Objection to Administrative Fine — Deadline, Competent Authority and Judicial Review

Contesting an Administrative Fine — Time Limits, Competent Authority, and Judicial Avenues

Administrative fines are monetary sanctions imposed by administrative authorities for the purpose of protecting public order. Law No. 5326 on Misdemeanours (Kabahatler Kanunu) is the principal statute establishing the general framework for administrative sanctions. The avenues for contesting administrative fines vary depending on the statute under which the fine is imposed: as a general rule an application is made to the criminal court of peace (sulh ceza hakimliği), whereas in some special statutes the administrative court is designated as the competent body. This article comprehensively examines the types of administrative fines, the contestation period, the competent bodies for applications, the notification procedure, and the payment process.

What Is an Administrative Fine and What Is Its Statutory Basis?

An administrative fine is a monetary administrative sanction imposed by administrative authorities in response to acts contrary to law defined as misdemeanours (kabahats) in statutes. According to Article 2 of Law No. 5326 on Misdemeanours (Kabahatler Kanunu), a misdemeanour is a wrongful act for which the law provides for the application of an administrative sanction. These fines are not criminal offences in the sense of criminal law; they are misdemeanours within the scope of administrative law.

Administrative fines are regulated not only in Law No. 5326 on Misdemeanours but also in numerous special statutes. Traffic fines (Law No. 2918 on Road Traffic — Karayolları Trafik Kanunu), tax penalties (Law No. 213 on Tax Procedure — Vergi Usul Kanunu), occupational health and safety fines (Law No. 6331 on Occupational Health and Safety — İş Sağlığı ve Güvenliği Kanunu), environmental fines (Law No. 2872 on the Environment — Çevre Kanunu), and consumer rights violation fines (Law No. 6502 on Consumer Protection — Tüketicinin Korunması Kanunu) are the main ones.

Article 3 of the Misdemeanours Law provides that the general provisions of this Law also apply to misdemeanours regulated in other statutes. This arrangement shows that the Misdemeanours Law is a general statute. However, where a special statute contains a contrary provision, the special statute prevails (principle of priority of special statute).

Administrative fines are divided into two types: fixed fines and proportional fines. A fixed fine is one stipulated as a specific amount in the statute. A proportional fine is one calculated on a variable basis, such as the profit obtained from the violation, the sale price, or the tax base.

Within What Period Must an Administrative Fine Be Contested?

According to Article 27 of the Misdemeanours Law, an application to the criminal court of peace (sulh ceza hakimliği) must be made within 15 days of service of the administrative fine decision. This period is a peremptory limitation period; if it is missed, the right of application is extinguished. Special statutes may provide for different periods; in such cases the special statutory provision applies.

The contestation period begins on the date the administrative fine decision is served on the interested party. Service must be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Law No. 7201 on Notifications (Tebligat Kanunu). In the case of defective service, the period begins from the date the interested party becomes aware of the fine.

Different contestation periods are provided in some special statutes. For example, under Law No. 2918 on Road Traffic (Karayolları Trafik Kanunu), an application to the criminal court of peace (sulh ceza hakimliği) against traffic administrative fines may be made within 15 days of service. Against tax penalties within the scope of Law No. 213 on Tax Procedure (Vergi Usul Kanunu), an action must be filed before the tax court within 30 days.

General rules apply to the calculation of periods: the period begins on the day following service, public holidays are included, but if the last day falls on a public holiday the period expires at the end of working hours on the first working day following the holiday. For applications sent by post, the date of posting is accepted as the date of application.

Where Should an Application Contesting an Administrative Fine Be Made?

According to Article 27 of the Misdemeanours Law, the general body for applications against administrative fines is the criminal court of peace (sulh ceza hakimliği). However, where an administrative court has been designated as the competent body by a special statute, an action must be brought before the administrative court. The competent body is determined according to the statutory provision upon which the fine is based.

