What Is ETBİS Registration and How to Do It

Short answer: ETBİS is the Turkish Ministry of Trade's Electronic Commerce Information System. Businesses that sell goods or services online are required to register their domains and sales channels in it. Registration is done through e-Devlet, and for most businesses it's a short process.

The information below describes the general framework. Since the rules are updated from time to time, check the announcements on ETBİS's official page and your accountant's view before applying.

Who must register with ETBİS?

Businesses that take orders, accept payments or form sales contracts through their own website or mobile app are in scope. Whether you're a sole proprietorship or a limited or joint-stock company doesn't change the general rule.

A showcase site that only presents products or services and takes orders by phone is more of a gray area. The general view is that registration isn't required if no sale happens on the site; confirm your own case with your accountant. The day you add a cart and checkout, that changes.

There are separate obligations for businesses selling on marketplaces and for intermediary service providers. If you sell on a marketplace and also launch your own site, assume your own site needs to be registered by you, and confirm the details with the official source.

Registration steps

Screens and fields can change as the system is updated; the general flow is:

• Go to the ETBİS website and log in with e-Devlet. For companies, an authorized person has to log in.
• Check your tax number, MERSİS number and contact details. Some of it may come automatically from public records.
• Add the domains you sell on. If you have several sites, enter each one separately.
• Add your mobile app, if any, and any other sales channels the system asks for.
• Select your field of activity, payment methods and delivery details.
• Complete the application and download the QR code or registration details the system gives you.

Before registering, make sure the domain is registered in your name. Declaring a domain that sits in an agency's account makes things harder when you need to change something later.

Displaying it on your site

Once registration is complete, ETBİS gives you a QR code you can display on your site. It's usually placed in the footer next to payment logos, and clicking it leads to a page verifying the registration.

For visitors it's a small trust signal. It shows a registered business stands behind the site. On e-commerce sites we build at Kodyva, once you send us the code we place it in the footer along with payment and shipping logos; if you add it yourself, test once on your phone that the image and link work.

Keeping it up to date

Registration isn't a one-time job. When your domain, address, payment methods or sales channels change, you need to update them in ETBİS. The system may also request activity information from businesses at certain periods; those requests are usually announced via e-Devlet and email. Follow the official announcements for deadlines and details.

Moving to a new domain, shifting sales from Instagram to a website or switching payment providers are all moments to remember to update ETBİS.

If you're new to e-commerce, ETBİS is just one of several official steps. We collected the distance sales contract and other legal texts in a separate post, and the steps for starting an online store in another.

This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for legal, financial or tax advice. For your own situation, consult a lawyer or a certified accountant.