What is an Organized Industrial Zone (OIZ)?

They are regions created to ensure the structuring of industry in suitable areas, direct urbanization, prevent distorted industrialization and environmental problems, utilize information and communication technologies, use resources rationally, and place and develop types of industries within a specific plan. The boundaries of these regions are determined based on the ratios in the zoning plans of certified land parcels and consist of areas allocated for industrial production, including required social, administrative, and technical infrastructure, small manufacturing and repair services, education and health sectors, trade, and technology development regions in a planned manner and within specified systems.

• Specialized OIZ
Refers to the Organized Industrial Zone (OIZ) containing facilities operating in the same sector group and sub-sectors included in the same sector group, as well as the Organized Industrial Zone (OIZ) established for logistics purposes.

• Organized Industrial Zones Upper Organization (OSBÜK)
Refers to the upper organization that will be established to ensure the mutual assistance of OIZs and to resolve their common problems.

What are the OIZ Investment Incentives?

 Property Tax Exemption
According to Article 4 of the Property Tax Law No. 1319, buildings located in organized industrial zones, industrial areas, and industrial sites are exempt from property tax.

 Fee Exemption
According to Article 80 of the Municipal Revenues Law No. 2464, buildings and facilities constructed in organized industrial zones are exempt from construction permit fees and building usage fees.

 Exemption from License and Permit Fees in Industrial Zones
Investor companies and investors are exempt from all kinds of fees related to licenses and permits issued by the Ministry of Industry and Technology.

 Support for Rights of Use and Usage Permits Duration and Fees
For investors in industrial zones, a right of use is granted for a period of 49 years, and usage permits are issued. The fee for the right of use or usage permit in industrial zones is determined at the rate of five per thousand of the total minimum square meter value of the property subject to the property tax.

 Discount on Service Fees Payable to Construction Supervision Organizations
A 75% discount is applied to the service fees payable to construction supervision organizations for all buildings located within the approved boundaries of organized industrial zones, industrial zones, and industrial sites.

 Tax Exemptions
o The legal entity of the OIZ;
o Property tax for 5 years starting from the budget year following the construction completion date,
o Electricity consumption tax for electricity consumed,
o VAT on the transfer of land and business,
o Construction and building usage permit fees,
o Corporate tax,
o Fees for unification and segregation transactions,
o Regions operating centralized wastewater treatment facilities are exempt from wastewater fees.

What are the Land Incentives for OIZs?

 Land Allocation Support in OIZs
Implementation of free land allocation in OIZs, fully or partially, provides an opportunity for individuals or legal entities initiating investments that foresee employment of at least ten persons to receive land parcels in OIZs for free or partially free.

Who Can Benefit from Organized Industrial Incentives?

Legal entities of organized industrial zones registered by the T.C. Ministry of Industry and Technology can benefit from organized industrial incentives.

Which Institutions Provide OIZ Incentives and Grants?

 Ministry of Industry and Technology
 General Directorate of R&D Incentives
 General Directorate of European Union and Foreign Relations
 General Directorate of Development Agencies
 General Directorate of Industrial Zones
 General Directorate of Incentive Implementation and Foreign Capital
 Presidency of Small and Medium Enterprises Development and Support Administration (KOSGEB)
 Turkey Scientific and Technological Research Council (TÜBİTAK)
 Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources
 Ministry of Treasury and Finance
 Ministry of Trade
 Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure
 Turkey Employment Agency (İŞKUR)
 Presidency of Turkey Health Institutes (TÜSEB)
 Credit Guarantee Fund (KGF)
 Turkish Eximbank
 Turkey Technology Development Foundation (TTGV)

Privileges Provided to OIZ Firms within the Scope of Investment Incentives

Firms in OIZs benefiting from investment and incentives can receive credit and interest support, are exempt from property tax, are provided with corporate tax exemptions, VAT exemptions, stamp tax exemptions, fee exemptions, and have opportunities for service fee discount to construction supervision organizations, allowing for reductions in land allocations with ministry support. These opportunities are among the privileges provided to OIZ firms under the incentive framework.

