Türkiye postpones talks on controversial defense industry bill

Talks on the Defense Industry Omnibus Bill, which includes collecting funds from credit cards, are postponed.

The bill, proposed by Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), is now set to be reviewed by the Turkish Parliament’s Planning and Budget Committee in 2025.

Abdullah Guler, the ruling AK Party parliamentary group leader, announced that talks on the defense industry support fund proposal had concluded. “We have ended the discussions to further examine the proposal in more detail,” Guler said.

Key provisions of the bill

The proposed controversial bill seeks to raise ₺80 billion ($2.3 billion) to support the defense industry through a “participation fee” in specific sectors.

Additionally, the bill would impose an annual ₺750 ($22) fee on credit cards with limits above ₺100,000 ($2,919). It also proposes a ₺750 charge from both buyers and sellers in real estate transactions.