Customs Broker; Pursuant to the Customs Law No.4458 dated 27.10.1999 the scope of the profession of customs brokerage is the performance of all the procedures as indirect representative with regards to subjecting a good to a transaction or a usage approved by customs. The activities with respect to subjecting a good to a transaction or a usage approved by customs via indirect representation are conducted by customs brokers. Customs brokers also execute other duties assigned by the Undersecretariat within the frame of the Customs Law No.4458. The customs brokers who has been functioning in commercial life of Turkey since 1909 and rendering consulting services to customers, taking part in every stage of foreign trade and directing foreign trade sector as well as customs and logistics services are currently following up 85% of the statements processed in customs administrations throughout Turkey. Customs brokers may submit opinions with regards to foreign trade and customs procedures, may act as an arbiter, expert and the like..

FOB Delivery: On the basis of the agreement enacted between the purchaser and the vendor FOB; the shortened form of the term "Free On Board" means the delivery of the goods on the board of the vessel in the port of loading specified as the delivery point.

FAS Delivery: FAS represents the initials of the term "Free Alongside Ship". In this delivery form the delivery of goods on board the ship is required. In accordance with the provisions of the Sales Agreement, the liability of the vendor is fulfilled as a result of loading the good on dock or barge in the specified port of loading. Export transactions made by the buyer.

FCA Delivery: FCA consists of the initials of the term "Free Carrier". This type of delivery requires the delivery of the goods to the carrier's store. Goods are delivered to the carrier after the completion of customs procedures. The carrier is assumed to undertake the transportation of the goods within the frame of a transportation agreement. All the risks and the costs are borne by the vendor until the delivery of the goods to the carrier.

EXW Delivery: EXW, the abbreviation of the term "Ex Works" means the delivery at the workplace or the factory. The workplace or the factory of the vendor is meant by the workplace or the factory. The goods which are the subject of the sale are submitted to the purchaser in a ready manner in the workplace of the vendor.

CFR Delivery: CFR which is the abbreviation of the term "Cost and Freight", is a form of delivery, including cost of goods and freight cost. It means the realization of the export and transportation of the goods within the period specified in the agreement provided that the costs and taxes are to the account of the vendor.

CPT Delivery: CPT which is the abbreviation for the term "Carriage Paid To ...", means the delivery form that requires the delivery of the goods on the place of destination including the transportation costs. The vendor is to bear all the costs and taxes of the exports procedures and the costs of the goods until the delivery to the destination including transportation. However the vendor is not obliged to take out a policy.

CIP Delivery: CIP which is the abbreviation for the term "Carriage and Insurance Paid to ..." requires the delivery of the goods with transportation and insurance charges paid. All the risks until the arrival of the goods to the destination point are borne by the vendor.

CIF Delivery: CIF which is the abbreviation of the term "Cost Insurance and Freight", means the delivery form including price of goods, insurance and freight. The costs and the risks with regards to loading of the goods to the board of the vessel and discharging of such at the place of destination are borne by the vendor.

DAF Delivery: DAF which is the abbreviation of the term "Delivered at Frontier" requires the delivery of the goods at the border. This type of delivery is used in rail and road transport.

DES Delivery: DES which is the abbreviation of "Delivered Ex Ship" means delivery on board. The delivery of goods at the port of destination, on board the vessel to the purchaser expresses this type of delivery.

DEQ Delivery: DEQ which is the abbreviation of the term "Delivered Ex Quay", means the delivery on the docks of the port of destination with customs duty paid.

DDU Delivery: DDU which is the abbreviation of the term "Delivered Duty Unpaid" means the delivery without paying the customs tax. Keeping the goods ready in the country to which the import will be made for the delivery of such to the purchaser constitutes the base for this type of delivery. The risks until the delivery of the goods to the purchaser are borne by the vendor.

DDP Delivery: DDP which is the abbreviation of the term "Delivered Duty Paid" means the delivery with the customs tax paid. It is a type of delivery which requires the delivery of the goods to the purchaser in the place specified within the agreement which is in the country to which the import will be made. It is used in all forms of transportation.

