With the Communiqué on the Amendment of the Communiqué on Compliance with Participation Principles issued by the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (“BRSA”) and published in the Official Gazette dated 24 December 2025 and numbered 33117, amendments have been made to the Communiqué on Compliance with Participation Principles, which was published in the Official Gazette dated 19 December 2025 and numbered 33112.
With the said amending communiqué, the phrase “11th” in the fifth paragraph of Provisional Article 1 of the Communiqué on Compliance with Participation Principles has been replaced with “12th.” While the former wording of the provision was “Participation financial institutions are granted a period of one year from the publication date of this Communiqué to ensure compliance with the third paragraph of Article 11,” the provision currently in force reads as follows: “Participation financial institutions are granted a period of one year from the publication date of this Communiqué to ensure compliance with the third paragraph of Article 12.”
The third paragraph of Article 11 of the Communiqué reads as follows:
“(3) Participation finance institutions’ participation finance audit activities shall be carried out by the internal audit unit within the framework of Article 22 of the Regulation; the audit activities of participation finance companies shall be carried out by the internal audit unit, or, in its absence, by the internal control unit.”
The third paragraph of Article 12 of the Communiqué reads as follows:
“(3) Participation finance institutions/participation finance companies are obliged to take the necessary measures to ensure that each personnel they employ can perform their duties in compliance with participation principles and the decisions of the advisory committee, and that they possess an adequate level of knowledge and competence. Sales personnel who directly promote participation-based products to customers and manage the offering and sales process of such products, as well as marketing personnel who engage in activities aimed at ensuring that such products reach and are preferred by the target customer base, are required to hold a certificate in participation finance deemed appropriate by the Board or to have received undergraduate or graduate-level education in the field of participation finance.”
In conclusion, although the amendment appears to be a technical “correction of an article number,” it effectively alters the scope of the one-year compliance period granted under the provisional article. Accordingly, the transition period is no longer linked to the regulation concerning which internal function will conduct participation finance audit activities (Art. 11/3), but rather to the obligations regarding personnel having the necessary knowledge, competence, training, and, particularly for sales and marketing personnel, certification/educational qualifications to perform their duties in compliance with participation principles and advisory committee decisions (Art. 12/3).
Within this framework, participation finance institutions and participation finance companies should review their human resources processes, training and certification plans, recruitment criteria, and job descriptions in terms of compliance with participation principles, and update their internal regulations and practices in a manner that enables them to substantiate compliance with the requirements under Article 12/3 within one year as of 19 December 2025.
The Communiqué entered into force on the date of its publication and shall be executed by the President of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency.
You may access the relevant Communiqué here.
NAZALI TAX & LEGAL