Trade between Turkey and the UE

In 2020, EU-Turkey trade amounted to approx. 130 billion EUR and increased in 2021 to approx. 160 billion EUR (increase by 23%). This has made Turkey one of the Community’s largest trading partners. Only in the first quarter of 2022, Poland exported to this country goods worth a total of 4,76 billion PLN and this was an increase of as much as 17% compared to the same period of the previous year. The value of trade between the EU and Turkey is growing steadily.

Turkey has been a member of European Union customs union since 1995, although it is not a EU member. This means that most of goods produced or released to free circulation in Turkey can be imported with zero duty.

Goods not included in customs union:

agricultural products,
carbon and steel products.

What is exported to Turkey?

Popular goods imported by Turkey are:

electronics, including computers,
cast iron and steel products,
precious metals,
plastic and plastic products,
vehicles,
chemical industry products,
paints, impregnations,
cleaning agents,
medicines and medical equipment,
household appliances,
building materials.

What is imported from Turkey?

Goods most often imported from Turkey:

motor vehicles and their parts – Turkish automotive companies are among the world’s leaders in manufacturing of vans, buses and trucks,
textile materials and products (clothing, textiles) ,
carpets,
mechanical and electronical devices,
base metals and products made of them, e.g. rods, copper ropes, aluminium plates and foils, galvanized iron and steel profiles,
mineral and chemical resources (eg. crude oil, kerosene),
unprocessed agriculturals products, food,
iron, steel.

Turkey is one of the leading steel producers in the world – steel from Turkey is known for its high quality (surpassing steel from China, Russia, Italy and Germany) and attractive price. This country has developed thanks to this industry. Among the foods imported from Turkey, the following are popular:

lentils,
fruits: watermelons, apricots, figs, lemons,
olives,
sheep’s milk,
hazelnuts,
sweets (e.g. halvah)

Duty and VAT for goods from Turkey

In most cases, imports from Turkey are treated as intra-Community acquisition of goods, for which zero duty applies. Importers should be especially vigilant in case of unprocessed agricultural products and coal and steel products. There are situations, where there is not one duty rate specified, but several – due to, for example, the import price of products.

These are duty rates for fresh lemons – for one type of cargo, there are different duty rates, which should be paid to carry out customs clearance.

Hovewer, it should be remembered that even if importers do not have to pay customs duties due to the common customs union, this does not exempt them from paying VAT. It is 8% or 23% – usually it is a higher rate.

Importing goods from Turkey can be a really profitable business, especially due to the membership in the EU customs union and the weakened Turkish currency. Before starting the procedure, all importers interested in importing products should carefully check, whether and how much duty he will have to pay for goods from Turkey and verify, what documents will be necessary to carry out customs clearance. It is really important to ensure that all formalities are met so as not to incur unnecessary costs or to be forced to pay customs duties according to rates for third countries.

Documents for import from Turkey

Although Turkey belongs to the EU customs union and there is zero duty on most products, the import procedure is similar to other non-EU countries.

In order to import goods from Turkey and carry out customs clearance in Poland, the following documents should have to be attached to the declaration:

import invoice – commercial invoice or proforma, issued by the seller,
waybill (SMGS, CIM, CMR, B/L, AWB),
packing list – it is mandatory when invoice does not meet the function of the specification,
certificate of origin – e.g. for agricultural products, textiles,
ATR certificate (Admission Temporaire Roulette) – the application of preferential duty rates requires a proof that imported goods come from Turkey. ATR document is such proof and it is necessary for trade between UE and Turkey (important note – ATR is not equal with a certificate of origin)
EUR1, EUR-MED certificate or invoice declaration – these documents are required for importing most of agricultural products and all coal and steel products,
documents confirming preferential status of the goods – withouth them, importer may be forced to pay customs duty according to rates for third countries,
CE declaration – primarily for electronic and electrial equipment, medical devices, toys, machines. Importer is obligated to ensure that imported product is safe and complies with European Standards. It is worth veryfing it before transporting of goods from Turkey.
certificate specyfing raw material composition of the goods – if it is necessary to determine the tariff category.

Document necessary to apply the preferential duty rate (0%) is:

ATR certificate for goods from chapters CN: 25-97 withouth coal and steel (industrial goods),
EUR 1 certificate for unprocessed agricultural products CN: 1-25 including coal and steel.

A.TR certificate can be issued by customs authorities in Turkey or a Member State of European Union, at the exporter’s request.

