Turkey sees credit‑card annual fee hikes up to 70% and 2,000 TL

Banks in Turkey have raised annual credit‑card fees, with some charges climbing as high as 2,000 Turkish lira and increase rates reported between 50% and 70% depending on the institution.

Consumers allege that banks are still demanding fees for cards that have not been used for months. One example cited a requirement to spend 108,000 TL before a fee refund would be granted, while another showed a 2,000 TL charge applied to a card that had been inactive for 1.5 years.

The consumer association TÜDER reminds users that under current regulation banks must offer a fee‑free card option and cannot charge an annual fee on a card that has seen no activity for 180 days. Affected customers are advised to challenge the charges with their banks and, if necessary, file complaints with the Consumer Arbitration Board. Data from the Interbank Card Centre shows the number of credit and debit cards in Turkey approaching 148 million.