There have been significant changes in law regarding the civil society in Turkey between 2004 and 2008. Legal issues concerning non-governmental organizations can be confusing in practice since they are regulated by different laws and regulations. With our 15 years of experience, we aim to eliminate this confusion and to provide information on legislation and practices.
In practice, it is possible to declare a temporary address for an association that is in the establishment phase. Although having an independent residence with the establishment of the association is the healthiest method for carrying out the activities of the association in practice.
If an association is going to change the residence (office, headquarter) address in the same province, the board of administration should take a decision for this change and there is no need for a general assembly resolution. The change decision should be notified to the Provincial Directorate of Civil Society Relations over DERBİS within 45 days.
If an association is to move its address (office, headquarter) to another province, the resolution of the general assembly must be taken. Again, within 45 days after the resolution, the mentioned change should be notified to the Provincial Directorate of Civil Society Relations Directorate via DERBİS.
After the association's general assembly meeting is duly convened, the list of members entitled to participate in the general assembly on the designated date is kept available at the meeting venue.
Members entering the meeting area have their identity documents issued by official authorities checked by the board of directors or by personnel assigned by the board.
Members sign next to their names on the list prepared by the board of directors as they enter the meeting venue. Those who do not show their identification, do not sign the specified list, or are not entitled to participate in the general assembly are not allowed into the meeting venue. These persons and non-members may watch the general assembly meeting from a separate section.
If the necessary quorum is met, this is documented in a written record, and the meeting is opened by the chair of the board of directors or a member of the board designated by the chair. If the quorum is not met, a written record is also prepared by the board of directors.
After the opening, a presiding committee is formed by electing a chair, a sufficient number of vice-chairs, and a secretary to preside over the meeting. In the elections for the association's bodies, members casting votes are required to show their IDs to the presiding committee and sign next to their names on the attendance list.
The management and security of the meeting are the responsibility of the chair of the presiding committee.
The general assembly is concluded upon discussion and final decision on the items on the agenda. Each member has one vote in the general assembly; members must cast their votes in person.
The topics discussed and resolutions passed in the meeting are written in the minutes and jointly signed by the chair and the secretaries of the presiding committee.
At the end of the meeting, the minutes and other documents are handed over to the chair of the board of directors. The chair is responsible for safeguarding these documents and delivering them to the newly elected board of directors within 7 days. (Associations Regulation Art. 15) General assembly decisions are made by an absolute majority of the participating members.
Decisions to amend the bylaws or dissolve the association can only be made with a two-thirds majority of the members attending the meeting. (Turkish Civil Code Art. 81)
At the general assembly meeting, only the items on the agenda sent to members by the board of directors are discussed. However, topics requested in writing to be discussed by at least 1/10 of the attending members must be added to the agenda. (Turkish Civil Code Art. 79)
Associations may hold ordinary meetings at the times specified in their bylaws, and may convene extraordinary meetings within 30 days upon the written request of 1/5 of the members if deemed necessary. However, it is mandatory for associations to hold ordinary general assembly meetings at least once every 3 years. (Associations Regulation Art.13, Turkish Civil Code Art.74)
The operational procedures of an association can be freely arranged in the association's bylaws unless they conflict with the provisions of the associations legislation, and it is possible for bylaws to stipulate that meetings be held every year or every two years. However, this period under no circumstances can exceed 3 years.
As long as the meeting time is stated as “every 2 years” in the association's bylaws, ordinary general assembly meetings must be held every 2 years.
Associations can also hold general assembly and board of administration meetings electronically. Information and criteria on specifications of softwares to be used for holding general assembly and board of administration meetings can be found in Turkish at the web page of GD of Information Technologies of the Ministry of Interior.
Unless otherwise stated in the charter, the board of directors consists of five principal and five substitute members. It is possible to increase this minimum number specified by the statute of the association. Membership in the board of directors starts with the election and lasts until the end of the membership period.
Membership registration book, document registry book, official minute book and operating ledger are amongst the essential books for associations. It’s mandatory to keep above-mentioned books/ledgers for an association. These books can be certified either by the Provincial Directorates of Civil Society Relations or can be notarized. Besides, although it’s not mandatory, an inventory book and receipt book can also be kept.
In lieu of “off the shelf” ledgers and books, you can also utilise the ledgers and books, created by using A4 pages, but those versions can only be notarized. In terms of the legitimacy of the books/ledgers, there is no difference where they are certified. They can be certified free of charge by the Provincial Directorates of Civil Society Relations, however, the standard fees must be paid to the public notary for these procedures.
For more information on book-keeping, please check out the Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Interior, DG of Civil Society Relations website (only in Turkish).
The minute book is the ledger in which the decisions of the administration board of an association are written. Only permanent members can sign the minute book. A substitute member who attended the meeting should not sign it on behalf of permanent members. When writing decisions, headings must be indicated clearly. It’s advised to write decisions with the same pen and handwriting. A decision can last more than one page. However, signatures should be put right after each decision without leaving a space. If there is a space between the text and signatures in previous decisions, those spaces should be sealed by drawing a line. Any decisions can be written into the decision book. It doesn't matter whether it's implemented or not.
Format of the decisions which will be entered into minute books, consists of number and date of decisions, agenda items and the participants of the board meeting. Please be noted that the minute book can also consist of certified A4 pages, instead of a printed notebook.
For more information on book-keeping, please check out the Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Interior, DG of Civil Society Relations website (only in Turkish).
Members of an association should be entered into the membership registration book. Credentials of members and their entry and exit dates have to be included in the book. The membership entrance and annual fees can be entered as well. The decision date of the administration board of the association regarding the membership should be written as the start date of the membership.
It’s advised to keep the membership registration book up to date, because it’s a document that is checked during auditing.
For more information on book-keeping, please check out the Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Interior, DG of Civil Society Relations website (only in Turkish).
The sum of the association is entered into the operating ledger in the beginning of each financial year. Incomes and expenses are written in the operating ledger during the financial year. At the end of each financial year, the differentiation amount between income and expenses needs to be kept either in the bank account or the cash box of the association. If the annual income of an association exceeds 600,000 TL, the general ledger should be kept. Public benefit associations should keep the ledger on the basis of balance.
For more information on book-keeping, please check out the Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Interior, DG of Civil Society Relations website (only in Turkish).