Association Bylaws

Name and Headquarters of the Association

Article 1 – Name and Headquarters

The name of the Association is “BILGITOY Association” and its abbreviated name is “BILGITOY DER.”

The headquarters of the Association is located in the Ortahisar District of the Trabzon Province. No branches will be opened.

Purpose of the Association, Activities, and Field of Operation

Article 2 – Purpose and Activities

The Association has been established with the purpose of promoting the transfer and dissemination of knowledge and the advancement of Science; publishing scientific journals for this aim; contributing to the delivery of education to all segments of society, especially youth; organizing scientific events, congresses, and symposiums on various topics; conducting market research; motivating development in social, artistic, and technical fields; and directly preparing projects and carrying out strategic studies.

Activities to be Carried Out by the Association

1- Conducting research to enhance and develop the effectiveness of its activities,

2- Organizing educational activities such as courses, seminars, conferences, and panels; undertaking projects and providing consultancy for project work; conducting market research and carrying out intellectual activities for development in the technical field; producing patents and utility models,

3- Procuring all kinds of information, documents, materials, and publications necessary for achieving the purpose; establishing a documentation center; publishing newspapers, magazines, books, and bulletins to announce its work in line with its objectives,

4- Providing a healthy working environment for achieving the purpose; procuring all kinds of technical tools and equipment, fixtures, and stationery materials,

5- Engaging in fundraising activities with required permits and accepting donations from within the country and abroad,

6- Establishing and operating economic, commercial, and industrial enterprises to generate the revenues needed to achieve the charter purposes,

7- Opening premises for members to benefit from and spend their leisure time; establishing social and cultural facilities and furnishing them,

8- Organizing dinners, concerts, balls, theaters, exhibitions, sports events, trips, and entertainment events to develop and maintain human relations among members, or enabling members to benefit from such activities,

9- Purchasing, selling, leasing, and letting movable and immovable property needed for Association activities, and establishing rights in rem over immovable properties,

10- Establishing foundations or federations domestically and abroad as deemed necessary for achieving the purpose, or joining an existing federation; establishing facilities that associations may establish upon obtaining necessary permits,

11- Engaging in international activities, becoming a member of associations or organizations abroad, and undertaking joint projects or providing assistance to such organizations,

12- Subject to the provisions of Law No. 5072 on Relations of Associations and Foundations with Public Institutions and Organizations, carrying out joint projects with public institutions and organizations in areas related to their fields of duty, as deemed necessary for achieving the purpose,

13- Establishing a fund to meet the essential needs of Association members such as food and clothing, other goods and services, and short-term credit needs,

14- Forming platforms with other associations, foundations, trade unions, and similar civil society organizations to achieve a common goal in areas related to the Association’s purpose and not prohibited by law,

15- Carrying out all kinds of activities not prohibited by law and needed to achieve the purpose,

Field of Activity

The Association operates in the fields of Science, education, technology, and social affairs.

Right to Membership and Membership Procedures

Article 3 – Membership

Every natural and legal person who has legal capacity, adopts the purposes and principles of the association and agrees to work in this direction, and meets the conditions required by Legislation, has the right to become a member of this association. However, foreign natural persons must also have the right of residence in Turkey in order to become members. This condition is not required for honorary membership.

An application for membership submitted in writing to the chairperson of the association shall be decided upon by the board of directors within at most thirty days as acceptance or rejection of the request, and the result shall be notified in writing to the applicant. Members whose applications are accepted are registered in the book kept for this purpose.

The regular members of the association are the founders of the association and the persons accepted as members by the board of directors upon their applications.

Those who have provided significant material and moral support to the association may be accepted as honorary members by decision of the board of directors.

Resignation from Membership

Article 4 – Resignation

No one can be compelled to remain a member of the association. Every member has the right to resign from the association by notifying in writing.

The resignation process shall be deemed completed upon the resignation petition reaching the board of directors. Resignation does not end the member’s accumulated debts to the association.

Removal from Membership

Article 5 – Grounds for Removal

Circumstances requiring removal from association membership:

1- Acting in violation of the association’s charter,

2- Continuously avoiding assigned duties,

3- Failing to pay membership dues,

4- Not complying with decisions made by association bodies,

5- Having lost the conditions for membership.

