Regulation on Sports Activities for Tourism Purposes
Institution: Ministry of Culture and Tourism
Date of Approval: 23.02.2011
Official Gazette Date: 23.02.2011
Official Gazette No: 27855
CHAPTER ONE: Purpose, Scope, Basis and Definitions
Purpose
Article 1 - (1) The purpose of this Regulation is to determine the qualifications required in tourism enterprises that will conduct sports activities for tourism purposes during the application of various sports disciplines as tourism activities, to take measures for the safe continuation of the activity, to supervise, and to develop the diversification of tourism.
Scope
Article 2 - (1) This Regulation covers the mandatory conditions to be followed for the conduct of sports tourism activities.
(2) Activities organized by sports clubs operating in accordance with relevant legislation and by relevant federations among their own athletes or athletes from other countries are outside the scope of this Regulation.
Basis
Article 3 - (1) This Regulation has been prepared based on subparagraph (3) of paragraph (C) of Article 37 of the Tourism Encouragement Law No. 2634 dated 12/3/1982.
Definitions
Article 4 - (1) In this Regulation;
- a) Agency: A travel agency established in accordance with the Travel Agencies and Travel Agencies Association Law No. 1618 dated 14/9/1972,
- b) Ministry: Ministry of Culture and Tourism,
- c) Marine tourism vessel operation: Marine tourism vessel operation certified under the Tourism Encouragement Law No. 2634 and the Marine Tourism Regulation published in the Official Gazette No. 27298 dated 24/7/2009,
- ç) Marine tourism vessel operation certificate: The certificate to be given by the governorship to enterprises that will conduct underwater and surface activities for tourism purposes at sea,
- d) Provincial Directorate: Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism,
- e) Permit: The permit certificate to conduct sports tourism activities to be given by the governorship to the enterprise,
- f) Board: Sports Tourism Boards listed in Article 11,
- g) Course: The sports activity area to be determined by the governorship,
- ğ) Facility: An enterprise certified by the Ministry under the Tourism Encouragement Law No. 2634 and the Regulation on Certification and Qualifications of Tourism Facilities published in the Official Gazette No. 25852 dated 21/6/2005,
- h) Underwater and surface sports activities for tourism purposes: Activities carried out at sea with marine tourism vessels equipped with necessary equipment for underwater and surface for sightseeing, sports, and entertainment purposes,
- ı) Sports activity for tourism purposes: Sports types and other tourism diversification activities that develop as tourism activities subject to sports disciplines such as rafting, paragliding, hang gliding, underwater and surface sports (vehicle-dependent or independent), horseback riding, mountaineering, auto and motocross, caving, and similar, which are performed by tourists, together with tourists, or organized for tourists by applying fully or partially the rules of one or more sports disciplines,
- i) Qualification Certificate: The certificate to be issued by the Sports Tourism Board (Annex-1).
CHAPTER TWO: General and Special Conditions, Course, Formation of Sports Tourism Boards and Issuance of Permits and Qualification Certificates to Enterprises
General Conditions
Article 5 - (1) Sports activities for tourism purposes can be conducted by agencies, facilities, and marine tourism vessel operations that have obtained the necessary permits within the procedures and principles specified in the Regulation and have an operating certificate from the Ministry. However, agencies and facilities that will conduct underwater and surface sports activities for tourism purposes at sea are also required to obtain a marine tourism vessel operation certificate. Priority in sports activities to be conducted at sea in front of the facility belongs to the facility.
(2) For underwater and surface sports activities for tourism purposes to be conducted at sea by real and legal persons, obtaining a marine tourism vessel operation certificate is mandatory; for other types of activities, an agency certificate is required.
(3) The provisions of the first and second paragraphs do not apply to activities organized by the institutions mentioned in the second paragraph of Article 2, activities to be conducted within facilities, surface sports activities to be conducted by cruise ships in areas designated by the Port Authority for their customers, and tourism surface sports activities conducted by private and commercial yachts cruising in bays outside the port for their yacht owners.