Application to the criminal court of peace (sulh ceza hakimliği): The criminal court of peace is the competent body for general administrative fines within the scope of the Misdemeanours Law and for fines under special statutes that point to the criminal court of peace, such as traffic fines, civil registration fines, and municipal enforcement (zabıta) fines. The application is made to the criminal court of peace in the place where the administrative authority that imposed the fine is located.

Action before the administrative court: Some statutes provide for actions to be brought before the administrative court against administrative fines. Administrative fines imposed by regulatory boards (such as the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency — BDDK, Energy Market Regulatory Authority — EPDK, Competition Authority — Rekabet Kurumu, Capital Markets Board — SPK, Information Technologies and Communications Authority — BTK) and high-value fines imposed by certain ministries are in particular subject to administrative court jurisdiction. İYUK provisions apply to these fines and the time limit for filing an action is 60 days.

Action before the tax court: An action must be filed before the tax court against tax penalties (usulsüzlük cezası — procedural irregularity penalty, özel usulsüzlük cezası — special procedural irregularity penalty, vergi ziyaı cezası — tax loss penalty) imposed under Law No. 213 on Tax Procedure (Vergi Usul Kanunu). The time limit for filing an action is 30 days.

In cases of doubt as to the competent body, the decisions of the Court of Jurisdictional Disputes (Uyuşmazlık Mahkemesi) and the case law of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay) and the Council of State (Danıştay) are instructive. If an application is made to a body lacking jurisdiction, the application is rejected and the interested party is directed to the competent body.

How Is an Application Made to the Criminal Court of Peace and How Does the Process Work?

An application to the criminal court of peace (sulh ceza hakimliği) is made by written petition within 15 days of service of the administrative fine decision. The petition must state the applicant's identity information, the date and number of the fine decision, the grounds for contestation, and the evidence. Following the application, the court rules on the matter on the file or by holding a hearing, and renders its decision within at most 15 days.

The application petition must include: the applicant's Turkish identification number, name, surname, and address; the date and number of the administrative fine decision contested; the administrative authority that imposed the fine; the grounds and reasoning for contestation; available evidence and documents; and the applicant's signature.

According to Article 28 of the Misdemeanours Law, following an application the criminal court of peace renders one of the following decisions:

- Dismissal of the application: The application is dismissed if the administrative fine is found to be lawful.

- Setting aside the administrative fine: The decision is set aside if the fine is found to be unlawful.

- Modification of the fine: If there is an error in the amount of the fine, the court may determine the correct amount and modify the fine accordingly.

Against the decision of the criminal court of peace, an appeal may be lodged with the next criminal court of peace within 7 days of service of the decision. If there is more than one criminal court of peace in that place, the appeal is made to the court with the next sequential number; if there is only one, it is made to the criminal court of first instance (asliye ceza mahkemesi). The decision rendered on appeal is final.

An application does not automatically stay enforcement of the administrative fine. However, the court may rule to stay collection at the request of a party or of its own motion. In practice, it is not common for criminal courts of peace to order a stay of collection.

What Is the Notification Procedure for Administrative Fines?

Notification of administrative fine decisions is carried out in accordance with the provisions of Law No. 7201 on Notifications (Tebligat Kanunu). Notification may be made to the interested party's known address via the PTT (postal service) or by a court officer. In the case of traffic fines, on-the-spot service of the penalty ticket is also a valid method of notification. Defective service may prevent the contestation period from starting to run.

For service to be valid under the Notifications Law, certain procedural rules must be observed. Service is made to the last known address of the addressee. If the addressee is not found at the address, service may be made to a person living in the same residence or to an employee at the workplace. If no one is found, service may be made to a neighbour or to the neighbourhood head (muhtar) (Article 21 of the Notifications Law — TK).

Electronic notification (e-notification — e-tebligat) is also becoming increasingly common. Pursuant to Article 7(a) of Law No. 7201 on Notifications (Tebligat Kanunu), notification by electronic means is possible. E-notification has been made mandatory in particular for companies, lawyers, and certain public institutions. An e-notification is deemed to have been made at the end of the fifth day following the date it reaches the addressee's electronic notification address.