Advance Payment (Cash Advance): It is the payment method in which the importer company sends the price of the goods to the bank account of the exporter by means of bank transfer (generally via pro forma invoice) without waiting for the exporter to send the goods. This type of payment which is quite advantageous for the exporter encompasses great risks for the importer in contradiction the payment method of cash against goods. We recommend the aforesaid payment method to our importer companies for the situations when they well know the exporter company and when they are sure that the goods will be sent in the healthy and desired manner.

Cash Against Goods: In this method the exporter sends the goods to the importer without making any collection with regards to the price of the goods and after the arrival of the goods to the country of destination and following the customs procedures the importer sends the price of the goods to the exporter on due date by means of bank transfer (declaration and invoice). This type of payment which is completely contrary to the advance payment encompasses great risks for the exporter.

Cash Against Documents: This method of payment is conducted as follows; The goods are loaded by the exporter without receiving the price of the goods and sends the documents which are negotiable instruments to the importer's bank; the importer obtains the required documents for customs procedures from its own bank after making the payment of the price of goods and clears its goods from the customs.

Letter of Credit: Letter of credit can be defined as the guarantee of a bank in the country of the importer upon the importer's demand provided that the required terms and conditions are ensured (such terms and conditions are generally the submittal of loading documents to the bank) that the price of the goods will be paid to the exporter via a bank which it will specify. Payment with letter of credit which ensures such a guarantee from the point of the exporter is a method of payment which also guarantees the receiving of the goods and required documents in a healthy manner by the importer and otherwise that the price of the goods will not be paid. In this case an interbank transaction is in question and the letter of credit is in general and simple sense a payment method where four sides exist.

Some of the Letter of Credit Types: - Revocable / Irrevocable Letter of Credit - Confirmed / Unconfirmed letter of credit Letters of Credit By Type of Payment: At Sight Letter of Credit - Deferred Letter of Credit

Acceptance Credit: Pursuant to the agreement made between the purchaser and the vendor with regards to sold good opening of deferred letter of credit by the purchaser as of the acceptance date of a time draft issued by the bank of the vendor is called an acceptance credit.

Customs clearance means the realization of compulsory legislation procedures that must be applied to goods and vehicles entering and leaving the Customs Territory of the Republic of Turkey. Customs Territory of the Republic of Turkey covers the territory of the Republic of Turkey. Turkey's territorial waters, internal waters and airspace are included in the customs territory.

Pursuant to Customs Law No.4458 Article 5 "All persons may assign a representative for their transactions in the customs administrations in order for the realization of the actions and procedures prescribed by customs legislation. The representatives are the persons who are domiciled at the Customs Territory of the Republic of Turkey except for the ones who deal in transit transportation or make incidental declarations.

Representation may be direct or indirect. Representative, in the event of direct representation acts on behalf and account of someone else. In the event of indirect representation acts on its behalf, but someone else's account. The representative has to declare that he is acting on behalf of the person represented, specify that whether the representation is direct or indirect and he has to submit the authorization certificate to the customs administrations". Pursuant to the Article 225 of the same law "The activities with regards to subjecting a good to a transaction or a usage approved by customs within the frame of the provisions of Article 5 are pursued and concluded by their owners and the persons who act on their behalves via direct representation or by customs brokers via indirect representation". With the authority on the basis of the Customs Law the customs brokers may follow and conclude any type of customs procedures.

Customs Law is the act numbered 4458 adopted by the Turkish Grand National Assembly and it is the source of law which constitutes a base for all customs matters of Turkey. It was amended on Jun 18th, 2009 with the Act No.5911. The first two articles of the Law are as follows: Article 1- The purpose of this Law is to specify the customs rules to be applied to the goods and vehicles entering into and exiting from Customs Territory of the Turkish Republic.

