Consumer Law

In a consumer dispute the first question is not “am I right?” but “where should I apply?”. In 2026, for disputes worth less than 186,000 TL it is mandatory to apply to the consumer arbitration committee (tüketici hakem heyeti); for claims above that amount you first go to a mediator and, if no agreement is reached, file a case in the consumer court (tüketici mahkemesi). An application to the wrong forum is rejected and costs time.

On this page you will find the consumer’s elective rights for defective goods and services, the special rules for buying used vehicles and housing, bank charges, cancelling subscriptions and the right of withdrawal for online purchases, arbitration committee and court proceedings, 2026 costs and answers to the most frequently asked questions.

Arbitration committee, mediator or court?

Where to apply is determined by the monetary value of the dispute. The threshold is increased every year by the revaluation rate announced under the Tax Procedure Law and published by communiqué of the Ministry of Trade (TKHK art.68). Under the communiqué published in the Official Gazette of 23 December 2025, from 1 January 2026 the threshold is 186,000 TL. There is no separate monetary limit between provincial and district arbitration committees.

When calculating the value of the claim, not only the price of the product but also interest, expenses incurred and any compensation sought must be taken into account; the total may exceed the threshold and change the correct forum. The right to start enforcement proceedings is preserved in every case.

All of these routes require the dispute to be a consumer transaction. You must have acquired the goods or service for a purpose other than a commercial or professional one, from a seller or provider doing business in that field. For purchases made for commercial purposes, such as a computer bought for your workplace or a company car, you cannot apply to the arbitration committee; the dispute is resolved under the general provisions in the civil court of first instance (asliye hukuk mahkemesi) or the commercial court of first instance (asliye ticaret mahkemesi), and the fee exemption does not apply.

Applying to the consumer arbitration committee step by step

1. Written notice to the seller: Notify the defect and the right you have chosen by e-mail, registered letter with return receipt or a formal notice served through a notary. This creates evidence of the date and the claim.
2. Application channel: You can apply online through the Ministry of Trade’s Consumer Information System (TÜBİS) on e-Devlet; you can also apply to the committee with a written application or, where there is no committee, to the district governor’s office.
3. Competent committee: The committee at the consumer’s place of residence or where the transaction was made.
4. Documents: Invoice or order record, payment receipt, warranty certificate, service slips, correspondence, photographs and videos.
5. A clear claim: State clearly which elective right you are exercising and the amount you are claiming.
6. Decision and enforcement: The committee’s decision is binding on the parties and is enforced like a court judgment. Filing an objection does not by itself stop enforcement of the decision; to stop it, an injunction must be requested from the court (TKHK art.70).

Following an amendment made in 2024, the time limit for objecting to an arbitration committee decision is set as “two weeks” instead of “fifteen days”; 14 days should be counted from the date the decision is served. The objection is made to the consumer court where the committee is located or at the consumer’s place of residence.

Defective goods: four elective rights and time limits

Goods are defective if they do not conform to the contract or to the features stated in advertising or on the label, or if they do not objectively provide the expected benefit (TKHK art.8). The consumer chooses whichever of the following rights they wish; the seller cannot change that choice (TKHK art.11).

If repair or replacement would cause the seller disproportionate difficulty, the consumer may exercise the right of withdrawal or price reduction. Compensation for loss suffered can also be claimed in addition to the elective right. For details, see our article on defective goods and the consumer arbitration committee.

• Presumption of proof: A defect that appears within 6 months of delivery is presumed to have existed at delivery; the seller must prove otherwise (TKHK art.10).
• Limitation period: 2 years from delivery, even if the defect appears later; 5 years for housing and holiday property (TKHK art.12). If the law or the contract provides a longer period, that period applies.
• Second-hand sales: Even if the seller’s liability is shortened by contract, it cannot be less than 1 year, or 3 years for housing.
• Concealed defect: If the defect was concealed through gross fault or fraud, the limitation period does not apply.
• Defective services: For services such as renovation, education, tours and private healthcare, the rights of re-performance, free repair, price reduction or withdrawal are available; the limitation period is 2 years from performance of the service (TKHK art.15-16).

Defective vehicles: new and used

For a new vehicle, the manufacturer or importer is liable for repair and replacement together with the dealer. If the same fault recurs during the warranty period, or different faults exceed a certain number, replacement of the vehicle or a refund comes into play; for this reason, a service slip should be obtained every time the vehicle goes into the service centre.