Upon determination of one of the above-mentioned situations, the person may be removed from membership by decision of the board of directors.

Those who resign or are removed from membership are deleted from the member register and cannot claim rights in the association’s assets.

Automatic Termination of Membership

The membership of those who subsequently lose the qualifications required by law and the charter for membership shall automatically terminate. This determination is made by the board of directors and the member’s registration is deleted.

Members who resign or are removed must pay their accumulated debts to the association. Those whose membership is determined to have automatically terminated shall not make payments for any debts that may exist from the date of termination to the date of determination.

Association Bodies

Article 6 – Bodies

The bodies of the Association are as follows:

a- General Assembly

b- Board of Directors

c- Board of Auditors

Formation, Meeting Time, Notice and Meeting Procedure of the General Assembly

Article 7 – General Assembly

The General Assembly is the highest decision-making body of the association and consists of registered members.

The ordinary general assembly convenes once every 3 years, in December, on the day, place, and time to be determined by the board of directors.

The general assembly convenes:

a- Ordinarily, at the times specified in the association’s charter,

b- Extraordinarily, within thirty days when deemed necessary by the board of directors or the board of auditors, or upon the written request of one-fifth of the association’s members.

The general assembly is called to meeting by the board of directors.

If the board of directors fails to call the general assembly to a meeting, upon the application of a member, the court of peace shall assign three members to call the general assembly to a meeting.

Notice Procedure

The board of directors prepares the list of members entitled to participate in the general assembly in accordance with the association’s charter. Members entitled to participate in the general assembly are called to the meeting at least fifteen days in advance, by announcing the day, time, place, and agenda of the meeting in at least one newspaper or on the association’s website, by written notification, by sending a message to the member’s declared e-mail address or communication number, or by using local broadcasting tools. In this notice, if the meeting cannot be held due to failure to achieve a quorum, the day, time, and place of the second meeting shall also be specified. The period between the first and second meetings may not be less than seven days or more than sixty days.

If the meeting is postponed for a reason other than failure to achieve a quorum, the situation, including the reasons for postponement, shall be announced to members in accordance with the notice procedure for the first meeting. The second meeting must be held within at most six months from the postponement date. Members shall be re-called to the second meeting in accordance with the principles stated in the first paragraph. A general assembly meeting may not be postponed more than once.

Meeting Venue and Quorum

General assembly meetings shall be held at the address to be determined by the board of directors at the association’s headquarters, unless otherwise decided.

The general assembly convenes with the absolute majority of members entitled to participate, and with two-thirds in cases of charter amendment and dissolution of the association; if the meeting is postponed due to failure to achieve a quorum, no quorum is required at the second meeting. However, the number of members participating in this meeting may not be less than twice the total number of board of directors and board of auditors members.

Meeting Procedure

The list of members entitled to attend the general assembly shall be available at the meeting venue. The official identity documents of members entering the meeting venue shall be checked by the board of directors members or officials to be assigned by the board of directors. Members shall enter the meeting venue by signing against their names on the list prepared by the board of directors. Those who fail to present identity documents, those who do not sign the specified list, and members who are not entitled to attend the general assembly shall not be admitted to the meeting venue. These persons and non-members may observe the general assembly meeting from a separate section.

If the meeting quorum is achieved, this shall be recorded in minutes and the meeting shall be opened by the board chairperson or one of the board members to be assigned. If the meeting quorum is not achieved, minutes shall also be prepared by the board of directors.

After the opening, a presiding board consisting of a chairperson, sufficient deputy chairpersons, and a secretary shall be formed by election to chair the meeting.

In votes to be cast for the election of association bodies, members casting votes are required to show their identity documents to the presiding board and sign against their names on the attendance list.

The management and security of the meeting shall be the responsibility of the presiding board chairperson.

At the general assembly meeting, only the items on the agenda shall be discussed. However, subjects requested in writing to be discussed by at least one-tenth of the members present at the meeting must be included in the agenda.

Each member has one vote at the general assembly; members must exercise their votes in person.

