Merchant (trader)

Under Turkish law, a merchant (tacir) is a natural or legal person who operates a commercial enterprise in their own name, even in part. Commercial companies are deemed merchants by operation of law. This status places the person under a distinct and stricter regime set out in the Turkish Commercial Code.

Merchant status brings duties such as registration with the trade registry, using a registered trade name, keeping statutory commercial books and acting as a prudent business person. Disputes between merchants are in principle treated as commercial cases and heard by commercial courts. Certain protections available to ordinary debtors do not apply to merchants.

A common misconception is that shareholders of a company are themselves merchants. It is the company, as a legal entity, that holds merchant status, not its shareholders.