Largest First 10 Organized Industrial Zones in Turkey

The largest industrial zones in Turkey, in order, are as follows:
1. Istanbul is the largest organized industrial zone with 182 companies.
2. Izmir also hosts 40 companies.
3. Kocaeli has 32 companies.
4. Bursa has 30 companies.
5. Ankara has 27 companies.
6. Gaziantep has 23 companies.
7. Adana has 14 companies.
8. Kayseri has 14 companies.
9. Denizli has 11 companies.
10. Manisa has 11 companies.

What Units Comprise the OIZ?
Firms clustered within the OIZ must either produce the same goods or have complementary relationships between production units. Small and medium-sized enterprises must be present within OIZs. Heavy industry and complexes can create their own economies with global scale structures. In this context, the presence of heavy industrial enterprises alongside SMEs within the same OIZ can lead to various drawbacks in terms of benefiting from infrastructure.
OIZs typically prioritize planned placements. They are evaluated in terms of meteorological, topographic, and environmental conditions and are designed to turn a designated land parcel into industrial plots. Infrastructure elements such as roads, water, electricity, drainage, sewage, internet, and telephone lines must be operational up to the boundaries of each parcel.
Social facilities such as conference rooms, cafeterias, planning and accounting offices, banks, P.T.T.s, first aid centers, and technical workshops should be strategically placed in the most suitable areas within the OIZ. In addition, all firms located in the area should be able to benefit from both infrastructure elements and other common facilities.

What are the Advantages Provided by OIZs to Firms?
• Firms that produce at certain standards within the OIZ achieve optimal production spaces approved by specialists. Additionally, land and infrastructure are offered to industrialists under suitable conditions.
• Complementary relationships that arise in production help reduce production costs, especially in creating added value in specific parts of a company's final product.
• Firms operating in OIZs located in regions with a high concentration of qualified labor can easily procure labor.
• OIZs create environments that facilitate the acquisition of marketing and other services.
• Due to the ease of transportation options, companies can reduce their logistics costs.

What Units Comprise the OIZ?

Firms grouped within the OIZ must consist of production units that produce the same products and are in complementary relationships. At the same time, small and medium-sized enterprises must be present in OIZs. Heavy Industry and complexes have the capacity to create their own economies with a global scale structure. In this respect, the presence of heavy industrial enterprises alongside SMEs in the same OIZ may lead to various problems in benefiting from infrastructure.

The main objective of OIZs is planned settlement implementation. In this case, it is critically important to ensure that a designated piece of land is systematically converted into industrial zones based on topographic, meteorological, and some environmental conditions. All regions’ borders must have infrastructure elements such as roads, water, electricity, sewer, drainage, telephone lines, and internet operational.

Within the OIZ, important areas such as canteens, multipurpose halls, planning and accounting offices, banks, PTTs, technical workshops, and first aid centers should be strategically placed in the appropriate parts of the region. Simultaneously, all firms located in the area should be positioned to take advantage of not only the infrastructure elements but also all common facilities.

What are the Advantages Provided by OIZs to Firms?

Small and medium-sized firms located within the OIZ have many advantages. These advantages can be listed as follows:
● Firms located within the OIZ can access optimal production areas validated by experts. Additionally, in these areas, land and infrastructure opportunities are provided to industrialists whenever possible.
● Thanks to the complementary relationships that arise in production, it provides the opportunity to reduce production costs through the creation of added value in a specific component of a firm's final product.
● Firms operating in OIZs established in regions with a high concentration of qualified labor can avoid labor problems and easily procure workforce.
● Thanks to easier transportation options, logistics costs decrease for firms.
● OIZs assist firms by creating environments that enhance the ease of transportation of marketing and other services.

What are the Features of Organized Industrial Zones?

Organized Industrial Zones are created with the aim of separating industrial production in a planned manner within targeted systems motivated by trade, repair, manufacturing, education, health, and technology development areas. Additionally, they aim to solve industrial problems arising from urbanization. As mentioned above, the OIZ is primarily based on planned arrangements. It gathers industrial facilities in one area to provide the necessary infrastructure opportunities for raw materials, ensuring a systematic layout.

In the environmental assemblies held in our country, a recommendation decision was made to prevent the establishment of industrial facilities outside OIZs. Organized Industrial Zones have been supported by incentives for many years. Investors have recently realized the advantages of being located in OIZs to avoid infrastructure problems and reduce infrastructure costs.