The topics discussed and decisions taken at the meeting shall be recorded in minutes and signed jointly by the presiding board chairperson and secretaries. At the end of the meeting, the minutes and other documents shall be delivered to the board chairperson. The board chairperson is responsible for the safekeeping of these documents and for delivering them to the newly elected board of directors within seven days.

In cases where a guardian is appointed by the court or an assignment is made pursuant to the second paragraph of Article 75 of the Civil Code, the duties assigned to the board of directors in this article shall be performed by these persons.

Holding General Assembly and Board of Directors Meetings Electronically

Pursuant to Article 2 of the Law, the association may also hold its general assembly and board of directors meetings electronically.

The association shall hold general assembly and board of directors meetings electronically through electronic systems approved by the Ministry’s General Directorate of Information Technologies. Data to be entered into such systems shall be processed and maintained in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Personal Data Protection Law No. 6698 dated 24/3/2016. The board of directors decision regarding the holding of the general assembly and the general assembly announcement shall specify the method by which the general assembly will be held. Board of directors decisions made electronically shall be stored electronically with date and sequence number, separately from the board of directors decision book kept in physical form.

All procedures and principles set out in the Law, the Turkish Civil Code, this Regulation, and the charters of associations regarding the holding of general assembly and board of directors meetings in physical form shall also apply to meetings held electronically. All information, documents, and records related to meetings held electronically shall be maintained by the association.

Members participating in electronic general assembly or board of directors meetings of the association shall log into the system using a secure electronic signature or a two-factor authentication system. The electronic systems to be used must have the design, backup, and archiving capacity compliant with legislation that enables all processes done in physical meetings, such as forming a presiding board, voting, taking the floor, submitting motions, and similar processes, to also be performed electronically; and must have the necessary network and system security against unauthorized access and attacks.

Sanctions applied in cases where meetings held in physical form are conducted contrary to legislation shall also apply to meetings held electronically.

Voting, Decision-Making, and Decision Annulment Procedures in the General Assembly

Article 8 – Voting and Decision-Making

At the general assembly, elections of board of directors and audit board members shall be conducted by secret ballot unless otherwise decided, while decisions on other matters shall be voted on openly. Secret votes are those cast by members placing ballots or voting papers stamped by the meeting chairperson into an empty container after performing the required action, and determined by open counting after the completion of voting.

In open voting, the method specified by the general assembly chairperson shall be applied.

General assembly decisions are taken by the absolute majority of members present at the meeting. However, decisions regarding charter amendments and dissolution of the association may only be taken by a two-thirds majority of members present at the meeting.

Decisions Taken Without Meeting or Notice

Decisions taken with the written participation of all members without convening, and decisions taken by all association members convening without following the notice procedure written in this charter, are valid. Taking decisions in this manner does not substitute for the regular meeting.

Duties and Powers of the General Assembly

Article 9 – Duties and Powers

The following matters shall be discussed and resolved by the general assembly:

a- Election of association bodies,

b- Amendment of the association’s charter,

c- Discussion and resolution of reports of the board of directors and board of auditors,

d- Discussion and acceptance, as is or with amendments, of the budget prepared by the board of directors,

e- Authorizing the board of directors regarding the purchase of necessary immovable properties for the association or the sale of existing immovable properties,

f- Examining and approving, as is or with amendments, the regulations to be prepared by the board of directors regarding association activities,

g- Determining the salaries, all kinds of allowances, travel expenses, and compensations to be paid to the chairperson and members of the association’s board of directors and board of auditors who are not public officials, and the per diems and travel expenses to be paid to members to be assigned for association services,

h- Joining and leaving a federation and electing federation delegates,

ı- Engaging in international activities, joining or leaving associations and organizations abroad as a member,

j- Dissolution of the association,

k- Examining and resolving other proposals submitted by the board of directors,

l- Performing other duties specified to be carried out by the general assembly in legislation.

Formation and Duties of the Board of Directors

Article 10 – Board of Directors

The board of directors is elected by the general assembly for a period of 3 years, consisting of 5 regular and 5 alternate members.

