Turkey's E-Commerce Discount Rules: What Changed on 1 August 2026

A regulation that took effect in Turkey on 1 August 2026 set a clear rule for the "price before discount" shown in discount ads: for the sale of goods, it is the lowest price applied in the 10 days before the discount starts, and it is determined only from the price on the sales channel where the discount is offered. The regulation also states explicitly that the discount rules apply to loyalty programs and to conditional offers of the "buy this much, get" type.

These rules apply to businesses advertising to consumers in Turkey, whether through their own online store, marketplaces or physical shops. The change came with an amendment to the Commercial Advertising and Unfair Commercial Practices Regulation issued by Turkey's Ministry of Trade and published in the Official Gazette No. 33297 on 1 July 2026. Below you will find the rules an e-commerce business needs to know when setting up a campaign and what to change in practice. This article is general information and does not replace legal advice.

What must a discount ad include?

Under Article 14 of the regulation, every written, audio or visual ad that shows a discount on a product or service must clearly and understandably include three pieces of information:

• The price before the discount
• The start and end dates of the discounted sale
• The quantity, if the discounted product is available in limited numbers

The same article prohibits wording and images that confuse consumers about which products are discounted or by how much, or that give the impression of a bigger discount than is actually offered. A headline such as "up to 70% off everything" carries exactly this risk if the rate applies to very few products.

Article 13, on ads containing price information, also applies to campaigns: the price in the ad must be the total price including all taxes, and if the price is valid only for a set period or while stock lasts, that period and the stock quantity must be stated clearly in the ad.

How is the price before the discount determined?

From 1 August 2026, in ads for the sale of goods, the price before the discount is the lowest price applied in the 10 days before the discount start date. For perishable goods such as fruit and vegetables, and for services, the price immediately before the discounted price is used.

A simple example: if the discount starts on 11 November, you look at 1 to 10 November. If the product sold for TRY 1,200 on one day, for TRY 1,000 on several days and then for TRY 1,100 again during that period, the ad can show TRY 1,000 as the price before the discount. The discount percentage is calculated from that price as well. Raising the price a few days before a campaign and showing the discount from that higher price no longer works under this rule, because the lower price within the 10-day window is what counts.

The same calculation applies to shop labels and price lists under Article 11 of Turkey's Price Label Regulation. Under that article, the label and price list of a discounted product show the discounted price and the price before the discount together, in a visible and legible way, and for goods the price before the discount is again the lowest price of the previous 10 days. The article also spells out one detail: the burden of proof on these points lies with the seller.

What changed for businesses selling on several channels?

Under the new paragraph 14/5, if a product is sold on different sales channels, the prior price used in a discount ad is determined only from the price on the channel where the discount is offered. A price applied on one channel cannot be used as the reference for a discount on another.

This matters for businesses selling both on their own site and on marketplaces. If a product is sold at a higher price on a marketplace and a lower price on your own site, for instance, you cannot show the marketplace price as the "previous price" in a campaign on your site. You need to keep the price history for each channel separately. We cover multichannel stock and price management in our article on marketplace integration.

Are loyalty programs and conditional offers covered?

Yes. The regulation makes this clear in two new paragraphs. In ads for loyalty schemes designed to bind customers to a brand or encourage purchases, the discount rules apply in full if consumers can easily access or use the program. So if you show a "members-only discount" in a program anyone can join in a few clicks, the rules on prior price, dates and quantity apply.

The article also applies to conditional sales ads that tie a discount to a certain quantity, number, amount or transaction (for example "buy 3, pay for 2" or "discount on baskets over a set amount"). Only the requirement to state the product quantity does not apply to these offers.

What should you do in practice to comply?

Most of these rules cannot be followed without an infrastructure that reliably keeps price history. Check these steps before building your campaign calendar:

1. Record price history per channel. Make sure your e-commerce platform stores each product's daily price, separated by channel. Because the burden of proof is on you, this record is your most important document if a complaint arises.
2. Calculate the prior price automatically. When a campaign start date is entered, the system should find the lowest price of the last 10 days by itself. A manually entered "old price" field is the point most prone to error.
3. Add dates to campaign visuals. Banners, landing pages and social media visuals should show the start and end dates, and the quantity for limited-stock campaigns.
4. Compare "up to" claims with the real distribution. If the highest discount rate applies to only a few products, write the headline accordingly.
5. Set up an approval flow. A short flow in which marketing, e-commerce operations and legal approve the campaign against the same checklist before it goes live catches most errors.

To build the campaign landing page and price fields correctly from the start, see our e-commerce development service.

What else changed for e-commerce on 1 August?

The same amendment package brought other provisions that directly affect e-commerce sites:

• Consumer reviews: only customers who bought a product may be allowed to review it on the site. Reviews from channels where purchases cannot be verified may not be published, and reviews must stay online for at least one year, whether positive or negative.
• Use of AI: if an ad uses AI in a way that significantly affects consumers' decisions, or features digital characters that cannot be distinguished from humans, this must be disclosed clearly.
• Targeted advertising: for targeted ads based on personal data, the criteria used to show the ad and how they can be changed must be easy for the consumer to access.
• Influencer ads: influencer posts must now carry the label "Reklam" (Ad) or "Tanıtım" (Promotion) together with the advertiser's name or one of the other disclosures listed in the regulation. We explain the details in our article on influencer ad disclosure.

Summary

• A discount ad must state the prior price, the start and end dates and any limited quantity.
• For goods, the prior price is the lowest price of the 10 days before the discount; for perishable goods and services, it is the immediately preceding price.
• The prior price is calculated only from the price on the channel where the discount is offered.
• Easily accessible loyalty programs and conditional offers are also covered.
• The same 10-day rule applies to labels and price lists, and the burden of proof is on the seller.