For a used vehicle, who the seller is makes the difference. A vehicle bought from a car dealership or from a person whose business is trading vehicles is a consumer transaction; a sale between two private individuals is governed not by the consumer rules but by the Turkish Code of Obligations. The Regulation on the Trade of Motor Land Vehicles, in force since 27 August 2024, introduces the following rules for used vehicle trading:

• Selling more than three used vehicles in a calendar year is deemed a commercial activity unless proven otherwise and requires an authorisation certificate.
• A dealership must obtain an inspection report within the 10 days before selling a car or light commercial vehicle (except vehicles over 8 years old by model year or with more than 160,000 km).
• For vehicles below the same age and mileage limits, the engine, gearbox and electrical-electronic systems are under the dealership’s warranty for 3 months or 5,000 km from the sale; a fault must be remedied within 45 working days at the latest. Faults stated in the inspection report are excluded from the warranty.
• This warranty does not remove the consumer’s rights for defects under the TKHK. In the case of concealed major damage, replaced parts or odometer tampering, withdrawal, price reduction and compensation can be claimed.
• The temporary restriction banning dealerships from selling new vehicles before a certain period and mileage have passed since first registration is extended from time to time by the Ministry.

Since vehicle prices often exceed 186,000 TL, the mediation and consumer court route is usually followed in defective vehicle disputes. As continuing to use the vehicle in its defective state may increase the loss in value, requesting preservation of evidence before filing suit should be considered.

Late delivery in home sales and pre-paid housing

A consumer who buys a home before construction is finished, paying the price in advance or in instalments, has entered into a pre-paid housing sales contract. The law imposes strict rules on these contracts (TKHK art.40-45):

• The contract cannot be concluded before a building permit is obtained; the promise to sell must be made in official form before a notary. Even if the form is not complied with, the seller cannot rely on invalidity against the consumer.
• The consumer may withdraw within 14 days without giving reasons and without penalty.
• The home must be delivered within the period undertaken in the contract; in any event this period cannot exceed 48 months from the contract.
• The consumer may withdraw from the contract without giving reasons up to 24 months from the contract; in that case the seller may claim, together with legal costs, compensation of between 2% and 8% of the contract price depending on the time elapsed. If the seller has not fulfilled its obligations, nothing may be claimed.
• On withdrawal, the amount paid is refunded within 180 days at the latest from the notice reaching the seller.

If delivery is delayed, the consumer may claim performance together with compensation for delay (usually lost rent), withdraw from the contract and claim a refund of the price with interest, or claim a price reduction for incomplete and defective construction. Claims for transfer of title and registration concern title to real property and are therefore not subject to mediation; for money claims above the threshold, however, mediation is a precondition to suit. For relations between the contractor and the landowner, see our article on flat-for-land construction contracts and delay, and for title deed cases, our rental and real estate law page.

Bank file fees, loan and insurance deductions

The fees banks may charge on consumer and housing loans are limited. Under Communiqué No. 2020/7 of the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye, only a loan allocation fee may be charged for a loan, and this fee cannot exceed five per thousand of the principal disbursed; no separate fees may be charged under names such as credit check, file or loan transaction slip. For pledge, mortgage and appraisal procedures, only amounts actually paid to third parties may be passed on.

• Refund of excess deductions: Charges that exceed the limit or have no legal basis can be claimed from the arbitration committee if the amount is below the threshold. For older deductions, the limitation period must be assessed separately.
• Loan-linked insurance: It cannot be taken out without the consumer’s express request in writing or on a durable medium; cover obtained by the consumer from another company must be accepted (TKHK art.29, 38).
• Early repayment: When a consumer loan is repaid early, a reduction is made in interest and costs. For a fixed-rate housing loan, early repayment compensation cannot exceed 1% where the remaining term is 36 months or less, and 2% where it is longer (TKHK art.27, 37).
• Credit card annual fee: In a refund claim, the type of card and the fee information in the contract are decisive; each case is examined separately.

Cancelling a subscription

For subscriptions that are indefinite or longer than one year, such as internet, mobile lines, gyms and digital platforms, the consumer may terminate the contract at any time without giving reasons and without paying a penalty (TKHK art.52). It is sufficient to give notice of termination in writing or on a durable medium such as e-mail or SMS; the provider cannot require a more onerous method for cancellation than the one used to set up the subscription.