The board of directors shall determine the chairperson, vice chairperson, secretary, treasurer, and member by a decision on the division of duties at its first meeting after the election.

The board of directors may be called to a meeting at any time provided all members are informed. It convenes with the presence of more than half of the total number of members. Decisions are taken by the absolute majority of the total number of members present at the meeting.

If a vacancy occurs in the regular membership of the board of directors due to resignation or other reasons, alternate members must be called to duty in order of the number of votes received at the general assembly. If the number of regular members of the board of directors falls below half despite the call for alternate members, the remaining board of directors members are obliged to call the association to a meeting within 1 month. Otherwise, upon written application of a member, the Court of Peace shall assign 3 members to call the general assembly to a meeting.

Duties of the Board of Directors

a- Representing the association or authorizing one or more of its members in this regard,

b- Preparing income and expense accounts and submitting the budget for the upcoming period to the general assembly,

c- Preparing regulations related to the association’s activities and submitting them for general assembly approval,

d- Purchasing immovable property with the authority granted by the general assembly, selling movable and immovable properties belonging to the association, Having buildings or facilities constructed, entering into lease agreements, establishing pledges, mortgages, or rights in rem in favor of the association,

e- Implementing the decisions taken at the general assembly,

f- At the end of each activity year, preparing the association’s annual balance sheet and a report explaining the board of directors’ activities, and presenting them to the general assembly when convened,

g- Making transfers between funds and items in the budget,

h- Making decisions on the acceptance or removal of association members,

ı- Taking and implementing decisions within the scope of the powers granted to it by the Laws and the charter in order to achieve the association’s purpose,

j- Making the necessary corrections upon written order of the civil authority regarding legal violations and deficiencies identified in the charter after the general assembly,

k- Performing other duties and exercising powers granted by legislation,

Formation and Duties of the Board of Auditors

Article 11 – Board of Auditors

The Board of Auditors is elected by the general assembly for a period of 3 years, consisting of three regular and three alternate members. The member receiving the most votes becomes the chairperson of the board of auditors.

If a vacancy occurs in the regular membership of the board of auditors due to resignation or other reasons, alternate members must be called to duty in order of the number of votes received at the general assembly.

Duties of the Board of Auditors

The board of auditors shall audit whether the association operates in accordance with the purposes stated in its charter and the subjects of work specified to be carried out to achieve these purposes, whether books, accounts, and records are kept in accordance with legislation and the association’s charter, in accordance with the principles and procedures set out in the association’s charter, at intervals not exceeding one year, and shall present the audit results in a report to the board of directors and to the general assembly when convened. When necessary, it shall call the general assembly to a meeting. Upon request of board of auditors members, the display or provision of all kinds of information, documents, and records by association officials, and fulfillment of requests to enter management premises, establishments, and annexes are mandatory. The board of auditors may also have this duty performed by independent audit organizations on its behalf. If members cannot be elected to the board of auditors, the auditing duty may be performed by independent audit organizations appointed by the general assembly until the first extraordinary election or ordinary general assembly to be held.

Sources of Revenue of the Association

Article 12 – Revenue Sources

The revenue sources of the Association are listed below:

a- Member Dues: No entry fee shall be collected from members. Annual dues of 1,000 TL shall be collected. Honorary members may pay dues if they wish. The general assembly is authorized to increase or decrease these amounts.

b- Donations and contributions made to the association voluntarily by natural and legal persons from within the country or abroad.

c- Revenues obtained from publications, organized tea parties and dinners, trips and entertainment, performances, concerts, sports competitions, conferences, and similar activities organized by associations.

d- Revenues obtained from the association’s assets.

e- Donations and contributions to be collected in accordance with the provisions of legislation on fundraising.

f- Earnings obtained from commercial activities undertaken to generate the revenues needed to achieve its purpose.

g- Other revenues.

Books to be Kept and Their Principles and Procedures

Article 13 – Record Keeping

Principles of bookkeeping:

Books shall be kept at the association on the basis of business accounts.

However, if the annual gross income exceeds the limit specified in Article 31 of the Associations Regulation, books shall be kept on the basis of balance sheets starting from the following accounting period.

