Foreign Supplier’s Statement Triggers a Customs Criminal Investigation in Turkey: How Can the Importer Defend Itself? (2026 Updated Guide)

A foreign supplier’s statement triggers a customs criminal investigation against a Turkish importer. Learn how importers can challenge supplier allegations, protect company managers, preserve evidence and distinguish customs penalties from criminal liability.

A statement made by a foreign supplier can create serious problems for a Turkish importer when the statement contradicts information contained in customs declarations, invoices, certificates of origin, valuation documents or commercial agreements. Turkish authorities may begin examining whether the importer knowingly used false documentation, understated customs value, declared incorrect origin, concealed payments or participated in conduct potentially falling within customs or anti-smuggling legislation. However, a foreign supplier’s allegation does not by itself establish the importer’s criminal liability. The prosecution must evaluate the complete evidentiary record, including the importer’s knowledge, intent, commercial documentation, payment records, communications and the reliability of the supplier’s statement.

Why Can a Foreign Supplier’s Statement Trigger a Criminal Investigation?

Foreign suppliers may provide information during customs verification, post-clearance audits, international information exchanges, origin investigations or inquiries concerning invoices and payments. Problems arise when that information differs materially from what the Turkish importer declared.

For example, the supplier may allege that the actual sales price was higher than the invoice value, additional payments were made outside the invoice, the declared manufacturer was incorrect, goods originated in another country, a certificate was not genuine or the importer knew that particular documentation contained inaccurate information.

Such allegations can cause authorities to investigate whether the issue is merely a customs discrepancy or potentially criminal conduct.

Obtain the Exact Supplier Statement

The defense should first determine what the foreign supplier actually said. A summary contained in an administrative report may not convey the complete context.

The importer should identify the statement’s date, author, circumstances, questions asked, documents considered and whether the statement was made by the actual manufacturer, exporter, employee, intermediary or another person.

Determine Whether the Supplier Had Personal Knowledge

Not every employee of a foreign supplier has direct knowledge of the transaction. A later statement by a new finance manager, salesperson or compliance employee may be based on incomplete records.

The defense should establish whether the person making the allegation personally participated in the transaction.

Translation Problems Should Be Examined

Where a foreign-language statement has been translated for Turkish proceedings, the original text and translation should be compared carefully.

Commercial concepts such as rebates, commissions, assists, royalties, transfer-pricing adjustments and freight charges can be mistranslated or misunderstood.

A Supplier Statement Is Evidence, Not Automatic Proof

The existence of an incriminating statement does not eliminate the need to examine other evidence. The defense should compare the allegation with contemporaneous invoices, contracts, bank payments, purchase orders, correspondence and accounting records.

A later supplier statement may be contradicted by documents created when the transaction actually occurred.

Separate Customs Liability From Criminal Liability

One of the most important defense issues is distinguishing an incorrect customs declaration from a criminal offense.

A customs authority may conclude that additional duties are payable without that conclusion automatically establishing that the importer intentionally committed smuggling or another criminal offense.

Incorrect Customs Value Does Not Automatically Mean Smuggling

Suppose the supplier states that the importer paid an additional amount after importation. The first question is whether that payment legally formed part of customs value.

Only after determining the customs treatment of the payment should authorities consider whether the importer knowingly concealed information and whether the statutory elements of a criminal offense are present.

Review All Payments to the Supplier

Prepare a complete payment reconciliation covering the relevant period.

Match every bank transfer, credit note, debit note, advance payment, refund and intercompany adjustment with the corresponding transaction.

Unexplained transfers can create suspicion even where they have legitimate commercial explanations.

Undeclared Royalties Require Separate Analysis

A supplier may state that the importer paid royalties or license fees not shown on the import invoice. This does not automatically determine the customs treatment.

The royalty agreement, relationship to the imported goods and commercial conditions should be analyzed before concluding that customs value was understated.

Origin Allegations Require Manufacturing Evidence

If the supplier claims that goods originated in a country different from the origin declared in Turkey, reconstruct the manufacturing chain.

Factory records, bills of materials, production stages, component sourcing and transport documentation may be necessary.

Country of Export Is Not Necessarily Country of Origin

A foreign supplier may invoice goods from one country while manufacturing occurs elsewhere. Likewise, warehousing or transshipment through a third country does not automatically establish origin there.

The defense should apply the relevant origin rules rather than relying on the supplier’s terminology.

Questioned A.TR or EUR.1 Documents Should Be Investigated Separately

If the supplier denies issuing or supporting an origin or circulation document, determine who obtained the document, which authority issued or endorsed it and what information the importer received.

An importer that received documentation through ordinary commercial channels presents a different factual situation from a party that knowingly participated in fabrication.

Preserve Emails and Messages

Commercial communications can become central evidence of the importer’s knowledge.

