Turkey raises tax threshold for imported fasteners

The Turkish government has raised the threshold for taxation. For imported fasteners below the critical value, importers must pay VAT and import taxes in cash to obtain goods from the port.

Since 2009, the Turkish government has set a critical value for the CIF price for imported fasteners, with the lowest value per ton of fasteners. On top of this, for fasteners from certain origins, importers You must pay 18% of VAT and the appropriate import tax in cash in order to obtain goods from the port.

This rule applies to all but some of the EU countries that have signed agreements with Turkmenistan for the reciprocal tariff union with Turkey, although the initial effect and goal of the rule is to reduce the cost of fasteners from China and other parts of Asia. After BESIAD launched a lobbying campaign, this rule came into effect. BESIAD is the Turkish Fastener Manufacturers Association, personally led by MustafaTecdelio?lu**; MustafaTecdelio?lu is also the Turkey's second largest fastener manufacturer CetinCivataFastener**.

According to the type and grade of fasteners, the initial critical value ranges from US$ 2,750/ton to US$ 3,000/ton, which is mainly based on the international customs code. Today, in response to the large inflow of fasteners in China, the Turkish government has significantly raised the threshold for taxation. In 2011, China exported 78,900 tons of fasteners to Turkey, an increase of 46% year-on-year.

The CIF threshold for stainless steel fasteners and high strength carbon steel bolts increased from US$3,500/tonne to US$4,500/tonne, an increase of almost 29%; all other fasteners included screws, nuts, washers and certain types of nails. The cut-off value of US$2,750/ton increased to US$4,000/ton, an increase of more than 45%. This new threshold applies to the taxation of goods exceeding 2 tons.

Fastener+FixingMagazine, a European fastener magazine, talked with the Turkish fastener industry and learned about the rapid effect of raising the critical value of protective taxation. Turkish domestic producers raised sales prices to cope with strong demand; the two manufacturers have already invested in the expansion of fiberboard nail production capacity, which is expected to reach 2,000 tons per month; other manufacturers also said they are considering introducing new machinery to expand production capacity.