I Received a Special Irregularity Penalty: Is There a Reduction and What Do I Need to Do, and Within How Many Days?

A notice has arrived from the tax office. It says “special irregularity penalty”, there is an amount stated on it, and you have one question in mind: Do I have to pay this? Is there a reduction? How much time do I have?

This article answers those questions based on the legislation in force today.

The short answer is this: Yes, there is a reduction. If, within thirty days after the penalty notice is served on you, you apply to the tax office and declare that you will pay the penalty within the prescribed period, half of the penalty will be waived. If the penalty imposed for the same act does not exceed TRY 40,000 for 2026, the reduction is greater: three quarters of the penalty will be waived.

There are two conditions attached to benefiting from this reduction: you must not file a lawsuit and you must make the payment on time. If either condition is breached, the reduction is lost and the full amount of the penalty becomes payable.

Tax settlement is a separate route; it cannot be used together with the reduction mechanism for the same penalty.

One warning from the outset: the legislation governing this provision was amended in 2019 and again in 2024. There are still articles online explaining the old rates. The rates and time limits below are based on the legislation in force as of September 18, 2026.

What is a special irregularity penalty?

The Tax Procedure Law provides for two types of tax penalties. The first is the tax loss penalty, which is imposed when a tax that should have been paid is underpaid or paid late. The second category consists of irregularity penalties, which are imposed when the formal requirements prescribed by law are not complied with, regardless of whether there has been a loss of tax revenue.

A special irregularity penalty falls within this second category. The best-known examples concern documentary requirements: failure to issue or receive an invoice, receipt, expense voucher or self-employment receipt, or issuing such documents for an amount different from the actual transaction amount.

The amount of the penalty varies depending on the violation, is reassessed annually, and is stated in the penalty notice. This article is not about how the amount is calculated; it explains how much of that amount you will actually have to pay.

How much is the reduction?

The statutory rule is straightforward: half of the penalty is waived. The same 50% reduction applies to tax loss penalties, irregularity penalties and special irregularity penalties. The law makes no distinction between a penalty imposed for the first time and a repeat penalty.

The rule changes for smaller penalties, and it changes in the taxpayer's favour. If the total penalty imposed for the same act does not exceed TRY 40,000 for 2026, tax settlement is not available; however, the reduction rate is increased by 50%. In other words, rather than half being waived, three quarters of the penalty is waived, meaning that you pay only 25% of the penalty.

This TRY 40,000 threshold is reassessed annually. Before applying, verify the amount applicable for the relevant year.

Another question is frequently asked: “I was not assessed any tax; I was only given a penalty. Can I still benefit from the reduction?” Yes. The law expressly provides that the reduction also applies to irregularity penalties imposed independently, without being ancillary to a tax assessment.

Under what conditions does the reduction apply?

The reduction does not apply automatically; you must request it. The conditions are as follows:

1. You must apply to the relevant tax office within thirty days from the date on which the penalty notice is served on you.

2. In your application, you must declare that you will pay the reduced amount of the penalty within the prescribed period.

3. You must either make the payment by the due date or provide one of the forms of security specified by law and make the payment within three months from the expiry of the due date.

“Due date” here refers to the ordinary payment period of the penalty. Under the law, a penalty that has not been challenged in court must be paid within one month from the date on which the period for filing a lawsuit expires. The period for filing a lawsuit is also thirty days.

The practical timeline is therefore approximately as follows: the penalty notice is served on you; you apply within thirty days; once those thirty days expire, a further one-month payment period begins. If you provide security, an additional three months are added to that one-month period.

The application is made in writing, and you undertake to pay the reduced amount remaining after the reduction, not the full penalty.

The required form of the petition and the tax office to which it must be submitted depend on the details stated in the penalty notice. If you are uncertain about any aspect of the procedure, consulting a lawyer or tax adviser is considerably less costly than missing the deadline.

Within how many days do I have to apply?

Thirty days. The period begins on the day following the date on which the penalty notice is served on you.

This is the same period as the period for filing a lawsuit. In other words, once the thirty-day period expires, both your right to the reduction and your right to challenge the penalty in court are generally lost, and the penalty becomes final.

There are technical rules concerning the calculation of the period, including situations where the final day falls on a public holiday. Relying solely on the date printed on the document and waiting until the last day is therefore risky. Making your decision during the week in which the penalty notice is served is the safest course, regardless of which route you ultimately choose.

What happens to the reduction if I file a lawsuit?

You lose it. The law expressly provides that a person who challenges the penalty in court cannot benefit from the reduction provision.

The reduction is effectively the consequence of accepting the penalty and choosing not to contest it. Filing a lawsuit means challenging the penalty; the two routes cannot be pursued simultaneously.

If you choose litigation, the rules are as follows. The action must be filed before the Tax Court within thirty days from the day following service of the penalty notice.

Once the action is filed, collection proceedings concerning the amount of the penalty under challenge are suspended; payment cannot be demanded while the case is pending.

If you lose the case, the full amount of the penalty becomes payable within one month from the service of the new notice that the tax office will issue following the court's decision. If you win the case, the penalty is cancelled.

Ultimately, the decision comes down to one question: Is the penalty unlawful, or is it legally justified but financially burdensome?

