Micro-Export and ETGB: Current Limits and Process
Declaring micro-exports with an ETGB, the thresholds that rose to 600 kilograms and EUR 30,000 on 3 January 2026, and how the process changes when the limit is exceeded.
Micro-export is the export of goods carried by post or express courier under a simplified declaration made by the operator; in practice that declaration is called an ETGB (electronic commerce customs declaration). The framework is set by Article 225 of Customs Law No. 4458 and Article 126 of Decision No. 2009/15481. The weight and value thresholds were raised on 3 January 2026 to 600 kilograms gross and EUR 30,000.
Step by step
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Classify the product and check permissions first
The first step is to establish the tariff position of what you send (see HS code). At the same stage, check whether the product appears on the lists of goods whose export is prohibited or subject to prior permission. If a conformity letter or export permission from an agency is needed, the goods cannot be sent abroad without presenting it to the customs administration; a missing permission found after the consignment has been left at the courier branch is the most expensive pause in the process.
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Choose the operator and give the indirect-representation authorisation
Only an authorised postal administration or express courier operator can issue an ETGB; an ordinary domestic courier consignment is not covered. You give the operator the indirect-representation authorisation consignment by consignment. The operator prepares the declaration, but the accuracy of the information in it remains with you. Obtain written confirmation from the operator of which customs directorate will handle the consignment and which regime and exemption codes will be written on the declaration.
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Make the invoice and the consignment data consistent
The invoice amount, product description, quantity and gross weight must match the data set you give the operator exactly. The export invoice is issued without VAT; agree with your financial adviser in which document format you will issue it. The buyer information, delivery place and currency must also agree with the declaration. Later corrections follow a separate procedure, and in a VAT refund file every inconsistency between the ETGB and the invoice is queried.
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Track the threshold and the collection consignment by consignment
Follow the gross weight and the invoice value of each consignment separately; exceeding either threshold moves the consignment to the normal-declaration side. On the proceeds side, the 180-day period for bringing the proceeds into the country runs from the actual export date, and a certain proportion of the proceeds brought in must be sold to a bank. As the facilities for low-value transactions and the sale proportion are changed by time-limited rules, confirm the current position with your bank before designing the payment method.
What is an ETGB, and how is it different from a normal export declaration?
An ETGB is an electronic customs declaration with a simplified data set, used for declaring goods carried by post or express courier through the operator. It differs from a normal export declaration in three ways. The first is who lodges it: the ETGB is lodged not by the exporter but by the authorised postal administration or express courier operator through its own system. The second is the data set, which is narrower than a normal declaration. The third is the threshold: a normal declaration has no quantity or value limit, while an ETGB can be used only for consignments below a certain weight and value. In legal effect there is no difference; once the declaration is closed, the goods are treated as properly exported and the export exemption rests on it.
- The declaration is lodged by the authorised operator, not by the exporter
- The data set is narrower than a normal export declaration
- It is subject to a weight and value threshold
- A closed declaration has the same legal effect as a normal declaration
When and by what rule did the micro-export limits change?
The weight threshold is 600 kilograms gross and the value threshold is EUR 30,000, and these figures took effect on 3 January 2026. The change came in two steps. First, Presidential Decision No. 10664, published in Official Gazette no. 33098 of 5 December 2025, changed the words "ten times" to "twenty times" in the first paragraph of Article 126 of Decision No. 2009/15481, doubling the ceiling of the power to raise the limits. Then the Communiqué (Series No: 5) published in Official Gazette no. 33126 of 3 January 2026 changed "300 kilograms" to "600 kilograms" and "15,000 Euro" to "30,000 Euro" in the seventh paragraph of Article 10 of the Communiqué on Customs Procedures for Goods Carried by Post and Express Courier (Series No: 1); this provision took effect on the date of publication. The requirement in the same communiqué for operators to have at least two customs brokers took effect 90 days after publication.
