No Reservation Required in Correction Returns Filed upon an Invitation to Explain

Istanbul Regional Administrative Court, 8th Tax Chamber, 16.12.2025, E. 2025/2431, K. 2025/2331

Where explanations given in response to an invitation to explain are not accepted, the administration sends the taxpayer letters along the lines of “either file a correction or we will refer you for audit”. Taxpayers file correction returns under the pressure of an audit; but when they did not, through the system or by oversight, enter a reservation on the return, their actions were dismissed on the ground that they had no right to sue (Article 378/2 of the Tax Procedure Law).

The Istanbul Regional Administrative Court put a stop to this vicious circle. According to the decision, where a correction return is filed upon a coercive letter from the administration, the taxpayer’s intention must be deemed to be one of reservation even if no separate reservation has been noted on the return. Finding that the taxpayer had filed the return against his will under the pressure of an audit, the court held that the action had to be examined on the merits.

The reasoning stressed that the fact that the preliminary finding report of the invitation to explain was given as the reason for the correction leads to the conclusion that the claimant’s reservation existed in correction returns filed upon a coercive letter of the administration. This decision is an important legal safeguard for the right to property and the freedom to seek justice; I hope it will guide taxpayers in similar situations.