Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Dışişleri Bakanlığı, Türkiye'de yerleşik tüm yabancı misyonlara saygılarını sunar ve Bakanlığın 26 Eylül 2006 tarih ve PDGY/372069 sayılı Notasına atıfla, anılan Nota'nın gayri resmi İngilizce tercümesini ilişikte sunmaktan onur duyar.

Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Dışişleri Bakanlığı bu vesile ile Türkiye'de yerleşik tüm yabancı misyonlara en derin saygılarını yineler.

Ankara, 4 Ekim 2006

Ek:1

TÜRKİYE'DE YERLEŞİK TÜM YABANCI MİSYONLAR (Brezilya, Etyopya, Fransa, Güney Afrika Cumhuriyeti, İngiltere, Malezya, Şili, Tayland,Vietnam ve Yeni Zelanda Büyükelçilikleri hariç)

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey presents its compliments to all Foreign Missions accredited to Turkey and with reference to its Note 2006/PDGY/149592 dated April 11, 2006 has the honour to inform them that:

1. Only Debit Cards with VAT Exemption (DCTE) will be valid for tax-exempt purchases of the members of the foreign missions as of January 1, 2007. However, the current practice will be continued regarding mission tax exemption for official purchases of the mission.

2. A contract has been signed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with Akbank A.Ş. for the implementation of the VAT exempt debit cards.

3. The authorized Akbank branches and the telephone numbers of the personnel in charge of these accounts are listed hereby in Annex-A. Members of the mission will need to open deposit accounts in Turkish Liras (YTL) in order to qualify for the aforementioned card.

4. DCTEs have Maestro logo on them along with the MFA and Akbank logos, and the holders’ name.

5. DCTE enables its users to buy goods and services from any member retailer in the Maestro network in Turkey and abroad. It is possible to withdraw cash from all Akbank and other “Altın Nokta (Golden Point)” ATMs in Turkey and all ATMs within the Maestro network outside Turkey. Card users can also perform banking transactions through Akbank’s ATMs, personal internet branch and telephone banking services.

6. The fixed yearly limit for VAT exempt purchases with the DCTE is the Turkish Lira (YTL) equivalent of 30,000 Euros. The limit is set for the time period from January 1st through December 31st and can only be used for the calendar year. Remainder that has not been used at the end of the year will not be transferred to next year. The same limit will be valid for the members of the mission who have assumed their duties anytime during the year. The yearly limits for some countries are set below the above-mentioned limit based on reciprocity.

7. No minimum purchase or goods/services category requirements will be applied to the use of DCTEs.

8. Members of the mission should have their ID cards with them and present it with the DCTE for the sales transaction. The transaction will be electronically cleared by the bank if the balance of the account covers the sales price and the yearly limit has not been exceeded.

9. A second DCTE attached to the same deposit account can be issued to the spouse of the member of the mission on request. Yearly limit for VAT exempt purchases will be allocated between the two cards as requested by the member of the mission.

10. In the event that the yearly limit is reached, the card will be blocked for domestic tax-exempt transactions but it will be open for all other banking transactions.

11. Members of foreign missions are advised to get in contact with an Akbank branch of their choice and start the procedures, to have the cards issued on time. After applications are processed, delivery of the cards will be completed during December. A list of the members of missions that have the privilege for tax-exempt purchases has been transmitted to Akbank.

12. It is useful to keep a copy of the information note approved by the Ministry attached as Annex-B for sales transactions, to inform vendors in order to avoid complications during the initial stage of the DCTE use.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey kindly requests the Foreign Missions accredited to Turkey to transmit a list of the names and ID numbers of all members of the missions with VAT exemption privilege along with the name of the selected Akbank branch from the list in Annex-A and avails itself of this opportunity to renew to all Foreign Missions accredited to Turkey the assurances of its highest consideration.