In the event of defective service, the service is deemed invalid. However, if the addressee nevertheless becomes aware of the fine, the date of becoming aware is accepted as the date of service (Article 32 of TK). A claim of defective service must be raised in the contestation petition; the court cannot examine this issue of its own motion.

Notification to persons residing abroad is carried out in accordance with Articles 25 et seq. of Law No. 7201 on Notifications (Tebligat Kanunu), through diplomatic channels or in accordance with the provisions of international conventions in force between Turkey and the relevant country.

Is There a Possibility of Paying or Instalment Arrangements for Administrative Fines?

According to Article 17(6) of the Misdemeanours Law, an administrative fine must be paid within 30 days of service of the decision. Fines not paid on time are collected through compulsory enforcement under Law No. 6183 on the Collection Procedure for Public Receivables (Amme Alacaklarının Tahsil Usulü Hakkında Kanun). Some special statutes provide for early payment discounts and instalment arrangements.

Early payment discount: According to Article 17(6) of the Misdemeanours Law, if the administrative fine is paid within 15 days of service, three quarters of the fine is collected — in other words, a 25% discount applies. Benefiting from this discount does not eliminate the right to pursue legal remedies against the administrative fine.

A similar discount mechanism also exists for traffic administrative fines. According to Article 16 of Law No. 2918 on Road Traffic (KTK), a quarter discount is applied if the traffic fine is paid within 15 days of service [TO BE VERIFIED — the current rate should be checked].

Instalment arrangements: There is no general provision in the Misdemeanours Law for instalments for administrative fines. However, once the fine reaches the enforcement stage under Law No. 6183, an instalment arrangement may be requested under Article 48 of that Law. Instalment arrangements are at the discretion of the tax office or relevant collection authority.

Late payment surcharges (gecikme zammı) are applied to administrative fines not paid on time. Under Law No. 6183, the late payment surcharge is applied at a specific monthly percentage [TO BE VERIFIED — the current surcharge rate should be checked]. The late payment surcharge is calculated separately for each month from the date the fine becomes due.

Persons experiencing financial difficulty may apply for an instalment arrangement under Article 48 of Law No. 6183. Conditions for an instalment arrangement may include providing a guarantee, paying a specified portion of the debt upfront, and adhering to the instalment plan.

What Happens If an Administrative Fine Is Not Contested or If the Contest Is Rejected?

If an administrative fine is not contested within the prescribed period, the decision becomes final and compulsory enforcement proceedings under Law No. 6183 on the Collection Procedure for Public Receivables are initiated. If the contest is rejected, an appeal may be lodged within 7 days; if this appeal is also rejected, the decision becomes final and the collection process commences.

A final administrative fine is sent by the relevant authority to tax offices or treasury offices for collection. The collection authority issues a payment order (ödeme emri) under Law No. 6183. An action may be filed before the tax court against the payment order within 15 days (Article 58 of Law No. 6183).

The grounds that may be raised against a payment order are limited: it may be claimed that the debt is time-barred, that the debt has been paid, or that the debt has been extinguished. At the payment order stage, the unlawfulness of the administrative fine cannot be raised; this issue can only be contested at the contestation or litigation stage.

Seizure (haciz) may be applied in the context of compulsory enforcement. The debtor's bank accounts, salary, movable and immovable property may be seized. As a rule, the rate of salary seizure may not exceed one quarter of the monthly salary. A limited level of seizure may also be applied to retirement pensions.

Limitation periods for administrative fines are regulated in Article 20 of the Misdemeanours Law. The investigation limitation period, running from the date the misdemeanour was committed, is 5 years for misdemeanours attracting a fine of 50,000 TL or more, and 4 years for those attracting a lower fine [TO BE VERIFIED — current monetary thresholds should be checked]. The enforcement limitation period is 7 or 4 years from the date the decision becomes final.

This content is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.