President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s demand for a complete ban on illegal gambling has led to a sweeping revision of Turkey’s Penal Code, with the new version expected to come into force by 2026.

The changes предусматривают a sharp tightening of penalties for illegal gambling, online betting and participation in such activities. These measures will form the backbone of a broader “Action Plan to Eradicate Illegal Gambling” initiated by Erdoğan.

The directive was confirmed through a circular released by Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç, who reaffirmed the government’s full commitment to the President’s zero-tolerance stance.

“Each new loophole that allows these networks to operate within our country is being closed,” Tunç said. “Nobody, whether organiser or participant, can get away with digital anonymity or lax penalties from here on out.”

The Penal Code reform will be the central pillar of Erdoğan’s 11th Judicial Package. The Ministry of Justice describes it as a nationwide campaign to dismantle the financial and digital infrastructure of unlicensed operators. According to Tunç, the package will expand prosecutors’ powers to seize assets, suspend activities and pursue criminal charges, while updating the Penal Code to increase prison sentences and financial penalties for both individuals and organised groups.

Under the proposed changes:

• organisers of illegal gambling networks will face longer prison sentences, with harsher penalties for offences involving minors or cross-border coordination;

• participants and intermediaries will be subject to higher fines and asset confiscation, including the freezing of bank accounts and digital payment instruments for up to 48 hours during investigations;

• proceeds of crime may be seized immediately, without prior notice, and returned to victims where ownership is proven;
• banks and payment providers will be required to supply data to prosecutors or courts within 10 days, with failure to comply resulting in administrative or criminal sanctions.

“It no longer has to be a marginal issue,” Tunç continued. “Illegal betting is a coordinated, organised activity that takes advantage of our youth, destroys families and transfers money abroad. It is a national threat – and we will view it as such.”

The 11th Judicial Package will also tighten oversight of electronic payment and telecommunications systems that have enabled illegal operators to reach Turkish consumers. All accounts at electronic payment institutions will require biometric or chip-ID verification. GSM subscriptions will only be possible with full electronic identity verification to prevent the use of false or deceased identities.

These measures form part of Erdoğan’s demand for “concrete results” by 2026. The President warned that authorities would be held accountable for any failure to act.

“We cannot live with a shadow economy built on human weakness,” Erdoğan said during a recent cabinet session. “Every lira lost to illegal gambling is a lira stolen from our nation’s future.”

The Erdoğan government has ordered all state bodies – including MASAK (the Financial Crimes Investigation Board), BTK (the Information and Communication Technologies Authority) and the state lottery Milli Piyango – to cooperate in enforcement efforts.

Milli Piyango has already submitted a report to MASAK identifying 239,000 domains directly violating Turkish gambling laws.

Chairman Ekrem Candan, Milli Piyango official, described the problem as “unprecedented”, adding: “We are witnessing industrial-level targeting of Turkish citizens via the internet. This is not a handful of rogue operators – it is a coordinated ecosystem that must be dismantled.”

Previously, Turkey warned Cyprus, Malta, Georgia and North Macedonia of possible diplomatic and economic measures if they continue to host or license gambling operators targeting Turkish citizens.

Minister Tunç concluded that the revised penal code will establish a zero-tolerance framework for gambling offences in 2026 and beyond.

“Illegal betting breaks apart families, traps young people in debt and disrupts public order,” he said. “The Republic will make no compromises and will take all necessary action to destroy the apparatus that exploits our citizens and threatens social peace. This will be a hard, stalwart fight – and it will be won.”

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