Preserve emails, messaging records, purchase negotiations, supplier instructions and communications with customs brokers.

Do not delete communications after learning about the investigation.

Search for Exculpatory Communications

The same correspondence authorities consider incriminating may contain evidence supporting the importer.

Messages may demonstrate that the importer repeatedly requested correct certificates, accurate invoices or confirmation of origin.

Customs Broker Communications Matter

Determine what information the importer supplied to the customs broker and what advice was received.

If the importer provided complete documentation and the disputed declaration resulted from a classification or technical interpretation, this may be important to the defense.

Identify Who Prepared the Disputed Document

Was the invoice prepared by the foreign supplier? Was the origin certificate issued abroad? Did the customs broker select the tariff code? Did the importer provide the relevant data?

Responsibility should be examined document by document.

Company Managers Are Not Automatically Personally Criminally Liable

A criminal investigation involving a company does not automatically mean every director, shareholder or senior manager committed an offense.

Authorities should determine the role, knowledge and conduct of each individual.

Identify the Actual Decision-Makers

Prepare an internal responsibility map showing who negotiated the transaction, approved invoices, communicated with the supplier, instructed the broker and authorized payments.

This is particularly important for large foreign-owned companies where senior executives may have had no operational involvement in individual customs declarations.

Do Not Give an Unprepared Statement

If a manager or employee is summoned by police, prosecutors or another investigative authority, the underlying allegations and available documents should be reviewed before a substantive defense statement is given where procedurally possible.

Customs criminal investigations can involve years of transactions and complex technical concepts that are difficult to explain accurately from memory.

Foreign Managers Need Accurate Interpretation

A foreign manager who does not adequately understand Turkish should ensure that interpretation is sufficient to understand questions and accurately communicate answers.

Incorrect translation can materially distort statements concerning customs transactions.

Do Not Guess

If a manager does not remember a transaction from several years earlier, guessing can create inconsistencies with company records.

It is preferable to distinguish personal recollection from information established through documents.

Review Search and Seizure Measures

Customs-related criminal investigations may involve searches and seizure of computers, phones, documents or company records.

The legal basis, scope and execution of such measures should be reviewed.

Preserve Digital Evidence

Email servers, accounting systems, ERP records, electronic invoices and archived commercial communications may contain important exculpatory evidence.

A litigation hold or equivalent internal preservation process should be implemented promptly.

Avoid Altering Company Records

Once an investigation is known, changing historical invoices, deleting messages or modifying accounting descriptions can create additional problems.

Any legitimate accounting correction should be transparent and properly documented.

Conduct an Internal Customs Review

The company should investigate the disputed transactions independently.

Review customs declarations, invoices, valuation elements, origin documents, tariff classifications, payments, contracts and supplier correspondence.

Expand the Review Carefully

If the allegation concerns repeated transactions, determine whether the same issue affected other declarations.

However, one disputed shipment should not automatically be treated as proof that every historical import was incorrect.

Create a Declaration-by-Declaration Matrix

For multiple imports, prepare a structured table showing declaration date, product, supplier, invoice value, customs value, origin, tariff classification, duty paid, payment records and disputed issue.

This can separate isolated mistakes from systematic conduct.

Investigate the Supplier’s Motive

A supplier statement should also be assessed in its commercial context.

There may be an ongoing payment dispute, termination of the distribution relationship, warranty claim, litigation or attempt by the supplier to shift responsibility.

A motive does not automatically make the statement false, but it may be relevant to credibility.

Compare the Statement With the Supplier’s Own Documents

If the supplier now claims the invoice was inaccurate, compare that allegation with invoices, certificates and confirmations it issued at the time.

Material contradictions should be documented clearly.

Obtain Evidence From the Foreign Supplier Where Possible

Depending on the relationship, additional records may be requested from the supplier or other foreign parties.

Production documents, accounting records and correspondence can clarify disputed facts.

Independent Experts May Be Necessary

Technical disputes concerning valuation, tariff classification or origin can require specialist analysis.

A criminal defense should not allow a technical customs disagreement to be characterized as intentional wrongdoing without examining the underlying customs rules.

Administrative Customs Proceedings May Continue Simultaneously

The company may face additional customs duties and administrative penalties while prosecutors investigate possible criminal conduct.

These proceedings should be coordinated because statements made in one file may affect another.

Do Not Treat the Administrative File as Separate

Customs audit reports, laboratory findings, origin verification and valuation assessments may later become evidence in the criminal investigation.

The defense strategy should therefore be consistent across proceedings.

Can Goods Be Seized?

Depending on the suspected offense and procedural decisions, goods may become subject to seizure or other protective measures.

The legal basis, proportionality and continuing necessity of the measure should be examined.

Can Company Bank Accounts Be Affected?

