The Regulation on Official Announcements and Advertisements gives no itemised list of the form “this breach produces that penalty”. It lays down a general rule instead: failure to fulfil the duties and qualifications imposed by the Regulation in time and without deficiency is a breach, and if the breach continues the right to publish is suspended. A separate decision to suspend announcements may also be taken under Article 49 of Law No. 195.
If the breach continues, the right is suspended (Art. 107(4))
Article 107(4) sets up the mechanism: upon it being determined during an examination that breaches of the legislation by a newspaper or online news site are continuing, the right of that publication to publish official announcements is suspended.
The third paragraph of the same article determines the retrospective consequence: a set-off is applied for official announcements published during the period of breach.
Which items produce breaches in practice?
The qualifications and duties the Regulation requires are themselves the list of breaches. The headings most often encountered on inspection:
| Area | Example of a breach | Article |
|---|---|---|
| Roster | Failing to meet the minimum number or breakdown; showing an unqualified person on the roster; not paying wages in advance | Arts. 18–20, 38, 59 |
| Notification | Not notifying a roster change to İLANBİS within 3 working days | Art. 22 |
| Content | Falling below the minimum daily news count; not meeting the content qualities | Arts. 23, 60 |
| Traffic | Failing to achieve the minimum visitor traffic; not running BİK Analitik | Art. 61 |
| Continuity | Interrupting publication; access outages | Arts. 34, 56 |
| Delivery | Not delivering printed copies in time | Art. 35 |
| Invoicing | Issuing an invoice over the gross fee | Art. 27 |
| Inspection | Obstructing an inspection board inspection | Art. 101 |
Some of those items are tied to periods and, once the threshold is exceeded, produce not merely suspension but termination of the right. See the loss of right guide.
Article 49 of Law No. 195 and the Constitutional Court annulment
Alongside suspension under the Regulation, a second route of sanction is provided. Under Article 107(6), a copy of decisions relating to a breach of the legislation is submitted, together with the supporting documents, to the Board of Directors for proceedings under Article 49 of Law No. 195. The paragraph states that where the Board of Directors decides to suspend official announcements and advertisements for a period not exceeding two months and the decision becomes final, it is applied by reducing indicators in the monthly quota and distribution tables.
There is, however, a current and decisive development here. Sub-paragraph (a) of Article 49 of Law No. 195, which regulated the sanction of suspending official announcements and advertisements, was annulled by the Constitutional Court’s decision of 17/6/2025, E.2023/168, K.2025/132. By the same decision the reference to “(a)” in the objection paragraph of the article was also annulled as regards the third sentence. Sub-paragraph (b) (closure of the producer establishment for a period not exceeding two months) and sub-paragraph (c) (disciplinary proceedings in respect of public officials) remain in force.
The suspension and set-off mechanisms in the Regulation, by contrast, rest on separate provisions and are unaffected by the annulment: suspension is regulated in Articles 107(4) and 110, set-off in Articles 107(3) and 112. Article 107(5) states that the application of a set-off does not prevent a sanction under Article 49.
If you report the breach yourself
Article 107(7) is one of the most practical provisions in the legislation: Article 49 of Law No. 195 is not applied to a newspaper — or, visitor traffic data excepted, an online news site — that reports a breach of the provisions of the legislation in time.
What does the decision say? (Art. 108)
The content of decisions is also regulated. Under Article 108 decisions state:
- The procedure by which the breach or the new indicators were determined
- The findings on which the decision rests
- The period of breach, if any
- The period and amount of any set-off or compensation
- The date on which the right to publish resumed, where established
- How and before which authority the decision may be objected to
Decisions are sent to the newspaper or online news site within seven working days under Article 107(8). When you receive a decision, look particularly at the last item: the authority and procedure for objection are written into the decision itself.
Conclusion
What leads to a suspension of announcements is not an itemised list of breaches but a failure to meet the duties and qualifications imposed by the Regulation. If the breach continues during the examination the right is suspended; announcements published during the breach are set off. The Board of Directors may also decide under Article 49 of Law No. 195 to suspend announcements for a period not exceeding two months, applied by reducing indicators.
If you report the breach yourself in time Article 49 is not applied — visitor traffic data in online news sites falls outside that exception. Remember too that sub-paragraph (a) of Article 49 was annulled by the Constitutional Court. The duration of suspension is covered in the suspension duration guide and the route of objection in the appeal guide.