Article 2 - The Customs Territory of the Turkish Republic covers the territory of the Turkish Republic. Turkey's territorial waters, internal waters and airspace are included in the customs territory; it is the act numbered 4458 adopted by the Turkish Grand National Assembly and it is the source of law which constitutes a base for all customs matters of Turkey. It was amended on Jun 18th, 2009 with the Act No.5911. The first two articles of the Law are as follows:

Article 1- The purpose of this Law is to specify the customs rules to be applied to the goods and vehicles entering into and exiting from Customs Territory of the Turkish Republic. Article 2 - The Customs Territory of the Turkish Republic covers the territory of the Turkish Republic. Turkey's territorial waters, internal waters and airspace are included in the customs territory.

A warehouse is a kind of store where the goods subject to customs legislation, are being kept under customs supervision and where the required procedures are fulfilled in order for the completion of relevant foreign trade transactions. In case the goods are placed in the warehouse in accordance with the customs legislation there are no time limitations in preservation of such goods and it is a customs regime where no taxes are required to be paid within such period.

There are two types of warehouses as the "private" warehouses where only the warehouse operator may keep his own goods, and the "general" warehouses that can be used by everyone. In consideration for the keeping of the goods a storage fee is paid pursuant to the agreement made with the warehouse operator, and the factors of time, volume, quality and the like are important in determining the storage fee.

In the frame of marine law freight is an agreement where the carrier in consideration of a specific price undertakes to carry a load via seaway by allocating his vessel totally or partially to the shipper or without allocating such. The carrier may allocate the whole or a part of his vessel to the shipper or may undertake to carry a particular item which is a partial load by sea. Freight contract includes the following aspects: a carrying commitment made by the carrier, the existence of an item convenient for sea carriage, fulfillment of carriage by sea, fulfillment of the carriage by vessel, performing the carriage in consideration of a fee. Freight is not subject to any forma requirements however in practice generally bill of lading is issued. A shipper in freight may bear the title of carrier in the other on the basis of such agreement.

In this case there is a cargo sub-contract. Another type of freight is mixed freight. In this type the carrier undertakes to carry the load via land, river and sea. As a consequence of the freight a number of rights and obligations arise from the point of the carrier and the shipper. The fundamental obligations of the carrier include ensuring the vessel to carry the load ready to install and convenient for cruise and sea.

The most important right of the carrier arising from the freight is the price that is the freight itself. The freight is paid in cash unless otherwise stated. The parties are free to determine the amount of the freight. However as the freight is determined by international treaties the parties often comply with them. The liability to pay the freight is on the shipper's side as a rule. However in case a bill of lading is issued and states that the liability to pay the freight is on the side of the recipient then the liability of paying the freight will be on the recipient pursuant to the bill of lading. Freight receivable is prescribed within one year as of maturity date. The carrier has the right of retention on the load for freight as well as for the lay time and demurrage.

Freight terminates in the following conditions; by the payment of a dead freight without stating any reasons, in the case of seizure of the ship by the state or by a foreign state, in case of prohibition of imports or exports on the goods to be carried, in case of a blockade of loading port or port of destination, in case of war or impossibility.

An export is the sale of a good manufactured in a country to a foreign country in consideration of foreign exchange. In order for the realization of the export there must be a good to be sold first of all and then a real or legal person resident in Turkish Republic and owner of tax number (with regards to real persons TR ID number will be sufficient) is required.

If an export is to made for the first time it is mandatory to get registered in Customs administration and in Exporters Association. All of the following documents are required for registration: , all of the documents required for registration are listed below: Signature Circular (for legal persons), the signature declaration (for real persons), Operating Certificate (for legal persons), Trade Registration Journal (for legal persons), Tax liability writing (for legal persons) Power of Attorney (in case transactions are conducted via representation) ID copy of the Authorities. After above-mentioned general practices that apply to all products the other procedures related with the commodity export of which is to be made (the preparation of invoices, payment of Exporters Association fee determined on the basis of the invoice total, preparation of the navigation document, etc.) are also conducted.