- Power to raise limits set at 20 times: Presidential Decision No. 10664, OG 5.12.2025 / 33098
- Threshold applied: 600 kilograms gross and EUR 30,000 — Communiqué (Series No: 5), OG 3.1.2026 / 33126
- Previous threshold: 300 kilograms and EUR 15,000
- The threshold applies to each consignment; it is not an annual quota
- The requirement for operators to have two customs brokers took effect on 3 April 2026
How can a courier company declare on your behalf?
The operator makes the declaration in its own name but for your account, as an indirect representative. The basis is Article 225 of Customs Law No. 4458, which governs conducting customs procedures through direct or indirect representation; the same article provides that postal administrations and express courier companies may be authorised as indirect representatives for goods carried by post and express courier whose quantity and value are set by the President. In practice you give the operator an indirect-representation authorisation before handing over the consignment, and the operator creates and registers the declaration. The authorisation is specific to the consignment and does not take away your responsibility for the accuracy of the declaration; if the invoice, product description, tariff position or value is wrong, the consequence still falls on the exporter. The data you give the operator must therefore match your invoice and commercial records.
How do VAT and the export proceeds work in micro-export?
The export of goods is exempt from VAT; your export invoice is issued without VAT. The basis is Articles 11 and 12 of VAT Law No. 3065: for the supply to be exempt, it must be made to a customer abroad and the goods must leave the customs territory of the Republic of Türkiye and reach a foreign country. If you cannot offset the VAT you bore on these goods by deduction, you can claim a refund under Article 32 of the same Law; the document used to evidence the export is the ETGB, and the exemption is declared in the tax period containing the date the declaration is closed. A separate regime applies to the proceeds: under Article 3 of the Communiqué on Decision No. 32 on the Protection of the Value of the Turkish Currency (Export Proceeds, No: 2018-32/48), the period for bringing export proceeds into the country may not exceed 180 days from the actual export date, and a certain proportion of these proceeds must be sold to a bank. As the sale proportion and the exceptions for low-value transactions are changed by time-limited rules, confirm with your bank at the time of the transaction.
Which goods fall outside the ETGB?
The ETGB is designed for goods sent abroad for definitive sale that can be exported freely. Goods whose export is prohibited or subject to prior permission are outside this framework: for items listed in the relevant legislation, no exit can be made until the conformity letter or export permission of the competent agency is presented to the customs administration. Operations other than definitive sale, such as sending goods for repair, outward processing and temporary exhibition, require a declaration under their own regimes. Consignment export is subject to a separate permission process: under Article 9 of the Export Regulation, applications are made to the relevant Exporters' Associations General Secretariat, and the declaration approved with the consignment notation must be presented to the customs administration within thirty days.
- For goods prohibited or subject to prior permission for export, the permission or conformity letter of the competent agency is required
- Operations other than definitive sale: repair, outward processing, temporary exhibition and fairs
- Consignment export depends on the permission of the Exporters' Associations General Secretariat
- A consignment is covered by an ETGB only through an authorised postal administration or express courier operator
What happens when you exceed the limit?
As soon as a consignment exceeds 600 kilograms gross or EUR 30,000, the operator's authority for a simplified declaration ends and the process runs with a normal export declaration. Exceeding only one of the two thresholds is enough: a consignment of 40 kilograms but EUR 35,000, or one of EUR 12,000 but 700 kilograms, is outside the scope. From that point you either lodge the declaration yourself through direct representation or run it through a customs broker as indirect representative; Article 225 of the Customs Law keeps both routes open. The transport side changes too: the single price in a courier tariff is replaced by a load-based transport plan, a transport document, a consolidation decision and a choice of delivery term. For palletised loads to Europe, groupage and full-load by road are compared; for urgent or dense cargo, air freight comes into the picture. If you share dimensions and weights, we can compare the options. See Road Freight and Air Freight.
What changes when moving from micro-export to regular export?
