The "Regulation Amending the Regulation on Principles and Rules to be Applied in Retail Trade" ("Regulation"), which has been subject to a long period of study by the Ministry of Trade, was published in the Official Gazette dated December 14, 2023 and numbered 32399.
The Regulation introduces important amendments that will give a new direction to the trade, as in the "
Draft Regulation Amending the Regulation on Principles and Rules to be Applied in Retail Trade" ("Draft Amendment"), for which we published a memorandum on 20.09.2023. You can access the memorandum on the Draft Amendment
here. In general, these issues regulate (i) unfair commercial practices in the supply chain and (ii) payments for commercial activities between the producer, supplier and retail business and (iii) regulations on the sale of food products.
A. Unfair Trade Practices in Supply Chain
Unfair commercial practices in the supply chain are defined and exemplified in the Regulation. According to the Regulation, unfair commercial practices refer to the activities of one party that adversely affect the other in commercial relations between producers, suppliers and retail businesses. These practices include actions that disrupt the commercial balance between producers, suppliers and retail businesses and create unfair results.
B. Regulations for Payment
The Regulation includes provisions regarding payments. In this context, payments subject to retail trade must be made within the periods stipulated in the agreements. In addition, it is regulated that payments for agricultural and food products can be made in different periods by classifying them as perishable and non-perishable products within 30 days from the date of production. Pursuant to the Regulation, the classification of the parties to the retail trade in accordance with the "
Regulation on Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises" will also be important in determining the periods of payments.
In addition, it is stated that if there is any doubt as to whether the products have spoiled within thirty days, the decision will be made by the Ministry of Trade after obtaining the opinion of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. It is regulated that the decision on this issue will be published and announced on the internet and sent to higher professional organizations.
C. Regulations on the Sale of Food Products
The Regulation establishes that the Ministry of Customs and Trade may impose obligations on (i) department stores and chain stores, (ii) dealers and specially authorized businesses, and (iii) chain stores with more than two hundred branches; for the sale of food products for diseases requiring medical nutrition treatment to be applied in branches with a sales area of more than two hundred and fifty square meters.
D. Conclusion
The Regulation redefines unfair commercial practices in commercial relations between producers, suppliers and retail businesses in line with current commercial developments and new business models. On the other hand, it has been taken into consideration to introduce regulations in parallel with the unfair commercial practices specified in the Law No. 6585 on the Regulation of Retail Trade.
In addition, more realistic, reasonable and proportionate regulation has been made according to the scale of commercial enterprises. The current developments in trade have also been addressed in terms of payment methods and the responsibilities in this context have been regulated according to current requirements. Thus, it is aimed to achieve an economic balance between the parties to the retail trade.
The Regulation will enter into force on 01/01/2024 and the full text is available
here.
Cerensu Çetin Yenigün, Senior Associate
Kayra Menekşe, Associate