Turkey Expands Tax Exemption for Rediscount Loans to Support Exporters

Turkey has expanded a tax exemption on rediscount loans in a move intended to reduce exporters’ financing costs and improve access to credit.

A presidential decision published in the Official Gazette on September 5 extended the Bank and Insurance Transactions Tax exemption to long-term rediscount loans funded by the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye and issued by commercial banks. The exemption already covered short-term rediscount loans. It will now apply to long-term loans provided by both Eximbank and commercial banks.

The rediscount loan program, a key tool for export financing, operates under rules set by the central bank. Recent changes reduced the financing cost used in rediscount loan calculations to 23.95%. The program’s daily limit rose from 300 million Turkish liras to 5 billion liras, while the daily limit per company increased from 45 million liras to 60 million liras.

The limit for foreign-currency export rediscount loans also rose to $5 million, and the program’s total budget was set at $1 billion. The requirement not to purchase foreign currency was removed, and an exporter score replaced the net exporter system. An additional foreign-currency conversion requirement was also lifted.

The measures aim to reduce exporters’ tax burden, expand the volume of rediscount lending and improve access to financing. The Trade Ministry said exporters’ competitiveness in global markets is directly linked to export financing and described access to finance as one of its priority areas.