Use of Türkiye instead of Turkey for English documents

What does this mean for your company?

Dutch Customs advises companies to use the new name in English documents that are used for transport such as for example commercial documents, origin documents and A.TR-certificates. Dutch Customs as well as the customs authorities in Turkey have announced that for the time being both names will be accepted. However, we advise companies to already verify whether they have any trade with Turkey and need to change the name on the documents used. No changes to Dutch documents are needed yet.

Note that in other countries it may also be needed to make changes in the documents. For example, the Swiss Customs authorities issued a similar statement last month. The difference with the Netherlands is that in Switzerland all origin documents should include the new name regardless if the documents are in English, German, French or Italian.

In Belgium the authorities did publish the note of the European Commission to inform companies about this change. They have not issued a legal statement yet. The same goes for Germany. No official statement has been made by the Customs authorities yet. However, the German international chambers of commerce has requested that the name "Türkiye"  be used on trade documents in English so as not to jeopardise import clearance in Turkey.

Therefore, keep in mind that it can and will affect your business in other countries as well. 

Additional background

After the United Nations accepted the name change of Turkey in June 2022, Turkey asked the European Commission to change the English translation to the Republic of Türkiye or Türkiye. They announced on July 5, 2022 that they will start using this name on the origin documents and A.TR-certificates. Even though the legislation in the EU has not been changed yet, the European Commission has asked the EU Member States to not reject the documents if the new name is included.

How can we help?

Should you need further information or any assistance in determining which documents  will be affected, PwC can assist you with this.

Let’s talk

If you have any questions regarding the above or require any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact your Customs and International trade contact.