Before you activate a card in Turkey, open the ücret ve komisyon table. Annual fee, nakit avans, FX, and late charges outlast any welcome campaign.
Not a fee schedule. Not a ranking of cheap cards. Every figure on this page is a category to verify, not a live price.
Where the numbers actually live
Banks publish a current list of fees and commissions (ücret ve komisyon). The application landing page is advertising. The table (and the card contract you sign) is the product.
Ask the branch to open the list for this card product, not a generic “credit cards” PDF from two years ago. Screenshot or save the PDF the same day you sign. Campaigns expire. The table is what remains when the salary waiver dies.
BDDK sets rules on how banks disclose and collect certain fees. It does not mean the card is free. It means you should be able to find the lines in writing.
Lines that catch foreigners first
Annual card fee (yıllık kart ücreti)
Often waived for year one, or while payroll sits at the bank. Ask:
- Is the waiver automatic or only if you spend a minimum?
- What happens in month 13?
- Does the fee post if you never use the card?
A card you keep “for emergencies” still bills the annual line unless the contract says otherwise.
Cash advance (nakit avans)
This is not a purchase. Interest and a cash-advance fee can apply from the day you withdraw, even inside the statement period. ATM cash on a credit card is a high-cost loan. If your plan needs cash, compare a vadesiz hesap withdrawal or ihtiyaç kredisi. Do not learn this on a holiday weekend.
Foreign currency and yurt dışı use
A local card does not make every transaction TRY. An online merchant billing in EUR or USD, or POS abroad, can add a conversion spread plus a foreign-use fee. Confirm both lines. Illustrative example only: a 100 EUR online charge can post as more TRY than the mid-market rate you saw on your phone. The difference is the bank’s conversion plus any FX fee. Pull your bank’s current method. This page does not quote a spread.
Late payment and over-limit
Missing the due date is a KKB event and a fee. Spending above the assigned limit can add an over-limit charge on top of the interest. Statement date and due date are not the same day. Put both in your calendar in TRY, not in “when I get paid in another currency.”
Card replacement, statement postage, SMS packs
Small lines add up if you live on paper statements or lose plastic twice. Digital statement and official app SMS are usually the cleaner path. Confirm whether transaction SMS is bundled or priced.
Taksit is not a fee holiday
Merchant installments can be interest-free for a stated term, or they can hide a fee in the merchant discount. Ask:
- Is the taksit interest-free in the contract, or only in the mall poster?
- If you miss a taksit due date, does the remainder revert to revolving interest?
- Is there a product fee for opening the plan?
Taksit still uses your limit. A long plan on a large purchase reduces available revolving room and can affect utilization on KKB.
How to read a campaign against the table
Write three columns: campaign promise, table line that remains, what you must do to keep the promise.
Example structure (not live offers):
- “First year free” versus yıllık ücret in year two
- “Bonus points on groceries” versus FX fee if you shop on foreign sites
- “Airport extra” versus annual fee larger than a realistic year of flights
If you cannot fill the third column with something you already do, the campaign is not an advantage. Valrun does not rank campaigns. The useful product is the one whose written remainder matches your spend.
Application-stage fees versus usage fees
Some people confuse dosya masrafı language from loans with cards. A credit card application may not charge a “file fee” the way a konut kredisi might, but you still accept a contract with ongoing commissions. Do not sign because “there was no fee to apply.” The cost sits in usage.
If a third-party site charges you to “submit” applications, stop. Use the bank’s official channel. Paying a middleman does not improve KKB.
What to confirm at the branch before activation
- Open the current ücret ve komisyon PDF for this product.
- Circle annual fee, avans, FX, late, over-limit.
- Ask whether your salary segment changes any of those lines, and what happens if payroll leaves.
- Ask the first statement date so you are not surprised by a 20-day or 40-day first cycle (cycles vary; confirm yours).
- Activate only after those answers are in your notes.
If the clerk speaks only the campaign, ask for the table anyway. You are not being difficult. You are reading the product.
After the card is live
Turn on transaction SMS. Check the first statement for lines you did not expect: annual fee posted early, FX on a “TRY” website that billed abroad, avans if someone used the ATM by mistake. Dispute clear errors through the official app quickly. Paying a mystery line “to keep the score happy” trains you to ignore the table.
Disclaimer: General information only. Not financial or legal advice. Fee names and amounts differ by bank and change. Confirm every line with your bank’s current ücret ve komisyon list before you apply or activate.