It is not only the type of declaration that changes; the document set, cost structure, delivery term and insurance responsibility change together. In micro-export the document chain is built from the invoice and the ETGB, while in regular export the transport document (a CMR consignment note by road, an AWB by air, a bill of lading by sea), the packing list and, where needed, movement or origin certificates come into play. If you send industrial goods to the European Union under the Customs Union, the A.TR proves free-circulation status, and under preferential origin the EUR.1 comes into question. The cost structure turns from a single item into several: freight, terminal charges, customs brokerage and destination items appear separately. The delivery term moves to the centre of the contract; the Incoterms rule decides where cost and risk change hands. Insurance does not come automatically either: the carrier's limited liability is replaced by separately arranged cargo insurance.
Micro-export (ETGB) compared with a normal export declaration
| Topic |
Micro-export (ETGB) |
Normal export declaration |
| Threshold |
Up to 600 kg gross and EUR 30,000 |
No quantity or value limit |
| Who lodges the declaration |
Authorised operator, as indirect representative |
The exporter directly, or a customs broker as indirect representative |
| Transport document |
Courier consignment record |
CMR consignment note, AWB or bill of lading |
| Origin and movement certificate |
As a rule not required |
A.TR, EUR.1 and similar are issued as needed |
| Cost structure |
A single item inside the courier tariff |
Freight, terminal, customs brokerage and arrival items separate |
| Delivery term |
Mostly door-to-door delivery |
An Incoterms rule set in the contract |
| Insurance |
The carrier's limited liability |
Separately arranged cargo insurance |
Frequently asked questions
What is the micro-export limit now, in kilograms and euros?
600 kilograms gross and EUR 30,000. These thresholds were changed in the Communiqué on Customs Procedures for Goods Carried by Post and Express Courier by the Communiqué (Series No: 5) published in Official Gazette no. 33126 of 3 January 2026, and took effect the same day. Before that, 300 kilograms and EUR 15,000 applied. The rule that opened the way for the change is Presidential Decision No. 10664, published in Official Gazette no. 33098 of 5 December 2025, which raised the power to increase the limits in Article 126 of Decision No. 2009/15481 from "ten times" to "twenty times".
Is the limit applied per consignment or on an annual total?
Per consignment. The rule provides for the operator to declare goods whose quantity and value do not exceed the stated thresholds; the unit of measure is a single declaration. There is no quota based on annual turnover or total exports. On the other hand, the gross weight and the invoice value of each consignment must each stay below the threshold; exceeding either takes that consignment out of scope.
Do I have to work with a customs broker in micro-export?
Because the operator lodges the declaration as indirect representative, the exporter does not need to hire a broker separately. Article 225 of the Customs Law allows procedures to be conducted through direct or indirect representation and provides that postal administrations and express courier companies may be authorised as indirect representatives. On the operator's side, from 3 April 2026 there is a requirement to employ, or contract with, at least two customs brokers to carry out the procedures.
Can a VAT refund be obtained on exports made with an ETGB?
Yes. The export of goods is exempt under Articles 11 and 12 of the VAT Law; the invoice is issued without VAT, and if the VAT borne cannot be offset by deduction, a refund can be claimed under Article 32 of the same Law. The document used to evidence the export is the ETGB. The exemption is declared in the tax period containing the date the declaration is closed; in the file, the invoice and the declaration data must match.
Do I have to bring the export proceeds into the country?
As a rule, yes. Under Article 3 of the Communiqué on Decision No. 32 (No: 2018-32/48), the period for bringing export proceeds into the country may not exceed 180 days from the actual export date, and a certain proportion of these proceeds must be sold to a bank. The sale proportion and the facilities for low-value and micro-export type transactions are updated by time-limited rules, so confirm with your bank at the time of the transaction.
How do consignment goods sent without being sold work?
Consignment export depends on permission. Under Article 9 of the Export Regulation, applications are made to the relevant Exporters' Associations General Secretariat, and the customs declaration approved with the consignment notation must be presented to the customs administration within thirty days. The definitive sale of consigned goods must be made within one year of the export date; this period can be extended by two more years by the Secretariat that gave the permission, if the application relies on justified and compelling reasons. Within thirty days after the definitive sale, the situation is notified with the definitive sale invoice to the General Secretariat and the intermediary bank.