ORDINANCE ON THE ADMINISTRATIVE AND JUDICIAL
DUTIES OF THE COAST GUARD COMMAND
Ordinance No
: 2692
Date & No. of Council of Min.
: 16/07/1985 - 85/9709
Date & No. of Basis Law
: 09/07/1982 - 2692
Published in the Official Gazette Dated 07/08/1985 Numbered 18835
Part One: Scope and Administrative Duties
Scope:
Article 1 – This Ordinance indicates which duties of the Coast Guard Command are
of an administrative nature and which are of a judicial nature.
Administrative duties within and outside the ports:
Article 2 – Administrative duties of the Coast Guard Command within and outside the
ports are as follows:
A - 1) Monitoring vessels with a view to preventing smuggling activities,
2) Conducting searches on vessels or packages and cases on such vessels, which are
suspected to contain smuggled articles, guns, ammunition, explosives and drugs,
3) Approaching to vessels and examining their cargoes and documents,
4) Conducting searches and examining cargoes and documents of vessels, which
approach to coasts not having customs administrations or establish communications with the
land or other vessels without an authorization,
5) In security regions set up in accordance with supplementary Article 1 of the Law on
Prohibition and Monitoring of Smuggling Activities, examining cabotage and cargo
documents in sea transportations from and to such regions, and supervising whether the
Council of Ministers resolution issued on the basis of the mentioned article is complied with,
B) Monitoring, preventing and informing competent authorities of acts in violation of
the Law on Preservation of Cultural and Natural Assets and associated regulations,
C -1) Checking whether vessels taking shelter in 1st-degree prohibited navy zones
informs the authorized command or the local administrative body of the event with the
reasons for taking shelter and whether they show international signposts; and informing the
authorized command or local administrative body of the situation, ensuring that vessels which
are not allowed to stay leave the zone as soon as possible, taking measures against their acts
which could pose a threat to defense facilities and security and cooperating with the local
administrative body in such matters,
2) Monitoring vessels flying foreign flags, which take shelter in 2nd-degree prohibited
navy zones due to bad weather conditions or breakdowns, informing the authorized command
or local administrative body of the event, monitoring them while they leave the zone once
weather conditions become better or the breakdown is corrected and while they are towed to
an appropriate shelter outside the zone and cooperating with the local administrative body in
such matters,
3) Preventing surveillance by means of binoculars in 1st-degree and 2nd-degree
prohibited navy zones, and preventing acts such as taking pictures or films of the zone by
unauthorized persons, drawing maps or sketches, taking notes or map applications; and
preventing the use of devices that would hamper, interrupt and disclose the defense and
security measures of the zone,
4) Monitoring and preventing acts in contradiction with the regulation regarding the
prohibition to enter 1st- and 2nd-degree prohibited navy zones and entry and exit of vessels
belonging to persons of foreign nationality to/from the touristic places within second-degree
prohibited navy zones.
Administrative duties outside ports:
Article 3 – Administrative duties of the Coast Guard Command outside the ports are
as follows:
A – Monitoring whether ships flying foreign flags are engaged in marine
transportation from one point to another and carry out marine works along Turkish coasts and
in Turkish territorial waters; and monitoring whether persons of foreign nationality are
employed as shipmasters, engineers, clerks, crew and sea laborers; and preventing them, if
they are,
B – Monitoring whether the radio devices of ships flying foreign and Turkish flags
along Turkish coasts and in Turkish territorial waters and their use comply with the
Radiocommunications Law and international conventions, and reporting the situation to the
Ministry of Transportation, where necessary, so that their licenses are cancelled,
C – Checking the sailing permission, seaworthiness and tonnage documentation of the
vessels navigating along Turkish coasts and in Turkish territorial waters; whether the number
of passengers carried correspond to the records in the seaworthiness certificate; whether they
have freeboard marks aboard; whether they carry cargoes in excess of what is shown in their
load lines or provided for in the regulations; whether they comply with the rules applicable to
the transportation of noxious substances; whether they have in place flashlights and signposts
which are required to be available for prevention of conflicts at sea; ensuring compliance with
the obligation to assist those who are in distress during conflicts and whenever distress signals
are received from other ships and reporting such situations to the competent authorities, where
necessary,
D – Checking sanitation certificates* of ships calling at ports; ascertaining whether
ships, which had to take shelter in a port due to accidents, storm and extraordinary events,
receive an endorsement while they depart from the port, and reporting it to competent
authorities, where necessary,
E – Checking the availability of certificate of origin and veterinary health certificates
in animal transportations by vessels; and informing the local administrative body or
government’s veterinarian or the administrative body, which can be contacted most easily,
where contagious and epizootic animal diseases on such vessels or animal deaths for unknown
reasons are seen or learned,
F – Checking sanitation certificates and certificates of origin of imported plants and
export permits of exported plants; examining plants to be imported or pass in transit against
the list of diseased, harmful plants and plants which are prohibited from entering into or
passing through the country, as developed by the Ministry of Forestry and Rural Affairs, and
reporting to the agricultural combat and agricultural quarantine organization, where
necessary,
G – Checking licenses of ships used in production of water products and the fishers in
ships; monitoring and preventing the use of explosive and harmful substances, monitoring
production of water products by means of trawl nets, production of water products in terms of
time, seasons, kind, weight and size; monitoring whether prohibitions of foreign authorities
for water products are complied with and whether production means meet the required
qualities; monitoring, preventing and reporting to the competent authorities, where necessary,
the acts and scuba diving likely to prevent continuation of water product generations,
H- Preventing acts in contradiction with the Passport Law,
İ – Monitoring and preventing the acts in contradiction with the Law on Residence and
Travels of Foreigners in Turkey,
J – Checking whether ships:
1) Carry out sanitation operations before leaving the port;
2) Are engaged importation,
3) Obtain a free pratique before departure, when they have a bad sanitation certificate,
4) Have in place a yellow quarantine flag on the foremast in the daytime and failing to
have a red flashlight at the top and a white flashlight at the bottom in the nighttime.