In the event of a transition to the balance sheet basis, if the association’s income falls below the above-mentioned limit for two consecutive accounting periods, it may return to the business accounts basis from the following year.

Regardless of the limit specified above, books may be kept on the balance sheet basis by decision of the board of directors.

In the event that the association opens a commercial enterprise, separate books shall be kept for this commercial enterprise in accordance with the provisions of the Tax Procedure Law.

Books to be Kept

The following books shall be kept at the association:

1. a) Books to be kept on the business accounts basis and the principles to be followed are as follows:

1) Decision Book: Board of directors decisions shall be entered in this book in order of date and number, and the decisions shall be signed by the members present at the meeting.

2) Member Register Book: The identity information of those joining the association as members, and their entry and exit dates from the association, shall be entered in this book. The amounts of entry fees and annual dues paid by members may be entered in this book.

3) Document Register Book: Incoming and outgoing documents shall be registered in this book with date and sequence number. Originals of incoming documents and copies of outgoing documents shall be filed. Documents received or sent by e-mail shall be stored by taking printouts.

4) Business Account Book: Revenues received on behalf of the association and expenditures made shall be entered in this book clearly and regularly.

1. b) Books to be kept on the balance sheet basis and the principles to be followed are as follows:

1) Books registered in sub-items 1, 2, 3 of item (a) shall also be kept when books are kept on the balance sheet basis. An Inventory Book may be kept by decision of the board of directors.

2) Journal, General Ledger: The procedure for keeping and the form of entries in these books shall be carried out in accordance with the General Communiqué on Accounting System Application published pursuant to the Tax Procedure Law and the authority given to the Ministry of Finance by this Law.

Certification of Books

Books that are required to be kept at the association and books kept optionally shall be certified by the Provincial Civil Society Relations Directorate or a notary before they are put into use. Certification of the General Ledger is not mandatory. The use of these books shall continue until the pages are exhausted and no interim certification of books shall be performed. However, the Journal shall be re-certified each year in the last month prior to the year it will be used.

Record Procedure

Books and records to be kept at the association must be in Turkish. Books shall be written with ink pens.

Books may also be kept in a computer environment. However, books to be kept in form or continuous form format may be used after numbering each page and having them certified before being put into use. Certified pages shall be preserved by binding them into book form after use.

Errors made in journal entries may only be corrected according to accounting rules. For other books and records, if figures and text are written incorrectly, corrections may only be made by crossing out the incorrect figure and text in a readable manner and writing the correct version above or alongside or in the relevant account. If the incorrect figure or text is crossed out, it shall be initialed by the person crossing it out.

An entry transferred to books may not be rendered illegible by erasing, scratching, or deleting.

Except for the section left for signatures at the end of pages in the decision book, the lines of books may not be left blank or skipped without being crossed out. In bound books, the pages of the book may not be separated from the binding. The order of certified form or continuous form sheets may not be disrupted and they may not be torn.

Documents belonging to the association shall be numbered in accordance with the registration order in the book in which they are recorded and shall be filed and stored.

Time of Recording

Transactions shall be recorded in books on a daily basis. However, for income and expense records:

1. a) Transactions must be recorded within a period consistent with the volume and requirements of the work, without disrupting accounting order and security. Such records shall not be delayed by more than ten days.
2. b) If records are continuously maintained based on documents such as accounting vouchers and payrolls bearing the signatures and initials of authorized officials, the recording of transactions in these documents shall be deemed equivalent to their entry into the book. However, this shall not allow transactions to be transferred to the main books more than forty-five days late. If association books are requested for auditing purposes, the records must be entered without waiting for the forty-five-day period to expire.

Accounting Period

The accounting period at the association is one calendar year. The accounting period begins on January 1 and ends on December 31.

Preparation of Income Statement and Balance Sheet

If records are kept on the business accounts basis, the ‘Business Account Table’ (specified in ANNEX-16 of the Associations Regulation) shall be prepared at year-end (December 31). If books are kept on the balance sheet basis, a balance sheet and income statement shall be prepared at year-end (December 31) based on the General Communiqués on Accounting System Application published by the Ministry of Finance.

