Obligation to preserve and submit the books and documents under Turkish tax law

Given that the Turkish tax system is based on declaration-based assessment, it is important to determine the scope of the obligation to preserve and submit books and documents, which have an important function in Turkish tax law. Books and documents play an important role in the use of the state's taxation authority in accordance with constitutional principles and the ability to use the audit authority, which is an extension of this authority. At the same time, books and documents that have an important place in the proof of taxation-related works and transactions can be submitted for tax inspection and independent audit, to certified public accountants and to courts. Each submission method has its own characteristics and problems in practice. As with every obligation, various sanctions and consequences are envisaged in case of non-fulfillment of the obligation to preserve and submit. In the last section, the consequences of not fulfilling the obligation to present in terms of tax assessment, tax misdemeanors and crimes and non-fulfillment of the obligation to present in the context of the right to remain silent, which is an important problem in tax law, will be discussed. Within the scope of this study, special cases are mentioned and solutions are presented to the problems in line with the court decisions and the views in the doctrine. Keywords: Books and documents, Obligation to preserve and submit, Bookkeeping, Offence of concealing, Right to silence