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Türkiye’s new tourism bill to regulate foreign booking platforms would introduce steep financial penalties for violations, while repeat offenders could lose their permits, according to a report.
The proposal, which could also clear the way for foreign booking platforms that have faced restrictions on domestic reservations in Türkiye for years to resume local bookings, was submitted to Parliament by the ruling AK Party and lays out penalties for platforms that fail to meet requirements set by the Culture and Tourism Ministry.
Under the proposal, platforms could receive a ₺200,000 ($4,174) administrative fine if services that are required to be offered through licensed travel agencies or vehicle rental businesses authorized by the Trade Ministry are instead provided through businesses without the necessary permits or operating certificates.
Foreign digital accommodation platforms would also face a ₺200,000 fine if they fail to notify the ministry within 15 days of changes to the information or documents used for their permits.
The proposal gives platforms 15 days to correct such a violation. If it is not fixed within that period, or the same breach is detected for a second time in the same calendar year, the fine would rise by 50%.
A third violation during the same calendar year would result in the permit being canceled without another period to make corrections, business-focused ekonomim.com reported.
The proposed rules also envision permit cancellations for platforms found to be acting against the country’s interests, undermining public trust or harming Türkiye’s tourism industry.
The bill would also impose a ₺200,000 administrative fine when foreign platforms fail to report changes to the ministry on time or do not submit information and documents requested by authorities within the required deadline.
The penalty would become significantly higher when platforms improperly collect fees. Where no service is provided, or where the type of service and the amount or rate of its fee are not stated in the brokerage agreement, the platform would face a fine equal to 10 times the amount collected improperly.
For services promised to customers but delivered incompletely or not provided at all, the proposed fine would range from ₺50,000 to ₺100,000 per contract.
Platforms would also face a 10-fold fine if the amount collected from the sale of a service exceeds 17%. A second violation in the same calendar year would increase the penalty by 50%, while a third would lead to permit cancellation.
Foreign digital accommodation platforms that fail to use the hardware, programs and software specified by the Culture and Tourism Ministry would face a ₺500,000 administrative fine.
The bill is expected to be passed into law in October following a parliamentary vote, with the measures taking effect once the legislation is formally approved.
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