5) Have ship sanitation cards, for those ships which operate between Turkish ports and
wigh up to 250 tons, and reporting the above situations to the competent authorities, where
necessary,
K – Checking whether yachts coming from foreign ports or sailing out of Turkish
territorial waters to arrive at such ports entered/ exited through border gates; whether they sail
on the route shown in the documents of the yachts with foreign flags or steered by foreigners;
if there are any other prohibitions as regards their approaches to and anchoring at places
without customs administrations on such routes for traveling purposes; whether foreign yachts
comply with the durations of stay in Turkey; whether yachts flying Turkish Flag, which are
hired out to Turkish or foreign persons for travel, sports and pleasure purposes are used for
any commercial purposes; and reporting to competent authorities where necessary,
L –Monitoring and preventing acts in contradiction with
1) Memoranda published by the Department of Navigation and Hydrography under the
Navigational and Hydrographical Services Law,
2) Provision of the Ports Act that no diving shall be allowed in territorial waters unless
an authorization is obtained from the harbour master,
3) Monitoring and preventing acts in contradiction with the Turkish Flag Law and
Ordinance as well as those provisions of the Turkish Commercial Code that regard the right
and obligation to run up Turkish Flag,
M – Monitoring and preventing acts in violation of the pollution prohibition laid down
in the Environment Act; imposing the penalty set out in Article 22 of the Law and depositing
the same in the revenue board,
N – Monitoring and preventing acts in contradiction with provisions of international
treaties regarding the issues laid down in the Coast Guard Command Act,
Ö – Informing at the shortest time the nearest navy corps or regional directorate for
ports and maritime affairs or the harbour master of any uncontrolled mines, explosives or
suspected objects and their ways of movement; taking necessary protective measures until
competent authorities take control of the operation
P – Monitoring and supervising operational status of Navigational Assistants and
continuation of sea signposts placed by competent authorities in view of the memoranda of
the Department of Navigation and Hydrography; and informing competent authorities of
observed impediments and deficiencies,
R – Conducting search and rescue tasks along Turkish coasts and in Turkish territorial
waters as well as International Waters as envisaged by the International Convention on
Maritime Search and Rescue, assisting those who are in distress at sea, providing assistance
when distress signals are received and collaborating with national search and rescue
organizations where communication with competent authorities is required,
S – Divesting refugees entering Turkish territorial waters of weapons and war tools
and delivering such refugees and their weapons and war tools to the authorized bodies.
Part two: judicial duties of the command and miscellaneous provisions
Judicial duties of the coast guard command:
Article 4 – Judicial duties of the Coast Guard Command are as follows:
A – Where acts considered to be an offence under laws are found during the
fulfillment of duties and services set out in Article 2 and 3 of this Ordinance; issuing reports;
establishing, collecting and keeping evidence; taking suspects into custody; delivering
suspects and crime tools to competent authorities; where the offence starts at sea and
continues on the land or offenders proceed to the land, exercising such powers on land until
competent security force takes control of the operation in order to prevent evidence from
being lost and offenders from escaping; and informing the local administrative body of the
event as soon as possible;
B – Within their jurisdiction, where offences required to be investigated by general
security forces are found or any information regarding such an offence is received or such
offences start at sea and continue on land, assisting in other security forces in investigating the
offence and seizure of offenders, seizing such offences where necessary and catching and
delivering to competent authorities such offenders.
Delivery of Suspects and Their Offence Tools
Article 5 – (Amended article: 09/08/1991 – 91/2080 K.)
The authority to which suspects and crime tools seized at sea shall be the Public
prosecutor in the province or district in the nearest coast.
Where marine or technical conditions do not allow it, deliveries may be made to the
Public prosecutor in the province or district in the first coast that may be approached to. Such
authorities shall complete the works that could pose a disadvantage if they are delayed within
the framework of the powers and duties granted by laws, and forward the investigation
documents to the responsible and authorized Public prosecutor.
Duties of Other Security Forces
Article 6 – Operations to be conducted on land by security forces during preparatory
investigations and judgment shall be conducted by the police or gendarme.
Entry into force
Article 7 – Provisions of this Ordinance prepared on the basis of Article 22 of the
Coast Guard Command Act No. 2692 dated 09/07/1982 and scrutinized by the Council of
State shall enter into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.
Enforcement
Article 8 – Provisions of this Ordinance shall be enforced by the Council of Ministers.