Apply Türkiye's influencer advertising disclosure rules effective from August 2026 with practical examples for posts, Stories, video and audio-only content.
Since 1 August 2026, label a compensated influencer post in Türkiye with “Reklam” or “Tanıtım”—Advertising or Promotion—where viewers see it immediately and identify the advertiser. Payment, a free or discounted product or service, an invitation and an event benefit can all create the duty to disclose. Hiding a label after “more” or relying only on a platform tool is not a sound compliance method.
This answer follows Article 23/A, added to Türkiye's Commercial Advertising and Unfair Commercial Practices Regulation by the amendment published in Official Gazette No. 33297 on 1 July 2026. The amendment took effect on 1 August 2026. It is therefore an operative rule, not a consultation draft or a future proposal. Review current deals, older campaign templates and every new publication against the enacted text.
Which creator posts are advertisements?
A cash payment is the obvious case, but the rule is not limited to cash. A free or discounted product or service, hosted travel, event access and a benefit received for sharing a brand's giveaway or campaign can all make a post commercial. Calling an item a “gift” does not remove the connection when it was supplied in return for promotion.
| Situation | Disclosure needed? | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| A brand pays for content | Yes | There is direct financial benefit |
| A product or service is supplied free | Yes | A free benefit is an exchange of value |
| A stay, treatment or ticket is discounted | Yes | The discount creates a benefit |
| A post is requested in return for event access | Yes | Access and publication are commercially connected |
| A brand giveaway is promoted under an arrangement | Yes | The content promotes the advertiser's campaign |
| You bought the item independently with no relationship | Usually no | It may be an independent opinion; disclose relevant continuing relationships |
Do not rely on “I was not paid” as the test. Ask whether the connection could affect how an ordinary viewer weighs your recommendation. If it could, disclose it. Brands have parallel duties, which our brand advertising compliance guide explains in more detail.
What wording does the 2026 rule require?
Article 23/A expressly requires one of the words “Reklam” or “Tanıtım” in an advertisement published through a social media influencer. The content must also include the advertiser's name or trade name, or one of the advertiser acknowledgements specified in the provision. A practical, low-ambiguity format is:
Reklam — Paid partnership with [Brand].
When a product was supplied free, describe the actual exchange:
Tanıtım — [Brand] supplied this product free of charge.
For a hosted experience:
Reklam — [Brand] provided this experience.
“Collaboration,” “sponsored content” and a platform's paid-partnership label may provide useful additional context. The enacted minimum, however, expressly names “Reklam” or “Tanıtım.” Do not depend only on a vague collaboration hashtag, a brand tag, an emoji or a platform badge. Use the prescribed word and advertiser information together. Platform policy and Turkish law can apply at the same time; satisfying one does not automatically replace the other.
Where should the label appear?
The disclosure must be legible and immediately noticeable without scrolling, expanding a caption or visiting another page. Its colour and size should contrast with the background, and interface icons must not cover it. If other tags appear, the advertising disclosure should come before them and remain clearly separate.
| Format | Practical placement | Error to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Instagram post | First caption line plus the relevant platform label | Burying it after a block of hashtags |
| Reel or TikTok | Legible opening-frame text, first caption line and platform disclosure tool | Showing it only in the last second |
| Story | Every commercial Story card, inside a visible safe area | Labelling the first card but not the continuation |
| Long YouTube video | Clear spoken or visual notice before promotion and a written record in the description | Using only the bottom of the description |
| Livestream | Visible and spoken notice when the promotion begins, repeated appropriately | Assuming one opening notice reaches late viewers |
| Audio-only content | A brand-specific spoken notice at the start and immediately before the ad | Disclosing retrospectively at the end |
Each item in a multi-part Story, carousel or series needs its own disclosure. If a Reel is reshared to a Story or a commercial TikTok is quoted in another format, keep the disclosure in the new publication too. Article 23/A expressly addresses content spread across several posts and content carried from one sharing format to another.
For audio-only publication, the wording is more specific. At the beginning of the programme and before the advertisement, state that the programme “contains advertising/promotion about [advertiser].” If a dynamic ad is inserted into an older podcast episode, verify that listeners hear the notice at the actual insertion point.
Should you also use the platform disclosure tool?
Yes. Instagram treats branded content as an exchange of value and requires its paid-partnership label; a free or loaned item can qualify. TikTok requires its content disclosure setting when a creator promotes a third-party brand, product or service for payment or another incentive. These tools can also enable brand tagging, insight sharing and advertising permissions.
Use a two-layer pre-publication check:
- The Turkish-law disclosure uses “Reklam” or “Tanıtım” and identifies the advertiser.
- The platform's commercial-content or paid-partnership control is correctly enabled.
If a brand asks for only a platform badge or only “collaboration,” revise the brief. Our creator partnership brief guide can help both sides record disclosure responsibilities before production.
Twelve-point publication checklist
- The agreement records whether the benefit is money, a product, service, discount, invitation or something else.
- Either “Reklam” or “Tanıtım” appears.
- The advertiser's name or trade name appears.
- A viewer can see the disclosure without scrolling or expanding text.
- Size, duration and contrast were tested on a real device.
- The disclosure appears before other hashtags and labels.
- Every Story card or series item carries its own notice.
- Quotes and reshares preserve the notice in each format.
- Audio-only content has notices at the opening and before the ad.
- The platform's commercial-content setting is enabled.
- You make no claim about a result you did not experience or cannot support.
- The brief, approval and final publication screenshots are archived.
How to measure disclosure compliance
Disclosure is a publication condition, not a performance tactic. You can still measure the workflow so that missed labels become less likely.
| Measure | Calculation | What it reveals |
|---|---|---|
| First-pass compliance | Complete ads at first review / all ad publications | Recurring production mistakes |
| Item-level compliance | Labelled commercial Story cards / all commercial cards | Missing labels in multi-part formats |
| Correction time | Time from alert to correction | Whether escalation is operational |
| Evidence completeness | Deals with brief, approval, screenshot and results / all deals | Readiness for a dispute or review |
Review results by format and brand, not only as one monthly total. If feed posts are complete but later Story cards repeatedly fail, the problem is probably the publishing template. Reserve a fixed safe area for the label and add a second-person review before release.
Legal and ethical note
This article provides general information, not legal advice for a specific campaign. Health, finance, alcohol, tobacco, supplements and content likely to affect children may be subject to additional sector restrictions. A disclosure does not make a false or unsupported claim lawful. Never imply that you used a product when you did not, and do not present a brand-written result as personal experience unless it is true and supportable. See our social media advertising guide for the wider framework.
Frequently asked questions
Is #collaboration enough on its own?
Use “Reklam” or “Tanıtım” and advertiser information to meet the wording expressly stated in Article 23/A. A collaboration hashtag can add context, but it should not replace the enacted minimum.
Do I need a label when the only benefit is a free product?
Yes, when the free item or service is connected to the promotion. No cash payment is required for the commercial relationship to matter; state what was provided accurately.
Does every Story card need a disclosure?
Yes. When commercial content extends across several publications, each one must carry the notice. A label on the first card does not disclose later cards by itself.
Sources
- Official Gazette — 1 July 2026, No. 33297
- Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Trade — Transparent Advertising on Social Media
- Instagram Help Center — What Counts as Branded Content
- TikTok Help Center — Promoting a Brand, Product or Service
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