Procedures for Income and Expense Transactions of the Association

Article 14 – Income and Expense Procedures

Income and expense documents:

Association revenues shall be collected using receipt documents. In cases where association revenues are collected through banks, documents such as debit notes or account statements issued by the bank shall substitute for receipt documents.

Association expenses shall be made with expenditure documents such as invoices, retail sales receipts, and self-employed receipts. However, for payments falling under Article 94 of the Income Tax Law No. 193 dated 31/12/1960, an expense slip shall be prepared in accordance with the provisions of the Tax Procedure Law No. 213 dated 4/1/1961. For payments not covered by this scope, documents such as the Expense Receipt in Annex-13 or bank debit notes shall be used as expenditure documents.

Free goods and service deliveries to be made to persons, institutions, or organizations by associations shall be made with the In-Kind Aid Delivery Document in Annex-14. Free goods and service deliveries to be made to associations by persons, institutions, or organizations shall be accepted with the In-Kind Donation Receipt Document in Annex-15.

These documents shall be printed by associations in books consisting of fifty original and fifty stub sheets in consecutive series and sequence numbers, in the format and dimensions shown in Annexes 13, 14, and 15, with self-carbon copies, or in form or continuous form format to be printed using electronic systems and typewriters.

Documents to be printed in form or continuous form format must have the specified characteristics.

The number of documents printed and their series and sequence numbers must be reported to the civil authority by printing establishments within fifteen days.

Receipt Documents

‘Receipt Documents’ to be used in the collection of association revenues (in the format and dimensions shown in Annex-17 of the Associations Regulation) shall be printed at a printing house by decision of the board of directors. The series and sequence numbers of printed receipt documents and whether there are any defects in other printing works shall be checked by the treasurer member. Books or forms found to be defective upon inspection shall be returned and the same number of new ones shall be printed. Receipt documents shall be received from the printing house by the treasurer member with minutes.

The association treasurer is responsible for the delivery of these receipt documents to persons authorized to collect money on behalf of the association, and for the storage of blank and used receipt documents. Receipt documents shall be transferred between old and new treasurers with minutes.

Receipt documents shall be filled in with a fixed-ink hard or sharp-tipped ballpoint pen in a legible manner, without erasures or scraping. The original sheet shall be detached and given to the payer, and the stub portion shall remain in the book. If an error is made during preparation, the erroneous document sheet shall not be given to the payer. The words ‘CANCELLED’ shall be written on the original and stub sheets and both shall be left in the book without being detached.

Receipt documents may also be prepared electronically using software created or permitted by the Ministry, provided they contain the information specified in Annex-17. These documents shall be maintained in the electronic system of the General Directorate.

Authority Document

Except for regular members of the board of directors and representatives assigned pursuant to Article 24 of the Law, the persons or persons who will collect revenues on behalf of the association shall be determined by a decision of the board of directors, specifying the period of authorization as well. The ‘Authority Document’ (as exemplified in Annex-19 of the Associations Regulation) containing the full identity, signature, and photographs of persons authorized to collect revenues shall be prepared by the association in two copies and approved by the chairperson of the association’s board of directors.

The use, renewal, return, and other matters of the authority document shall be governed in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Associations Regulation.

Delivery of Revenues

Persons authorized to collect revenues on behalf of the association shall deliver the amounts they collect to the association treasurer or deposit them into the association’s bank account within thirty days. However, those whose collections exceed 5,000.00 TL for the year 2020 shall deposit the collected amounts into the association’s bank account within at most two business days without waiting for the thirty-day period.

The amount of money to be kept in the association’s cash shall be determined by the board of directors taking needs into consideration.

Storage Period for Income and Expense Documents

Except for books, receipt documents, expenditure documents, and other documents used by the association shall be stored for 5 years in accordance with the sequence number and date order in the books in which they are recorded, subject to the periods specified in special laws.

Submission of Declaration

Article 15 – Declaration

The chairperson of the association’s board of directors is obliged to submit the Association Declaration (presented in Annex-21 of the Associations Regulation) for the previous year to the local civil authority within the first four months of each calendar year.

