Law No. 7534 on Amendments to the Village Law and Certain Other Laws (“Amendment Law“), published in the Official Gazette on December 12, 2024, has brought modifications to Law No. 7221 on Amendments to the Geographic Information Systems and Certain Other Laws.These revisions were introduced to comply with the Constitutional Court’s annulment decision dated May 18, 2023, and numbered 2023/99.The key highlights of the changes introduced by the Amendment Law are as follows:
1. Permit Process
The Amendment Law seeks to streamline the permit processes for individuals and legal entities involved in the collection, production, sharing, and sale of geographic data, under the oversight of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change (“Ministry“).
Under the new regulations, permit fees will be determined based on factors such as the number of geographic data themes, financial capacity, income level, permit duration, and the size of the activity area. This approach aims to enhance fairness and efficiency in data production and usage.
The validity period of permits will be subject to the Ministry’s approval and will range from a minimum of 1 year to a maximum of 5 years, depending on the applicant’s request.
2. Unauthorized Activities and Sanctions
If the Ministry identifies individuals or legal entities conducting geographic data activities without the required permit, they will be given a 15-day period to apply for the necessary authorization.
Failure to submit the application within this period will result in the imposition of the following penalties:
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- A fine equal to the highest annual permit fee for Turkish citizens,
- A fine is double that amount for foreign individuals and legal entities.
The payment of the administrative fine does not eliminate the obligation to obtain a permit from the Ministry. Individuals and legal entities subject to permits are required to obtain the permit and comply with the permit processes in addition to paying the prescribed fee.
3. Data sharing for Disaster and Emergency Situations
Entities operating under the National Geographic Data Responsibility Matrix shall be required to provide the Ministry with the geographic data they produce, free of charge, for disaster and emergency management purposes.
4. Exemptions
Natural gas and electricity distribution companies holding licenses from the Energy Market Regulatory Authority are exempt from the permit requirement, provided they complete registration with the National Geographic Information Platform. However, this exemption does not extend to the sale or commercial distribution of geographic data beyond the scope of their distribution license.
5. Transitional Provisions
Permits and licenses issued by the Ministry prior to the enactment of the Amendment Law will remain valid until their designated expiration date. However, permit or license applications that were not approved by the Ministry will be deemed invalid.
The full text of the Amendment Law can be reached through this link (only available in Turkish).
