The Turkish parliament has reportedly approved legislation for the introduction of an incentive for regional headquarters, a tax amnesty regime, and certain other tax measures. The main measures include the following.

Regional Headquarters Incentive

The incentive provides a corporate income tax and payroll tax exemption for foreign corporations that establish a regional headquarters (management center) in Turkey, provided the foreign corporation funds the costs of the headquarters and it is not financially associated with a Turkish company.

Tax Amnesty

A voluntary disclosure regime is introduced for both individuals and legal entities. Under the regime, taxpayers are allowed an exemption from tax on disclosed assets without risk of audit or investigation, provided the assets are disclosed by 31 December 2016 and brought into turkey within one month of disclosure (one year for the value of disclosed real estate properties).

Reduced Underpayment Penalties

The penalties for taxpayers that have submitted incorrect returns resulting in an underpayment of tax are relaxed. The penalty amount is reduced to 20% of the underpaid tax (normally 100%) as long as the taxpayer submits a corrected return before the launch of a formal investigation. If the tax authorities are considering a formal investigation, a notice will first be issued to the taxpayer, providing the opportunity to submit a corrected return. Although the under payment penalty is reduced, standard late payment interest will still apply.