Notification Obligation

Article 16 – Notifications

Notifications to be made to the civil authority:

Within forty-five days following ordinary or extraordinary general assembly meetings, the General Assembly Outcome Notification containing the elected regular and alternate members for the board of directors, board of auditors, and other bodies, as specified in Annex-3, shall be submitted to the civil authority. If the charter is amended at the general assembly meeting, the minutes of the general assembly meeting, the old and new versions of the amended articles, and the final version of the association’s charter signed on each page by the absolute majority of board of directors members shall be submitted to the civil authority within the period specified in this paragraph as an attachment to a letter.

Changes occurring in association bodies outside of general assembly meetings shall be submitted within forty-five days following the change by completing the ‘Association Body Change Notification’ (specified in Annex-25 of the Associations Regulation).

Changes occurring in the association’s residence shall be submitted within forty-five days following the change of residence by completing the ‘Residence Change Notification’ (specified in Annex-24 of the Associations Regulation).

Changes in association memberships shall be notified within forty-five days.

Immovable properties acquired by the association shall be submitted to the local civil authority within thirty days from the registration of the immovable in the land registry by completing the ‘Immovable Property Notification’ (specified in Annex-26 of the Associations Regulation).

If the association receives in-kind or cash assistance from persons, institutions, and organizations abroad, notification must be made to the civil authority before receiving the assistance. It is mandatory that cash assistance be received through banks and the notification requirement be fulfilled before use. Associations that will receive assistance from abroad shall notify the civil authority by completing the Foreign Aid Receipt Notification specified in Annex-4/A.

Assistance to be made abroad shall be notified to the civil society relations unit where the association’s headquarters is located by completing the Foreign Aid Notification specified in Annex-4/B before making the assistance. Amounts of money and assistance sent to general headquarters abroad and abroad by branches and representative offices of foreign associations, foreign foundations, and non-profit organizations are also subject to the same notification procedure. These notifications are shared with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Associations Information System (DERBİS). However, in cases of disaster or emergency, this notification may be made within thirty days from the date of the disaster or emergency. A single foreign notification may be submitted for assistance made on different dates within a specific project scope.

Cash assistance exceeding one hundred thousand Turkish Lira or ten thousand Euros or equivalent foreign currency to be made abroad must be made through banks, other financial institutions, or the Postal and Telegraph Corporation Joint Stock Company. However, assistance to be made to countries where financial access is difficult may be made without using financial institutions by declaring it to the customs authority with a cash declaration form in accordance with the relevant legislation. In cases where money is taken out of the country by declaration at customs, the relevant declaration shall be notified by the association to the civil authority within at most thirty days from the date of issue.

After the assistance is carried out, the activity result notification shall be submitted within ninety days to the civil society relations unit where the association’s headquarters is located with the Foreign Aid Activity Result Notification specified in Annex-4/C. Convincing documents such as forms and visual materials proving that the assistance has been realized shall be attached to this notification.

The monetary amounts specified above in Turkish Lira shall be increased by the revaluation rate determined and announced for the previous year pursuant to Tax Procedure Law No. 213, effective from the beginning of the calendar year. However, amounts below one Turkish Lira shall not be taken into account in the update.

The above-mentioned notifications shall be submitted to the civil authority through DERBİS (Associations Information System). The chairperson of the board of directors is responsible for making the notifications.

Notification Regarding Joint Projects Carried Out with Public Institutions and Organizations

Cooperation with public institutions and organizations in matters related to their fields of duty shall take the form of carrying out a joint project. When deemed necessary, a copy of the protocol, project, and other documents may be requested to be submitted to the associations unit.

Internal Audit of the Association

Article 17 – Internal Audit

Internal audits at the association may be conducted by the general assembly, board of directors, or board of auditors, or independent audit organizations may also be engaged for auditing. The fact that an audit has been conducted by the general assembly, board of directors, or independent audit organizations does not eliminate the obligation of the board of auditors.

The internal audit of the association is carried out by the audit board.

