How to choose a NACE code and what it affects · Journal CPA

NACE (Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community) is the activity code used in Türkiye by the tax office, trade registry and SGK. A six-digit code (e.g. the 69.20.xx accounting family) defines the business's main activity.

What does the code affect?

Area	Effect
Tax	Consistency of the VAT rate with the code, sector risk analyses, e-Invoice obligation (e.g. e-commerce, real estate)
SGK	The workplace hazard class; the 5-point manufacturing incentive only for manufacturing codes
Health and safety	Safety specialist and doctor hours by low, medium or high hazard class
Licence	Sanitary or non-sanitary establishment, sector permits. Permits and licences
Incentives and grants	KOSGEB, development agency and investment incentives limited to certain codes
Work permits	Specific criteria for manufacturing, tourism and IT codes. Work permits

How to choose

Which activity will bring the most revenue? That is the main code.
Secondary activities are reported as additional codes and included in the purpose clause of the articles.
Match reality: if a software company's main code is left as "wholesale", its SGK hazard class and incentive rights are set wrongly.
VAT rate consistency: the VAT rate on invoices should match the usual rate for the code. A mismatch raises questions in VAT refunds and risk analysis.

Examples

Activity	Point to watch
Café / restaurant	Food and beverage service (10% VAT); food business registration; separate permit for alcohol
Software development	IT code; technopark and R&D incentives; easier work permits for foreign specialists
E-commerce	Retail code + e-commerce; ETBİS registration; lower e-Invoice threshold
Construction	High hazard class; 5% withholding on multi-year construction
Workshop / manufacturing	Non-sanitary establishment licence; 5-point SGK incentive

You can find the code for your activity by keyword on the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce's NACE code search by activity page. İTO's guide to professional groups and NACE codes also shows which committee each code belongs to.

NACE and VAT rate checks on e-documents

In its e-Document announcement of 16.03.2026, the Revenue Administration said that registry and activity code checks on e-documents sent through private integrators would be mandatory from 1 April 2026. The announcement also listed checking the invoice VAT rate against the seller's NACE code among planned system controls, with invoices at a rate not matching the activity code to be rejected. The rollout of this check was later postponed; follow the current status on the Revenue Administration e-Document announcements.

In practice:

Check that all activity codes on the tax plate match actual sales; if there is a second activity at a different rate, have it added as an additional code.
For transactions outside the business purpose, such as sales of fixed assets, recharges and vehicle sales, code 555 · sales not subject to VAT rate check in the UBL-TR code list is used.
The VAT rate is determined by VAT legislation according to the goods or services sold, not by the NACE code; the NACE code is used only for checking: VAT calculator

Changing the code

If the activity changes, three records are updated together:

Trade registry: if the new activity is outside the purpose clause, the articles are amended and registered first.
Tax office and SGK: the activity code on the tax plate is changed; the SGK workplace hazard class may change and health and safety contracts need updating.
Chamber of commerce: for a main NACE code change at İTO, a NACE petition, tax plate and notarised specimen signature; for an additional code, a petition and specimen signature, sent to [email protected] or the Membership Services Directorate. The code must fit the registered business purpose.

Detailed process: Trade registry procedures · Choosing at formation: Company formation · Formation cost