If the act giving rise to the penalty did not occur or there was a procedural defect, litigation may be appropriate. If the act did occur and there is no substantive issue to contest, the reduction is the only route that definitively eliminates half, or in the case of a small penalty, three quarters, of the penalty.

What happens if I choose tax settlement?

Tax settlement (uzlaşma) means reaching an agreement with the tax administration regarding the amount of the penalty. However, this procedure is not available in every case.

For irregularity and special irregularity penalties, tax settlement is available only where the penalty exceeds TRY 40,000 for 2026. For penalties below this threshold, settlement cannot be requested; instead, the increased reduction described above applies.

If you wish to request tax settlement, the time limit is again thirty days from the date on which the penalty notice is served.

A settlement meeting is then held, and one of two outcomes follows.

If a settlement is reached, a settlement record is drawn up. This record is final: you cannot subsequently bring an action concerning the agreed penalty, nor can you file any further administrative complaint in relation to it.

No additional reduction is applied to the agreed penalty. Before the amendment introduced in 2024, an additional reduction existed; this is no longer the case.

The agreed penalty must be paid within the ordinary payment period. If the settlement record is served after the ordinary payment period has already expired, the penalty must be paid within one month from the date on which the settlement record is served.

If no settlement is reached, a second settlement request cannot be made. However, two avenues remain open.

First, the final offer made by the tax administration is recorded in the settlement minutes. If you accept that offer in writing before the expiry of the period for filing a lawsuit, the settlement is deemed to have been concluded.

Second, your right to bring an action remains available. If, when the record stating that no settlement was reached is served on you, the original period for filing a lawsuit has already expired or less than fifteen days remain, a new fifteen-day period begins from the date of service of that record.

Two further points are important.

Tax settlement and the reduction cannot be used together for the same penalty. If you have applied for the reduction, you cannot subsequently request tax settlement.

There is, however, some flexibility in the opposite direction: if you have requested tax settlement but the negotiations are not proceeding as you expected, you may withdraw your settlement request until the settlement record is signed and instead request the statutory reduction.

Finally, if the penalty was imposed as part of a tax audit and settlement was requested during the audit but could not be reached, a further request for settlement cannot be made after the penalty is subsequently imposed.

What happens if I delay the payment? Will I lose the reduction?

Yes. The law provides that a person who fails to pay the penalty within the prescribed period after declaring that they will do so cannot benefit from the reduction. The reduction is conditional, and once the condition is breached, the reduction disappears. The tax administration may then demand the full amount of the penalty.

Two matters should be distinguished here.

No late-payment surcharge is imposed on special irregularity penalties. The law limits the application of the late-payment surcharge to tax loss penalties and expressly provides that it does not apply to other penalties.

Accordingly, the cost of late payment here is not interest. The consequence is that the half or three quarters previously waived becomes payable again.

If the penalty becomes final and remains unpaid, collection proceedings will also begin. First, a payment order will generally be served, requiring payment or a declaration of assets within fifteen days, followed by compulsory collection measures if the debt remains unpaid.

The same rule applies to persons who have provided security and used the additional three-month payment period: if the amount is not paid within those three months, the reduction is lost.

Which route should I choose?

The law gives you three routes, and they are mutually exclusive.

• Reduction: You accept the penalty, apply within thirty days, and pay within the prescribed period. Half of the penalty—or three quarters in the case of a small penalty—is waived. No lawsuit and no settlement.

• Tax settlement: Available only for penalties exceeding TRY 40,000 in 2026; it must be requested within thirty days. If an agreement is reached, no lawsuit or additional reduction is available. If no agreement is reached, the period for bringing an action may be extended so that at least fifteen days remain.

• Litigation: The action must be filed within thirty days. Filing the action suspends collection, but it makes the reduction unavailable. The outcome is determined by the court.

Which route is appropriate depends on the amount of the penalty, whether the alleged act actually occurred, and the documents and evidence available to you.

Making a decision without examining these three factors can often result either in paying a penalty that should not have been imposed or in losing a reduction that could have been obtained.

Summary

• Under the legislation in force as of September 18, 2026, the statutory reduction is 50% of the penalty. The same rate applies to tax loss penalties, irregularity penalties and special irregularity penalties; the law does not distinguish between first-time and repeat violations.

• If the total penalty imposed for the same act does not exceed TRY 40,000 in 2026, tax settlement is unavailable and the reduction rises to 75%, meaning that only 25% of the penalty is payable.

• The application period is thirty days from service of the penalty notice, which is the same period as the period for filing a lawsuit.

• Payment must be made within one month after the expiry of the litigation period; if security is provided, an additional three months may be available.

• A person who files a lawsuit or fails to pay within the prescribed period cannot benefit from the reduction; the full penalty becomes payable.

• No additional reduction applies to a penalty settled through tax settlement, and the settled amount cannot subsequently be challenged in court. If settlement fails, the period for filing a lawsuit may be extended so that at least fifteen days remain.

• No late-payment surcharge is imposed on a special irregularity penalty; if it remains unpaid, a payment order and compulsory collection proceedings may follow.

This article has been prepared on the basis of the legislation in force in Türkiye as of September 18, 2026. It is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice in relation to any specific case.