Türkiye raises fees for int’l vessels transiting Turkish straits

ANKARA

In line with a new mandate, transit fees imposed on international vessels passing through the Turkish straits will be $4.42 per net ton as of July 1, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Abdülkadir Uraloğlu has announced.

“Last year, for the first time in 39 years, we implemented a fee increase to boost foreign currency inflow from the straits, and now we are introducing another increase as of July 1,” Uraloğlu said in a written statement on June 11.

With the new price update, the fee per net ton for international vessels passing through the Turkish straits has risen from $4.08 to $4.42, Uraloğlu added.

The minister reminded that according to the Montreux Convention, fees are collected from vessels passing through the Turkish straits without a call based on three items: Health inspection, lighthouse services and rescue services.

With the new tariff, a ship with a net tonnage of 10,000 will have to pay $17,760 rather than $16,393 with the old fee, Uraloğlu said.

Before 2022, when the first increase was implemented, ships had to pay only $3,240, Uraloğlu added.

“With this increase, we are taking a historic step that will increase the foreign exchange inflow to the country,” he noted.