Because technological advancement is a part of and goal for public policy and to ensure that venture capital investments, which provide significant contributions to technological advancement, are both regulated and productive, VC Investment Companies and their shareholders have been granted a number of tax benefits as explained below.
Even though as joint stock corporations VC Investment Companies should be classified as taxpayers, VC Investment Companies’ gains have been held exempt from corporate tax under article 130/5-(d)-3 of the Corporate Tax Law. The first paragraph of the same article exempts the profit earned from VC Investment Company shares by full taxpaying companies that provide capital for venture capital investments from corporate tax as well. Furthermore, according to the Council of Ministers Decree dated 12 January 2009 and numbered 2009/14594 and article 15 of the Corporate Tax Law, regardless of whether or not they are distributed, the withholding rate applicable to VC Investment Company earnings will be zero percent. Article 325/A added to the Tax Procedure Code on 31 My 2012 provides that, subject to CMB regulation and control, the venture capital funds or declared income set aside by companies from their earnings for the relevant period for the purpose of providing VC Investment Companies that have been or will be founded in Turkey with capital will be tax exempt. The details of this exception as well as the necessary calculations was explained in in the Finance Ministry General Communiqué no 7 on Corporate Tax.