Before buing and importing goods from Turkey, it is worth veryfing company, from which we are going to buy products.

Transport of goods to/from Turkey – types of transport

The location of Turkey gives us many opportunities when it comes to transporting goods.

This country has approx. 8,000 km of coastline and many seaports, from which there are many connections to European ports.

Main container ports in Turkey:

Ambarliv –Marport is a main container terminal. Other two container terminals are Kumport and Mardasport.

Haydarpasa – the biggest port in Istanbul till early 2000. Since the construction of Port of Ambarliv, most of operations have been moved there. It connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara and Mediterranean Sea.

Mersin – the largest container port in Turkey – it has 9 containers quays. It is Turkey’s main gate to the Mediterranean Sea.

Izmir – one of the largest ports on the west coast.

Gemlik – port located on north-west coast. Exports mainly regional products and vehicles.

Between Turkey and Poland there are indirect sea connections – ships from several Turkish ports (Aliaga, Antalya, Gebze, Gemlik, Iskenderun, Istanbul, Izmir, Mersin, Samsun, Tekirdag, Trabzon) arrive at the port of Gdynia, withs stops at the ports of Antwerp (BE) and/or Bremerhaven (DE) earlier.

Turkey’s connection to the European continent also enables the transport of goods by rail and road. There are regular, direct rail connections between the Turkish and Polish terminals.

Regular intermodal trains run between Halkali terminal, which is located in European part of Istanbul and Polish terminals in Łódź and Gliwice, which transport 45’HC containers. Goods are delivered from Turkey to Poland in about a week.

There are also regular intermodal rails connections between Turkish terminals in Istanbul, Köseköy, Çerkezköy and terminals in Europe:

Slovakia – Dunajska Streda, Bratislava,
Hungary – Budapest,
Germany – Giengen,
Romania – Curtici.

Cargo on this routes can be transported in different types of containers (20’, 30, 45’), carriers also allow the transport of some ADR cargo.

Goods can be transported by planes as well, for example from Istanbul to Warsaw. Additionaly it is possible to order Road Feeder Service – road transport of goods from the airport to another city on airlines behalf. This type of transport is the most expensive, but also the fastest form of cargo movement – it is reccomended for small or valuable shipments.

Certainly, the best financial solution is sea freight – this type of transport is slower than rail or plane, but the most profitable for importer, especially for the large loads.

Turkish business culture

Despite the fact that Turkey is dominated by Muslim faith, religious issues do not have a significant impact for business contacts. For Turkish entrepreneurs face-to-face contacts and building long-term business relations are the most important.

Important elements in Turkish business culture include:

bargaining – it is an inseparable element of business negotiations. Lack of bargaining may be considered as rude.
business meeting should be started with a casual talk, later we move on to commercial issues. Turkish people like to talk abot personal life – so it should not be a surprise if they ask about family. A good signal is an invitation to the restaurant after the meeting.
greeting – shake the right hand of all participants of the meeting, starting with the oldest person. In the case of women, they must initiate the greeting gesture.
Turkish entrepreneurs expect punctuality from European contractors (although they do not arrive for meetings on time), and business meetings should be arranged at least two weeks in advance. It is the best to avoid holiday months and the Ramadan period (especially in smaller towns),
avoiding offensive gestures – e.g. standing with hands in pockets or on hips. A man should go there before a woman and if he gives way to her, e.g. by opening the door – he is considered a coward. We should also be not surprised to see man walking together and hugging – it simply means frendship. In Turkey you should eat and drink sitting down.

Turkish businessmen are open to European culture and contacts with local contractors. Contrary to Europe, gifts play a minor role there (if we decide to give a gift, it should not be expensive, as it may be considered a bribe; we should avoid giving alcohol), as well as giving business cards.

What information should be included in the request for transport from/to Turkey

When submitting a request for the transport of goods, please include the following information:

name of the goods with the CN/NHM code,
quantity,
how is it packed – weight and dimensions,
place of dispatch and destination,
when the transport will be carry out,
in case of chemical products, ADR goods – MSDS card,
information, on what Incoterms 2020 base transport will be carry out.

It is worth to send any documents that will help in customs tariff verification and preparing to customs clearance.

An experienced team of TSL Silesia forwarders will help you to find the best means of transporting goods from/to Turkey at the best price and provide support with customs clearance.

ul. Rycerska 9, 41-902 Bytom

office@tsl-silesia.com.pl

+48 (32) 282 90 62

+48 (32) 281 34 02