Borrowing Procedures of the Association

Article 18 – Borrowing

The association may borrow by decision of the board of directors if necessary to achieve its purpose and carry out its activities. This borrowing may involve the purchase of goods and services on credit, or may be in cash. However, this borrowing may not be made in amounts that cannot be covered by the association’s revenue sources and in a nature that would cause the association financial hardship.

Procedure for Amending the Charter

Article 19 – Charter Amendment

Charter amendments may be made by placing them on the agenda of ordinary or extraordinary general assembly meetings.

For charter amendment deliberations to begin at the general assembly, a two-thirds majority of members entitled to participate in the general assembly is required. If the meeting is postponed due to failure to achieve a quorum, no quorum is required at the second meeting. However, the number of members participating in this meeting may not be less than twice the total number of board of directors and board of auditors members.

The decision majority required for charter amendment is two-thirds of the votes of members present at the meeting. Voting on charter amendments at the general assembly shall be conducted openly. The charter shall enter into force after being accepted by a two-thirds majority at the general assembly.

Dissolution of the Association and Liquidation of Assets

Article 20 – Dissolution

The general assembly may at any time decide on the dissolution of the association.

For the dissolution to be discussed at the general assembly, a two-thirds majority of members entitled to participate in the general assembly is required. If the meeting is postponed due to failure to achieve a quorum, no quorum is required at the second meeting. However, the number of members participating in this meeting may not be less than twice the total number of board of directors and board of auditors members.

The decision majority required for a dissolution decision is two-thirds of the votes of members present at the meeting who are entitled to vote. Voting on dissolution decisions at the general assembly shall be conducted openly.

If the Association has been dissolved by general assembly decision or determined to have automatically terminated by a court decision, all movable and immovable properties of the association shall be determined by a three-person liquidation commission to be selected by the last board of directors. These processes shall begin from the date the general assembly decision regarding dissolution is taken or the automatic termination becomes final. During the liquidation period, all transactions shall use the phrase ‘BILGITOY Association in Liquidation.’

The liquidation board is duty-bound and authorized to complete the liquidation of the association’s cash, property, and rights from start to finish in accordance with legislation. This board shall first inspect the association’s accounts. During the inspection, the association’s books, receipt documents, expenditure documents, title deeds, bank records, and other documents shall be identified and the assets and liabilities shall be recorded in minutes. During the liquidation process, creditors of the association shall be called, and if any, the assets shall be converted to cash and paid to creditors. If the association has receivables, they shall be collected. After the collection of receivables and payment of debts, all remaining cash, property, and rights shall be delivered with minutes to the place to be determined at the general assembly.

The manner of liquidation shall be left to the general assembly decision in the charter; if the place to be transferred has not been determined at the general assembly, the general assembly cannot convene, despite notification to the last board of directors the liquidation process has not been completed, or the association has been dissolved by court decision, all remaining cash, property, and rights after the collection of receivables and payment of debts shall be transferred to the association in the province where the association is located that is closest to the association’s purpose and has the most members on the date of dissolution.

All transactions related to liquidation shall be shown in liquidation minutes, and the liquidation process shall be completed within three months, excluding additional periods granted by civil authorities for justified reasons.

Following the completion of the transfer and transition of the association’s cash, property, and rights, the liquidation board is obliged to notify the civil authority of the province where the association’s headquarters is located by a letter within seven days, and to attach the liquidation minutes to this letter. The last board of directors members in their capacity as the liquidation board are responsible for keeping the association’s books and documents. This duty may also be assigned to a board of directors member. The storage period for these books and documents is five years.

Establishment of an Umbrella Organization

Article 21 – Umbrella Organization

At least five associations with the same founding purposes may form a federation or join an established federation by coming together as members to achieve their purposes. The association shall be represented in the general assembly of the federation it will join by the number of members specified in the federation’s charter, provided that it is not less than three members.

Gaps in Provisions

Article 22 – Governing Law

For matters not specified in this charter, the provisions of the Associations Law, the Turkish Civil Code, the Associations Regulation issued in reference to these laws, and other relevant legislation regarding associations shall apply.

Provisional Article 1 – Interim Board of Directors

The following are the temporary board of directors members who will represent the association and carry out the association’s affairs and transactions until the association’s bodies are formed at the first general assembly.