Sports Rules
Article 6 - (1) In the application of the sport subject to the sports tourism activity, the sports rules determined by national sports federations or organizations established for the practice of that sport, or if such a federation or organization does not exist, by international organizations, are followed.
Course
Article 7 - (1) Sports tourism activities are conducted within areas determined and announced by the governorships.
(2) The arrangement of these areas is made by the governorship. If the arrangement covers the borders of more than one province, it is made in coordination with the relevant governorships.
(3) The course is determined separately by the governorships for each type of sports tourism activity. Separate arrangements are also made for sports tourism activities that do not require a special course.
(4) In determining and announcing course areas, compliance with relevant legislation and international treaties, agreements, and regulations to which our country is a party is ensured, and opinions of relevant public institutions and organizations are also obtained.
Underwater and Surface Activity Areas at Sea
Article 8 - (1) The following arrangements are made by governorships for underwater and surface activities for tourism purposes to be conducted at sea:
- Establishment of a contact point on the shore where customers are managed, equipment is kept, and warning signs in at least three languages are displayed,
- Determination of a safe sea area marked with buoys that provide safe entry and exit of surface vehicles between the station on the shore and the sea area where surface sports are performed, separated from swimming areas,
- Creation of diving areas in announced open diving sites with coordinates and boundaries defined, including artificial reefs, sunken planes, helicopters, ships, amphorae, underwater parks, and naturally formed areas determined by the Board.
Permit
Article 9 - (Amended article Official Gazette: 01.06.2018 Official Gazette No: 30438)
(1) Enterprises obtain permits from the governorship separately for each type of sports tourism activity as specified in this Regulation. This permit can be granted for a maximum of five years, considering the type of activity, general and special conditions of the course area, upon request, and not less than one year.
(2) The marine tourism vessel operation certificate obtained from the governorship for underwater and surface sports activities for tourism purposes to be conducted at sea substitutes the permit certificate.
(3) In case of multiple applications by enterprises for a course located outside the courses determined in front of the facility and to be given to one enterprise, the permit is granted to the enterprise deemed qualified that contributes the most to infrastructure services. This contribution is deposited into the account of the Ministry Revolving Fund Central Directorate. Permission to conduct tourism sports activities in the course area designated for helicopter skiing (Heliski) is granted to a single agency.
Special Conditions
Article 10 - (1) Conditions related to the implementation of the principles specified in this Regulation are determined separately for each type of sports tourism activity by the governorships with the approval of the Ministry when needed.
(2) Enterprises applying for a permit certificate must meet the qualifications specified in this Regulation as well as the conditions to be announced by the governorships, including:
- Possession of mandatory equipment and vehicles to be used,
- Possession of mandatory licenses for personnel according to the type of sports activity to be conducted,
- If the sports activity requires a transfer vehicle, possession of a transfer vehicle with necessary qualifications,
- Accident insurance and liability insurance for personnel and tourists participating in the sports activity,
- First aid equipment,
- Other conditions deemed necessary.
Formation of Sports Tourism Boards
Article 11 - (1) Sports Tourism Boards are established in regions to be determined by governorships to perform the duties specified in the Regulation, to examine requests of those wishing to conduct sports activities for tourism purposes, to issue qualification certificates, to carry out necessary work for the implementation of the Regulation, and to ensure supervision.
- a) For agency applications, the Board consists of five members: the Governor or Deputy Governor assigned in the province; the District Governor in the district; the Provincial Director of Culture and Tourism or Deputy Director assigned; the Provincial Director of Youth and Sports or a designated person; and a travel agency representative appointed by the Turkish Travel Agencies Association, plus one expert appropriate to the activity type to be permanently examined.
- b) For facility applications, the Board consists of five members: the Governor or Deputy Governor assigned in the province; the District Governor; the Provincial Director of Culture and Tourism or Deputy Director assigned; the Provincial Director of Youth and Sports or a designated person; and a sector representative appointed by the organization to which the facility is a member, plus one expert appropriate to the activity type to be permanently examined.
