK).
Importer must obtain a marketing authorization from TITCK and a control certificate for customs entry.
Official source - telecom/radio equipmentImport permit required
conformity certificate from the Information Technologies and Communications Authority (BTK).
Importer must verify the CE declaration of conformity and register the equipment via the BTK system.
We could not confirm a live official link for this regulator, so no source is shown. Search the regulator name on the Turkey government domain to reach it.
This is a factual pointer to public rules, not legal advice, and the list is not exhaustive.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a licence to import into Turkey?
- It depends on the product. General goods clear Turkey customs without a sector licence, but regulated sectors (medical devices, pharmaceuticals, telecom/radio equipment) require a specific permit, registration or licence from the regulator named on this page.
- How do I check an importer in Turkey is allowed to bring in my product?
- Ask the buyer for the import permit or product-registration number for the sector, then confirm it with the named regulator. A genuine importer of regulated goods already holds one; a buyer who cannot produce it may not clear customs.
- Is importing a specific product into Turkey ever banned?
- Most sectors are permitted with the right licence or registration. Always confirm the current rule with the named regulator before shipping.
- What do I need to clear customs in Turkey?
- A business importing into Turkey needs a Tax number and customs registration. Importers register with the Ministry of Trade and clear goods under their tax number through a customs broker. A normal commercial shipment also travels with: commercial invoice, packing list, transport document (cmr, bill of lading or air waybill), customs declaration, filed by you or your broker, proof of origin, when claiming a preferential duty rate.
- How much tax do I pay importing into Turkey?
- Standard KDV in Turkey is 20%, charged on the goods plus freight plus duty. Customs duty depends on the product's HS code, so there is no single rate: look yours up in Turkish customs tariff search, then add both to the goods and freight to get the landed cost.
- Which Incoterms will a small supplier agree to?
- Usually EXW or FCA. Small and artisan producers normally sell EXW (you collect at their workshop) or FCA (they hand the goods to your carrier). Expect to arrange freight, insurance and customs clearance yourself, or through a forwarder. DAP and DDP shift carriage and import formalities onto the seller, and a small maker will usually decline them: under DDP the seller must even be able to pay import taxes in your country. Larger exporters more often quote FOB or CIF for sea freight.
Turkey suppliers by sector
Manufacturers and wholesalers based in Turkey, with the open-record facts we hold on each and a link to the free public source behind them.
Importing for the first time? Read the first-time importer sequence (country choice, maker checks, landed cost, a survivable first order).