• A fixed-term subscription cannot be renewed automatically without the consumer’s consent.
• If a subscription is not ended at the end of its term, no payment may be claimed for the period after that date, even if the goods or service were used.
• The remaining part of a fee paid in advance is refunded without deduction within 15 days of the termination notice taking effect.
• For electronic communications subscriptions with a discount in return for a commitment, the amount that may be claimed on early termination is limited by the relevant special legislation; the “cancellation fee” item on the bill must be calculated and checked.

Returns and the right of withdrawal for online purchases

In distance contracts the consumer may withdraw within 14 days without giving reasons and without paying a penalty (TKHK art.48). The period starts from delivery for goods and from the day the contract is concluded for services. If the seller has not properly informed the consumer about the right of withdrawal, the period is extended by up to 1 year from the end of the 14 days.

• The consumer sends the goods back within 14 days of the withdrawal notice; the seller refunds the price within 14 days of delivery to the carrier it designated for returns.
• The consumer cannot be held liable for the cost of a return sent with the carrier specified in the pre-contractual information or, if no carrier was specified, with any carrier.
• There is no right of withdrawal for certain contracts, such as goods made to the consumer’s specifications, perishable goods, goods whose packaging has been opened for hygiene reasons and digital content supplied instantly.
• For goods other than custom-made items, the seller must deliver within 30 days at the latest; otherwise the consumer may terminate the contract.
• Marketplace platforms are jointly liable with the seller for pre-contractual information and, where they collect the price themselves, for delivery and withdrawal obligations.

The expiry of the withdrawal period does not mean your rights have ended if the product is defective: in the case of a defect, the 2-year period and the elective rights continue. If your personal data has been used without permission, see our article on applications under the personal data protection law (KVKK).

Consumer court proceedings

Cases arising from consumer transactions are heard by the consumer court; where no consumer court has been established, the civil court of first instance hears the case acting as a consumer court. The case can be filed not only where the other party is located but also at the consumer’s place of residence (TKHK art.73). You can see which courthouse you belong to in Istanbul on our district pages.

1. Mediation: For disputes above the threshold, applying to a mediator before filing suit is a precondition to suit (TKHK art.73/A). If agreement is reached, the agreement document, once annotated as enforceable, can be enforced like a court judgment.
2. Statement of claim: If no agreement is reached, the case is filed with the final mediation report attached. A case filed by the consumer is exempt from court fees.
3. Simplified procedure: Consumer cases are heard under the simplified procedure in the HMK; the exchange of written pleadings is short.
4. Court expert: The existence of the defect, the loss in value and the reduction rate are mostly determined by an expert report.
5. Judgment and appeal: In cases where the judgment is not final, an appeal (istinaf) may be lodged; collection is made through enforcement.

In Istanbul, consumer cases requiring expert examination usually take 1–2 years at first instance. Under the 2025-2026 Minimum Attorney Fee Tariff, the lowest attorney fee for cases in the consumer court is 22,500 TL (excluding VAT). No attorney fee can be imposed on the other party in arbitration committee decisions. You can make a preliminary check of whether a time limit has passed with our time limit and limitation checker.

Required documents

• Invoice, receipt, order confirmation and payment receipt or credit card statement
• Sales contract, pre-contractual information form for distance sales; for housing, the notarised promise-to-sell contract
• Warranty certificate, service slips and technical service reports
• For a used vehicle, the inspection report, notarised sales contract and screenshots of the advertisement
• Loan agreement, repayment schedule and account statement showing fee deductions
• Correspondence with the seller or provider, call centre record numbers, formal notices
• Photographs and videos showing the defect

Our work in consumer law

• Consumer arbitration committee applications and objections to decisions
• Cases concerning defective new and used vehicles, preservation of evidence
• Cases concerning late delivery, withdrawal from the contract and defective homes in pre-paid housing
• Disputes over bank charges, loan-linked insurance and early repayment
• Disputes over subscriptions, distance sales, timeshare and package tours
• Mandatory mediation meetings in consumer disputes
• Defective service cases concerning private healthcare institutions and educational services

The information on this page is general in nature and has been prepared according to the legislation in force in 2026. The arbitration committee monetary threshold changes every year; before applying, the current threshold and the amount of the claim should be checked together. You are advised to consult a lawyer about your specific situation.