- c) For applications of enterprises to conduct underwater and surface sports activities at sea, the Board consists of seven members: the Governor or Deputy Governor assigned in the province; the District Governor; the Provincial Director of Culture and Tourism or Deputy Director assigned; the Provincial Director of Youth and Sports; the Port Authority Chief; the Coast Guard Commander or their designee; and a relevant professional representative of the Chamber of Shipping, plus one expert appropriate to the activity type to be permanently examined.
Qualification Certificate
Article 12 - (1) The qualification certificate is issued separately for each type of sports tourism activity and each course. To obtain the Qualification Certificate, applications are made with the following documents:
- Application petition,
- Travel agency operating certificate,
- A declaration including the Social Security Institution workplace code, the Turkish ID numbers, and assigned duties of personnel to be employed in sports tourism activities,
- License obtained from the relevant sports federation for personnel assigned to the sports activity,
- Usage certificates and test documents of equipment or vehicles to be used in the activity in accordance with relevant legislation,
- Accident insurance and liability insurance policies for personnel and tourists participating in the sports tourism activity,
- Tourism enterprise certificate for sports activities to be conducted in front of the facility,
- If the operator of the sports activity conducted in front of the facility is different from the facility operator, a contract to be made between the facility operator and the travel agency or marine tourism vessel operator.
(3) The Board examines the applications and issues qualification certificates for those deemed appropriate.
(4) The Provincial Directorate examines the permit requests submitted with the qualification certificate and issues the sports tourism activity permit certificate indicating the validity period, the type of sports tourism activity, and the course.
(5) If the original documents requested under the first paragraph of this article are submitted, the photocopies of the documents are certified by the relevant officer after verifying conformity with the original. Those who provide false documents or declarations are reported to the Public Prosecutor’s Office for prosecution under the relevant provisions of the Turkish Penal Code No. 5237 dated 26/9/2004.
CHAPTER THREE: Obligations, Prohibitions and Cancellation of Certificates
Obligations
Article 13 - (1) All changes related to the matters stated in the qualification certificate are notified in writing to the Board before the activity. A list of participants in the sports tourism activity is kept by the relevant enterprises and provided to the Board or governorship upon request.
(2) Accidents occurring during the activity are immediately reported in a report form to the Board by the enterprise conducting the activity.
Prohibitions
Article 14 - (1) Conducting sports activities for tourism purposes without permission, performing sports activities outside the type specified in the operating or permit certificate and outside the announced course, and conducting activities with equipment, vehicles, and personnel not covered by the qualification certificate are prohibited.
(2) Those conducting sports activities for tourism purposes without permission are immediately banned from the activity by the highest local administrative authority of their location and are subject to procedures under Article 32 of the Misdemeanors Law No. 5326 dated 30/3/2005.
(3) It is prohibited to stay overnight other than in accommodation places inside state forests or within 4 km of forests or within village boundaries covered by Articles 31 and 32 of the Forest Law No. 6831 dated 31/8/1956, to light fires outside permitted hearths or to leave the place without extinguishing fires lit in permitted areas, and to throw unextinguished cigarettes or fire-causing materials into forests. Those who violate prohibitions are subject to the relevant provisions of the Forest Law No. 6831.
(4) Underwater and surface sports activities cannot be conducted in areas with dense maritime traffic, in areas designated under the Military Forbidden Zones and Security Zones Law No. 2565 dated 18/12/1981, and in historical and natural protected sites designated under the Law on Protection of Cultural and Natural Assets No. 2863 dated 21/7/1983.
Cancellation of Permit and Qualification Certificate
Article 15 - (1) The marine tourism vessel operation certificate or permit certificate of enterprises conducting activities contrary to the provisions of Article 14 is canceled by the governorship, and the qualification certificate is canceled by the relevant Board.
Inspection
Article 16 - (1) The application of sports rules or other matters subject to the sports activity are inspected by authorized institutions and organizations.
(2) Sports activities for tourism purposes are inspected by the Ministry, governorship, and relevant Board.
(3) A staff member may be assigned by governorships in sports tourism activity areas on behalf of the relevant Board when deemed necessary.
CHAPTER FOUR: Other Provisions
Safety Rules
Article 17 - (1) Individuals wishing to benefit individually from sports tourism activity areas...