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First, Turkey is conveniently situated at the meeting point of Europe and South-Western Asia, with Istanbul being one of the biggest international transportation hubs. Second, Turkey is among the fastest-growing economies in the world, which makes it highly attractive for foreign investors and entrepreneurs. Third, the operational costs of doing business there are lower than in most European countries.
There are also numerous supporting measures taken by the Turkish government that simplify the process of starting and running a business there. Besides, Turkey is a technologically advanced economy with a rapidly growing e-services sector.
However, there are certain nuances that are worth considering before you start your business in Turkey. Today, we’ll have a look at the invoicing process and how it can be simplified.
E-invoicing legislation
Using electronic invoicing has been mandatory for B2B enterprises in Turkey since 2014. There are two main types of invoices in the Turkish electronic invoicing system. The first one is the e-Fatura which is used for B2B transactions between businesses registered with the Turkish Revenue Administration (TRA). The other one is the e-Arşiv used for both B2B and B2C companies that are not registered in the TRA.
As of now, all Turkish companies with a yearly turnover of 5 million Turkish Liras (TRY) or more are required to issue e-Fatura or e-Arşiv e-invoices, depending on the registration status of the recipient. E-invoices are also mandatory for certain industries, irrespective of the turnover, such as middleman retailers of fruit or vegetables, online marketplaces, automobile manufacturers, importers and dealers, web advertisers, etc.
What is needed to start e-invoicing
- First off, you need to register your company in the TRA with your VKN (Tax ID code).
- You will also need to file a number of documents on the government portal. The exact items can be determined by your fiscal advisor.
- You will be required to register your company as an e-invoicing issuer and obtain a digital certificate and a digital seal for identifying purposes and to guarantee security in the operations.
- Use the standard format for invoicing, which is UBL-TR 1.2 TEMEL/TICARET E-FATURA. For export invoices, the accepted format is UBL-TR 1.2 only.
- Take the storage requirements into account as well. Both the sender and the recipient of the invoice are obliged to store it for at least 10 years.
How to simplify this process
The short answer is – automate it! It might take some effort and time to set up everything, but eventually, automation will spare you from lots of routine operations. There’s a number of solutions available that automatically report all sales transactions to the Turkish Revenue Administration.
With 1C:Drive, the initial setup process is made even simpler, since it already supports integration with e-finans, one of the Turkish premier digital services for issuing e-Fatura invoices. This means you can send e-invoices directly from your ERP without any additional steps or doubling operations.
Besides, 1C:Drive has a range of useful tools for demand planning, price quotation, and production management, as well as additional features like monitoring key indicators, visual reporting, and order tracking.
Final thoughts
Turkey is considered one of the most attractive countries for small and medium enterprises because of its beneficial geographical location, rapidly growing economy, relatively low salaries and moderate taxes. It has also come a long way in terms of digital transformation, which creates a perfect environment for technological and IT businesses.
Given the requirements of the Turkish authorities for financial reporting and invoicing, there’s a strong incentive for companies to implement tools that enable process automation and compliance with the legislative requirements.