ANNOUNCEMENT ON THE COURT’S DECISION TO SUSPEND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE “MANDATORY COMBINED TICKET FOR FOREIGN VISITORS” POLICY AT THE EFES ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE

Dear Members,

In the case filed by TÜRSAB against the Central Directorate of the Revolving Fund Operations of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Turkey (DÖSİMM) under file no. 2024/282 E.; the revision of museum and archaeological site entrance fees for foreign visitors to a foreign currency-based (Euro) system, as outlined in the annex to the Directive on Procedures and Principles for Entrance to Museums and Archaeological Sites, the determination of the fee schedule for the Electronic Guiding System, and the annulment of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Revolving Fund Management Board Decision No. 295 dated November 17, 2023, regarding the transition to a single-ticket system by combining the entrance tickets for the Ephesus Archaeological Site and the Ephesus Digital Experience Museum.

In the proceedings before the 10th Chamber of the Council of State, a “Stay of Execution” decision was issued regarding the mandatory consolidation of entrance tickets for the Ephesus Archaeological Site and the “Digital Experience Museum” operated by a private entity into a single ticket.

The grounds for the decision were that foreign visitors were required to pay the admission fee for a museum they had not visited in advance, which violates property rights; furthermore, the administration’s single-ticket policy provided an unfair and indirect guarantee of visitors to a private company, a situation found to be in clear violation of the Presidential Decree and the Implementation Agreement.

With this decision, the requirement for foreign visitors to pay the fee for the “Digital Experience Museum” ticket in order to enter the Ephesus Archaeological Site has been eliminated.

The legal struggle regarding issues that hinder the commercial activities of our valued members continues with determination.

We respectfully bring this to your attention.

Association of Turkish Travel Agencies
TÜRSAB