The Proposal Has Not Yet Taken Effect
Türkiye’s Ministry of Trade has prepared draft rules covering seller data portability, delivery and return responsibilities, and additional protections against unfair competition.
The data-transfer requirements are expected to apply to medium-sized, large and very large online marketplaces. As of August 20, 2026, the document remains a proposal, with its final wording and effective date yet to be announced.
What Sellers Will Be Able to Transfer
At a seller’s request, a marketplace would be required to transfer specified data to another e-commerce platform free of charge and in an effective technical format.
The transferable information would include sales and return records, product specifications and descriptions, images, customer questions and answers, reviews, ratings and seller performance scores.
The measure could make it easier for businesses to open stores on additional platforms. Sellers would not have to recreate every product listing or rebuild their entire operating history when joining a competing marketplace.
The practical effect will depend on the technical standards adopted. Platforms will need compatible formats for product information and images while ensuring that personal and commercially sensitive data remain protected.
Clearer Liability for Lost or Damaged Goods
The draft also addresses delivery and reverse-logistics procedures. When a marketplace facilitates a contract between a seller and a transport or logistics provider, the agreement would have to define the rights and responsibilities of all parties in advance.
Contracts would need to explain who is liable when goods are lost or damaged during delivery or return, as well as how compensation must be calculated and paid. Failure by a marketplace to comply could be classified as an unfair commercial practice.
For sellers, this could make claims handling more predictable. Disputes over lost or damaged shipments often arise when responsibility is unclear between the marketplace, merchant and carrier.
Türkiye Seeks Stronger Platform Competition
Data portability is intended to reduce seller lock-in. By retaining product listings, ratings and operating records, merchants should be able to join competing platforms more easily and distribute sales across several channels.
For marketplaces, the measure would intensify competition for merchants. Platforms would have to retain sellers through commission rates, support quality, payment terms and logistics performance rather than through exclusive control over accumulated data.
Earlier, Trendyol and Hepsiburada tightened seller rules to accelerate deliveries. The latest proposal indicates that Türkiye’s e-commerce market is moving toward more formal rules governing sellers, logistics providers and commercial data.
What Happens Next
Individual provisions may change before the final regulation is approved. Authorities and industry participants will also need to agree on technical protocols, deadlines for responding to transfer requests and data-protection requirements.
Sellers will need to wait for the final text and guidance from Türkiye’s Ministry of Trade. These documents should clarify which marketplaces are covered and when they must introduce data-transfer mechanisms.
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