Temporary article 3 has been added to the Law No. 7226 on Amendments to Certain Laws with the 15th article of  the " Law No. 7318 on Amendments to the Tax Procedure Law and Certain Laws ", which entered into force upon publication in the Official Gazette No. 31470 dated 30.04.2021.

Article 15 of the Law on Amendments to the Tax Procedure Law and Certain Laws, no. 7318, is as follows:

         “ ARTICLE 15-  The following temporary article has been added to the Law on Amendments to Certain Laws No. 7226 dated 25/03/2020.

         'TEMPORARY ARTICLE 3- (1) In order to prevent loss of rights, taking into account the restrictions applied throughout the country within the scope of combating the Covid-19 epidemic;

a) Checks whose last day of presentation period falls between 30/04/2021 and 31/05/2021 (inclusive) cannot be presented between these dates; they can be presented within the remaining presentation period after 01/06/2021.

b) Regarding receivables based on bills of exchange due between 30/04/2021 and 31/05/2021 (inclusive); no enforcement or bankruptcy proceedings can be initiated, no provisional attachment decision can be given, and any proceedings that have already been initiated will be suspended between these dates.

c) Enforcement and bankruptcy proceedings cannot be initiated between 30/04/2021 and 31/05/2021 (inclusive) regarding the receivables of public administrations arising from public law or private law within the scope of the Public Financial Management and Control Law No. 5018 dated 10/12/2003. '

Temporary article 3/1-a stipulates that cheques with a presentation deadline between 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive) cannot be presented between 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive) and can be presented within the remaining presentation deadline after 01.06.2021.

The striking point is that the regulation does not state that no checks can be presented between 30.04.2021 – 31.05.2021 (inclusive), but that checks whose last day of the presentation period falls between 30.04.2021 – 31.05.2021 (inclusive) cannot be presented between 30.04.2021 – 31.05.2021 (inclusive). Therefore, checks whose last day of the presentation period is not between 30.04.2021 – 31.05.2021 (inclusive) can be presented between 30.04.2021 – 31.05.2021 (inclusive).

The period within which cheques must be presented is regulated in Article 796 of the Turkish Commercial Code (TTK).

“ ARTICLE 796 – (1) A cheque must be presented to the addressee within ten days if it is to be paid where it was issued; within one month if it is to be paid somewhere else than where it was issued.

(2) A cheque drawn in a country other than the country to which it will be paid must be presented to the addressee within one month if the place of issue and the place of payment are on the same continent, and within three months if they are on different continents. In this respect, cheques drawn in a European country and to be paid in a country with a Mediterranean coast, and similarly, cheques drawn in a country with a Mediterranean coast and to be paid in a European country, are deemed to have been drawn and paid in the same continent.

(3) The periods stated in the first and second paragraphs begin the day following the date of issue stated on the cheque.”

Accordingly, a check to be paid where it was issued must be presented within 10 days; a check to be paid somewhere else must be presented within 1 month; a check to be paid in a country other than the country of payment must be presented within 1 month if the place of payment and the place of issue are on the same continent, and within 3 months if they are on different continents.

For example, the last day of the 10-day presentation period for a check with an issue date of 25.04.2021, whose place of issue and payment are the same, is 05.05.2021. In other words, it falls between 30.04.2021 and 31.05.2021 (inclusive). Therefore, this check cannot be presented between 30.04.2021 and 31.05.2021 (inclusive). Since 5 days have passed from the issue date of 25.04.2021 to 30.04.2021, it can be presented within the remaining 5-day presentation period after 31.05.2021.

On the other hand, in another example, the last day of the 1-month presentation period of a check with a date of 15.05.2021, the place of issue of which is Izmir and the place of payment is Ankara ( to be paid at a place other than the place of issue), is 15.06.2021. In other words, it does not fall between the dates 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive). This check, which is not within the scope of the regulation and whose last day of the presentation period does not fall between the dates 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive), can be presented between the dates 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive).

On the same day as this regulation, the Ministry of Trade's " Communiqué on the Implementation of Clause (A) of the First Paragraph of the Temporary Article 3 of the Law No. 7226 on Amendments to Certain Laws " was published in the Official Gazette dated 30.04.2021 and numbered 31470 1. Repeated.

In the second paragraph of the second article of the Communiqué:

a) If the last day of the presentation period falls between 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive), the cheque amount will be paid if it is presented to the bank between these dates and the cheque account holder has the cheque's account.

b) However, it has been stated that if there is no money in the check account holder's account, no bad check transaction will be made within the scope of the Check Law No. 5941 before 01.06.2021.

“ (2) Within the scope of temporary article 3 of Law No. 7226;

a) If the cheques falling between the last day of the presentation period, 30/4/2021 and 31/5/2021, are presented to the bank between the specified dates, the cheque amount must be paid provided that there is money in the cheque account holder's account.

b) If the cheques falling between the last day of the presentation period, 30/4/2021 and 31/5/2021, are presented to the bank between the specified dates and there is no money in the cheque account holder's account, the bounce transaction will not be made within the scope of the Cheque Law No. 5941 before 1/6/2021. However, necessary transactions can be made regarding the cheques in question after 1/6/2021 .

As a result, checks with a presentation deadline between 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive) can be presented between 30.04.2021 - 31.05.2021 (inclusive). If the check is funded in the check account holder's account, the check amount will be paid, but if the check is not funded, bad check transactions cannot be made until 01.06.2021.

A point to be noted is that this regulation introduced by the Ministry of Trade with the Communiqué on the Implementation of Clause (A) of the First Paragraph of the Temporary Article 3 of the Law No. 7226 on Amendments to Certain Laws is contrary to Article 15 of the Law No. 7318 on Tax Procedure Law and Amendments to Certain Laws and temporary article 3 added to the Law No. 7226 on Amendments to Certain Laws. The provision of an exceptional regulation not foreseen by the law with a communiqué that is below the law in the hierarchy of norms constitutes a violation of the hierarchy of norms.