The Circular letter Number 70 on the Extension of Export Periods for Export Registered Deliveries Due to Force Majeure has been published.
The subject of the published circular is the extension of the export periods of goods delivered within the scope of the deferral-cancellation (tecil-terkin) practice regulated in Article 11/1-c of Law No. 3065, due to the earthquake disaster that occurred in Kahramanmaraş on 6/2/2023.
According to Article 11/1-c of Law No. 3065, the value added tax on goods delivered to exporters by manufacturers on the condition that they are exported is not paid by the exporters; this tax, which is not collected by the taxpayers but is declared in the return for the relevant period, is assessed, accrued and deferred by the tax office. If the goods in question are exported within three months from the beginning of the month following the date of delivery to the exporter, the deferred tax is cancelled.
On the other hand, if the export cannot be carried out within three months due to force majeure or unforeseen circumstances, exporters who apply within 15 days at the latest from the expiry of the three-month period may be granted an additional period of up to three months.
In the second paragraph of the same article, the Ministry of Treasury and Finance is authorised to determine the procedures and principles regarding the application of the exemption.
Accordingly, for taxpayers who were registered as of the date of the earthquake in places where a state of force majeure has been declared due to the earthquake, and whose three-month period starting from the beginning of the month following the date of the export-registered delivery ends between 6/2/2023 and 31/7/2023 (inclusive), this period is deemed to be extended by a further three months within the scope of force majeure, without the need to apply to the tax office for an additional period. Taxpayers whose export period expired before this date but whose 15-day application period for requesting additional time falls within this period will be evaluated within the same scope.
For taxpayers who have previously been granted an additional period of less than three months due to force majeure or unforeseen circumstances, if the expiry date of the additional period falls between 6/2/2023 and 31/7/2023 (inclusive), this additional period is also completed to three months without the need for a further application.
For example, goods delivered with export registration in January 2023 by manufacturer (A) to exporter (B), a taxpayer of the Adıyaman Tax Office, could not be exported within the period (by 30/4/2023). If exporter (B) completes the export by 31/7/2023 without applying to the tax office for an additional period, it will be able to benefit from the deferral-cancellation practice.
Similarly, if exporter (C), a taxpayer of the Aksu Tax Office that had previously been granted a one-month additional period until 31/1/2023 due to unforeseen circumstances, fails to export within this period, the export period will be extended to 31/3/2023 within the scope of force majeure, without the need for a further application.
