The penalties for e-commerce violations have been increased in line with the revaluation rate.

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The Ministry of Trade has increased the administrative fines to be applied in case of violation of the principles determined in electronic commerce (e-commerce) in accordance with the revaluation rate. The Ministry's announcement regarding the "Administrative Fines to be Applied in 2025 According to Article 12 of the Law on the Regulation of Electronic Commerce" has been published in the Official Gazette.

A FINE OF 22 THOUSAND LIRA FOR THOSE WHO CHANGE THE CONTRACT

With the announcement, the administrative fines regulated in the relevant law have been re-determined by increasing them according to the revaluation rate set at 43.93% for 2024. Accordingly, a fine ranging from 22,807 lira to 228,071 lira can be imposed on intermediary service providers who engage in practices that significantly disrupt the commercial activities or economic behavior of the e-commerce service provider, unilaterally change the provisions of the brokerage contract to the detriment of the service provider, or include any provision in the contract that allows for this.

For e-commerce intermediary service providers who do not make payments within the specified time, a fine will be applied for amounts not less than 22,807 lira for delays of up to 30 days, and for delays exceeding 30 days, a fine equal to double the unpaid amount will be imposed. Additionally, if the electronic commerce intermediary service provider fails to ensure that the provisions of the brokerage contract are clear and understandable or easily accessible despite warnings from the Ministry, a fine of 22,807 lira will be imposed for each violation.

A FINE OF 1 TRILLION FOR THOSE WHO FORCE DISCOUNTS ON COMPANIES

The administrative fine to be imposed on intermediary service providers who force the service provider to sell promotional goods or services, including unilateral changes to the selling price of the product, will be 1 trillion 140 million 357 thousand 390 lira.

If no objective criteria are included in the brokerage contract or if the service provider is demoted in the ranking or recommendation system due to applications made to public institutions or judicial authorities, the administrative fine imposed on the intermediary service provider will be increased to 684,214 lira.

A MINIMUM FINE OF 114 THOUSAND TL FOR NOT SUBMITTING DOCUMENTS

The minimum administrative fine for individuals who do not present the information, documents, and records requested by the Ministry, as well as for real and private legal entities that do not report the requested information to the Electronic Commerce Information System for the purpose of monitoring and evaluating the development of electronic commerce, has been updated to 114,035 lira, with a maximum limit of 570,000 lira.

A FINE OF 22 MILLION TL FOR UNLICENSED SERVICE PROVIDERS

Electronic commerce intermediary service providers and electronic commerce service providers who do not obtain a license from the Ministry or do not renew their license will be subject to an administrative fine of 22 million 807 thousand 147 lira. A period of 60 days will be granted to rectify the violation. If the violation is not resolved within this period, a fine of 45 million 614 thousand 295 lira will be imposed, and an additional 30 days will be given to rectify the violation. If the violation is not resolved within the 30-day period, the fine amount will increase to 91 million 228 thousand 591 lira. An additional 15 days will be granted to rectify the violation. If the violation is not resolved within the specified periods, the Ministry may decide to remove the content related to the service providers' relevant internet addresses or to block access. The announcement will come into effect on January 1, 2025.