Turkey: E-invoicing Rules and Regulations
In Turkey, the transition to an e-invoicing system for businesses began as early as 2012, when alcohol, tobacco, and oil companies were first required to submit e-invoices. After that, more and more companies were progressively required to issue electronic invoices based on their turnover:
- In 2013, companies with a turnover of 25 million Turkish lira were also required to issue e-invoices
- In 2016, this threshold was lowered to 10 million Turkish lira
- In 2019, the threshold was further lowered to 5 million Turkish lira (approx. USD 600 thousand at the moment), starting from July 1, 2020.
The electronic invoicing system is now growing in importance in Turkey, and covers a growing number of businesses. Companies have to adapt to it in order to make sure they’re tax compliant and can meet all their legal obligations.
On 19 October 2019, a General Communique regarding tax procedures was published, which defined the e-invoicing system’s parameters and the requirements with which companies need to comply.
Other electronic documents are also covered:
- Self-employment receipts
- Producer receipts
- Delivery notes
- Tickets
- Bank receipts
- Expense notes
- Insurance policies and insurance commission expense documents
- Currency exchange documents
- E-arşiv invoices.
This is a part of the Turkish tax authorities’ efforts to prevent tax fraud by requiring businesses to switch to electronic reporting.
E-invoicing in Turkey: Rules and Requirements
Starting from July 1, 2020, companies who had generated a gross revenue of over 5 million Turkish lira in 2018 and 2019 were required to transition to e-invoicing. Companies who reach this threshold in 2020 (or in the following years) have the obligation to transition to e-invoicing no later than by the seventh month of the next fiscal year.
In addition to that, there are requirements based on the companies’ sector. Some businesses are therefore required to issue electronic invoices regardless of their revenue, such as:
- Fruit and vegetable middlemen traders
- Online marketplaces and other service providers facilitating online transactions
- Companies in the energy sector (if licenced by the Turkish regulatory authority in the energy market)
- Importing companies and others.
Obviously, the Turkish government’s goal is to expand the e-invoicing mandate to cover all or nearly all transactions in the next years.
What’s the E-Arşiv Invoice (E-Arşiv Fatura)?
E-arşiv invoices are used for transactions in which the invoice recipient is not registered at the Turkish Revenue Administration (TRA) portal. After January 2020, it became obligatory for some companies, such as online advertisers and intermediary service providers. E-arşiv invoices must be sent electronically. Even companies who aren’t currently covered by the new e-invoicing rules’ scope must issue e-arşiv invoices through the TRA portal, if the amounts invoiced to a single buyer within a day exceed 5 thousand Turkish lira for B2B transactions or 30 thousand Turkish lira for B2C transactions.
Besides that, the Turkish government is committed to minimizing the VAT gap (the difference between the expected and the real VAT revenue). Because of this, companies who are doing business in Turkey are required to meet a growing number of reporting requirements, and adapt to e-invoicing rules.
Fonoa Automated Real-time Invoice Reporting Solution
We are aware that new regulations have a substantial impact on how businesses operate. That’s why we built Fonoa Reporting, a solution that automatically reports sales transactions to tax authorities around the world.
If your business is affected by real-time invoice reporting obligations anywhere in the world, reach out to us, and we will help you automate the invoice reporting process.
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