Amendments to the Anti-Smuggling Law Grand National Assembly of Turkey has approved a Law on June 18th, 2014, which makes amendments on Turkish Criminal Code and Other Certain Laws ("Law numbered 6545"). According to the mentioned law several provisions of the Anti-Smuggling Law numbered 5607 and dated March 21st, 2007 ("Anti-Smuggling Law") have changed. Anti-Smuggling Law has the purpose of preventing the acts and the sanctions of the illegal trading, to follow, to determine the principles and methods.

However, please note that the changes will enter into force following the approval of the President of Turkey and finally being published on the Official Gazette. It is indicated at the article 104 of the Law numbered 6546 that the amendments will be effective beginning of the day the law published on the Official Gazette.

As per article 89 of the Law numbered 6545 following articles of the Anti-Smuggling Law are changed:

  • Paragraphs 2 between 6, 8 between 11 and 18 of article 3 are amended,
  • Paragraphs 19 and 20 of article 3 are repealed,
  • A new paragraph is added to article 3 as paragraph 22.

As indicated above all the changes are made at the paragraphs of article 3 of the Anti- Smuggling Law, which is entitled as "Crimes and Misdemeanors".

The greater part of the amendments is changing the lower and upper limits of the penalties stipulated at the concerned article. In general, the lower limits are doubled and the upper limits are increased by fifty per cent. While the provisions concerning the penalties are changed there are situations that i) the lower limit is increased and the upper limit has not changed, ii) lower and upper limits are not changed.

Paragraph 19 of article 3 was regulating the penalties for using counterfeit banderol, etiquette, hologram and similar items on the packaging of alcoholic drinks, and paragraph 20 was regulating the penalties for having difference between the banderol, etiquette, hologram and the labels containing the product information.

Additionally the new provision paragraph 22 of the article 3 stipulates that the penalty shall be increased between half and double in the event the product subject to the crimes at the relevant paragraph has an excessive price.

As indicated above; paragraphs 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 18 of article 3 of the Anti- Smuggling Law are changed in order to increase the penalties for crimes regulated within these paragraphs and also there have been minor changes (e.g. wording) on the mentioned paragraphs.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.