More serious investigations can potentially involve financial protective measures depending on the alleged offense and procedural conditions.

If company operations are affected, urgent legal review may be necessary.

Challenge Unsupported Inferences About Intent

The prosecution should not infer criminal intent merely because additional customs duty became payable.

The defense should demonstrate the actual information available to the importer when the declaration was filed.

Due Diligence Evidence Can Be Important

Evidence that the importer requested certificates, verified suppliers, used professional customs brokers and maintained internal compliance procedures may help explain the company’s conduct.

Supplier Fraud Can Make the Importer a Victim

In some cases, the foreign supplier may itself have provided false invoices, certificates or origin information without the importer’s knowledge.

The importer should evaluate whether it has contractual, civil or potentially criminal claims against the supplier.

Send Contractual Notice Where Appropriate

If the supplier’s inaccurate documentation caused customs exposure, preserve contractual rights by reviewing notice provisions and applicable deadlines.

Claims may involve additional duties, penalties, storage expenses and other provable losses.

Review Indemnification Clauses

International supply contracts should be examined for warranties concerning customs value, origin, product description, regulatory compliance and document authenticity.

Consider Voluntary Correction Issues Carefully

If the internal review discovers additional customs errors, determine the available legal procedure before making further submissions.

The interaction between voluntary disclosure, administrative penalties and an existing criminal investigation requires careful case-specific analysis.

Do Not Coordinate False Stories With the Supplier

Companies should never attempt to align witness statements artificially after an investigation begins.

Any communication with the supplier should preserve evidence and seek factual clarification rather than create a reconstructed narrative.

Prepare a Chronology

Create a timeline covering negotiation, order, manufacture, invoicing, shipment, customs declaration, payments, later adjustments, supplier communications, customs audit and commencement of the criminal investigation.

Chronologies can expose factual inconsistencies in the allegation.

Immediate Defense Strategy

When a foreign supplier’s statement triggers a customs criminal investigation in Turkey, the importer should immediately obtain the precise allegation, preserve the original foreign-language statement where available, compare the translation, reconstruct the relevant customs declarations, reconcile all supplier payments, preserve communications, identify responsible personnel, review valuation and origin issues technically, coordinate administrative and criminal defenses and prevent destruction or alteration of company records.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a foreign supplier’s statement alone prove customs smuggling?

A supplier statement can become evidence, but criminal liability should be determined by evaluating the complete evidence and the statutory elements of the alleged offense.

What if the supplier now says its own invoice was false?

The circumstances should be investigated carefully. The importer should establish what it knew when the invoice was used and compare the new allegation with contemporaneous supplier documents.

Can incorrect customs value automatically create criminal liability?

No automatic conclusion should be made. The customs valuation issue and the elements of any alleged criminal offense require separate legal analysis.

Can company directors be investigated personally?

Potentially, but individual involvement, knowledge and conduct should be established rather than assuming liability solely from corporate title.

Should the importer provide police or prosecutors with all company records immediately?

Requests should be evaluated according to their legal basis and scope. At the same time, relevant records must be preserved and should never be destroyed or altered.

What if the foreign supplier gave the statement in another language?

The original statement and Turkish translation should be compared carefully, particularly where specialized customs terminology is involved.

Can emails help defend the importer?

Yes. Contemporaneous correspondence may show what information the importer requested, received and understood when the customs declaration was made.

What if the supplier provided a fake origin certificate without the importer knowing?

The importer’s knowledge and conduct become critical. Document authenticity, issuance history, communications and due-diligence evidence should be investigated.

Can customs penalties and a criminal investigation proceed at the same time?

Potentially. Administrative customs consequences and criminal proceedings may overlap, making coordinated defense important.

What should the importer do first?

Obtain the exact supplier allegation and reconstruct the transaction using contemporaneous evidence. The defense should focus on what the importer actually knew and did at the time rather than allowing a later foreign supplier statement to become the sole narrative of the transaction.

Client-Focused Legal Support for Customs Criminal Investigations

A foreign supplier allegation can expose an importer to customs audits, additional duties, administrative penalties, seizure measures and criminal investigation, particularly where the dispute concerns customs value, origin, invoices or allegedly false documentation. Fırat Fesih Kaya Law Office assists foreign-owned companies, international investors, importers and company managers facing customs-related investigations in Turkey. Lawyer Fırat Fesih Kaya provides legal assistance in coordinating customs and criminal defense, reviewing supplier statements and commercial evidence, preparing manager and company defenses, challenging seizure measures and addressing related customs assessments and penalties.

Phone:
+90 312 434 22 22

Mobile:
+90 532 769 22 22

Email:
info@firatfesihkaya.av.tr

Address:
Mevlana Boulevard No:221, Yıldırım Tower, Office No:148
06520 Balgat, Çankaya, Ankara, Turkey