General Legislation

Pursuant to Decision No. 1/95 of the EC-Turkey Association Council (AC Decision), which established the Customs Union between Turkey and the European Union, customs duties, charges having equivalent effect, and quantitative restrictions in trade of industrial products and processed agricultural products between the EU and Turkey were eliminated as of 01/01/1996, and Turkey began applying the EU's Common Customs Tariff to third countries for the products in question. Since the elimination of customs duties, charges having equivalent effect, and quantitative restrictions was not sufficient for the free movement of goods in trade, it was envisaged under Article 8 of the aforementioned AC Decision that the EU legislation on the removal of technical barriers to trade should also be incorporated into our country's domestic legal arrangements.

Accordingly, the Community instruments on the removal of technical barriers to trade were determined by AC Decision No. 2/97, and the public institutions that would harmonize the said Community technical instruments were identified by the Council of Ministers Decision No. 97/9196 dated 15/01/1997.

The EU aims to achieve two fundamental objectives through its common regulations:

Product Safety,
Free Movement of Products.

Although individual EU technical legislation generally contains provisions aimed at the first objective, and thus harmonization of any EU technical legislation by Turkey appears to achieve this objective, there is also a need to develop national legislation in areas where there is no EU legislation, without compromising the product safety objective. In order to fulfill this need and to compile the minimum provisions for the safety of all products into a single legal text, the Law No. 4703 on the Preparation and Implementation of Technical Legislation Related to Products was enacted. The most important element in achieving the second objective is the harmonization of individual EU technical legislation, in accordance with Turkey's commitment to harmonize the EU's technical legislation. This task falls under the responsibility of public institutions and organizations that conduct harmonization studies according to their fields of activity. Law No. 4703 was repealed by Law No. 7223 on Product Safety and Technical Regulations, which entered into force in 2021 and is more comprehensive. The subjects regulated by the currently valid Law No. 7223 are:

Conditions for placing products on the market,
Obligations of manufacturers, importers, distributors, and authorized representatives,
Market Surveillance and Inspection,
Suspension of placing seriously risky products on the market, prevention of making them available on the market, withdrawal from the market and recall, destruction, and rendering them inoperable,
Procedures and principles of operation of testing, inspection, and certification bodies that will carry out conformity assessment activities,
Penalties to be applied,
Notifications to be made to the EU Commission, EU member states, and other EU institutions regarding implementations.

Implementation Regulations of Law No. 7223:

Regulation on Conformity of Products and Market Surveillance and Inspection: With the entry into force of Law No. 7223, there arose a need to amend the Regulation on Market Surveillance and Inspection of Products, which was published in the Official Gazette dated 17 January 2002 and numbered 24643, and entered into force as of 11 January 2002. The Regulation on Market Surveillance and Inspection of Products sets forth the principles regarding conformity with technical regulations and product safety, the obligations of producers and distributors in placing products on the market, the procedures and principles regarding market surveillance and inspection, the powers and responsibilities of authorized organizations, the measures to be taken within the framework of market surveillance and inspection, and the establishment of the Market Surveillance and Inspection Coordination Board (MSICB), as well as the duties and procedures and principles of operation of this Board. Works on a new Regulation that determines the procedures and principles regarding market surveillance and inspection to ensure that suitable and safe products meeting the requirements aimed at protecting human health and safety, health and safety at workplaces, consumer protection, environmental protection, public security, and other public interests to the maximum extent as specified in technical regulations or general product safety legislation are placed on the market or made available on the market, the measures to be taken as a result, and the duties, powers, and responsibilities of authorized organizations, and that will repeal the Regulation on Market Surveillance and Inspection of Products, are ongoing by the Ministry of Trade (MoT).
CE Marking Regulation: Update works initiated with the entry into force of Law No. 7223 on this Regulation, which regulates the methods of affixing the “CE” mark to products, conformity assessment modules, and serves as a guide for importers and producers on the use of this mark, are ongoing by the MoT.
Regulation on Conformity Assessment Bodies and Notified Bodies: Update works initiated with the entry into force of Law No. 7223 on the said Regulation, which regulates the minimum qualifications, procedures and principles of operation of bodies that examine and certify the conformity of products with the relevant technical regulation through conformity assessment, and notified bodies assigned among them, and notifications to relevant places in accordance with Turkey's international obligations, are ongoing by the MoT.
Regulation on the Notification of Technical Legislation and Standards between Turkey and the European Union: Update works initiated with the entry into force of Law No. 7223 on the said Regulation, which determines the procedures and principles regarding the notification of technical legislation and standards to the European Union, and the procedures and principles for forwarding notifications received from the European Union regarding technical legislation to authorized organizations, are ongoing by the MoT.
Regulation on the Recording and Notification of Market Surveillance and Inspection Results and Measures: Update works initiated with the entry into force of Law No. 7223 on the said Regulation, which regulates the procedures and principles for ensuring information flow between market surveillance and inspection and import inspections, and the content, recording procedures, and notification of information to be recorded in market surveillance and inspection activities carried out by authorized organizations, are ongoing by the MoT.
General Product Safety Regulation: Works on the draft Regulation, which ensures the safety of products intended to be placed on the market, placed on the market, made available on the market, or offered for service and made ready for consumer access, designed for consumers or usable by consumers under reasonably foreseeable conditions even if not intended for consumers, and determines the duties of authorized organizations in this area and the obligations of economic operators, are being carried out by the MoT.
Regulation on Market Surveillance and Inspection of Products Placed on the Market through Distance Communication Tools: Works on the draft Regulation, which determines the procedures and principles regarding market placement conditions for products placed on the market or made available on the market through distance communication tools, sales announcements, obligations of economic operators placing these products on the market or making them available on the market, powers and responsibilities of authorized organizations, and market surveillance and inspection within this scope and the central support system for market surveillance and inspection in e-commerce, are being carried out by the MoT.
Regulation on Conformity Assessment Methods: The Regulation on Conformity Assessment Methods sets forth the procedures and principles regarding the use of modules indicating the conformity assessment methods referred to in the CE Marking Regulation. It applies to all product groups for which there is a provision in the technical regulation regarding the application of one or more conformity assessment modules. Works on the said draft Regulation are being carried out by the MoT.