How an early termination fee is calculated when you end a subscription commitment early

When you close a committed internet or phone subscription before its term ends, the operator asks for an early termination fee. Because most people cannot check whether the figure is right, they either pay it or give up on leaving. Yet the ceiling for that figure is set by regulation, and you can find it yourself by comparing two simple totals.

This guide explains how to calculate that ceiling under Turkey's regulation on consumer rights in the electronic communications sector, the cases in which you owe no termination fee at all, the deadlines within which your termination request must be carried out, and the steps for disputing a wrong amount. No operator or campaign is recommended here; only your rights are explained.

1. Get hold of your commitment document Do not try to do the arithmetic without it. Under the regulation the commitment document must state the length of the commitment, the monthly price with and without the commitment, the device price and monthly device fee, every amount that can form part of a termination fee, and the method for calculating what the subscriber pays if the commitment ends early. If you cannot find it, ask the operator for a copy: operators must keep the subscription contract and its annexes and give you a copy on request.
2. Work out the remaining commitment in months Read the start date and the total term from the commitment document, count the months elapsed up to the date you want to leave, and derive the months remaining. Under the regulation the commitment period agreed between operator and subscriber cannot exceed twenty-four months; a longer term in your document is itself grounds for a complaint. The number of remaining months underpins both of the totals below.
3. Work out the first total: the benefits you received Add up the discounts granted to you up to the period in which the breach of commitment occurs, that is up to the month you leave. For each month subtract the discounted monthly price from the undiscounted monthly price and multiply the difference by the months elapsed. Then add the uncollected part of the price of any device or other benefit provided under the commitment: unpaid instalments of a modem, handset or installation charge belong in this total. The result is your first ceiling.
4. Work out the second total: the remaining amounts not yet billed Now add up the amounts you agreed to pay through to the end of the commitment that have not yet accrued, meaning not yet been billed. In practice that is the discounted monthly fee multiplied by the remaining months, plus any other fixed amounts written in the document for the remaining term. Months already billed and paid do not belong here. The result is your second ceiling.
5. Compare the two totals and take the lower one Under the commitment article of the regulation, the amount the operator may demand is limited to the total of the discounts granted up to the period of the breach plus the uncollected part of the device or other benefits; where the total of the amounts due to the end of the commitment that have not yet accrued is lower, that figure applies instead. In other words the fee can be at most the smaller of the two totals. Write both on paper and circle the smaller one: that is the number you will argue from.
6. Check the cases where you owe nothing Before you start paying, review the exemptions. For committed subscriptions other than mobile services, if your place of residence changes and the committed service cannot be provided at the same quality at the new address, you may terminate without paying a termination fee, provided you document the change of address; the remaining price of the device sits outside this. For internet access services, where the address-based internet speed measurement criteria set by BTK are not met, you likewise gain the right to terminate without a termination fee, excluding the remaining device cost. If your situation fits, prepare the evidence and state it plainly in your termination request.
7. File the termination request on the record Do not settle for a spoken phone call. Submit the termination request in writing, through the operator's online account, by email or through another channel that leaves a durable record, and keep the date, reference number and a screenshot. Say in the request on which date you want the subscription closed and give your exemption grounds if you have any. From the moment your request reaches the operator, it must confirm receipt and stop charging within twenty-four hours, and carry out the termination within seven days at the latest.
8. Follow the final bill and the refund A final bill follows the termination; the regulation sets a deadline for the operator to issue it, and provides that any balance owed to you after mutual claims are set off is refunded within a set period. Read the final bill line by line the day it arrives: which line is the termination fee, is the device price shown separately, have you been charged for days after the termination date. If you prepaid a period or left a deposit, confirm that it has been offset.
9. If the figure does not match yours, go to the operator first The first step of a dispute is the operator's own complaint system, and skipping it delays everything that follows. Open the complaint under the heading for commitment documents, penalty clauses and termination fees, set out both totals with figures and which is lower, and attach the commitment document and the bill. Under BTK rules, complaints submitted through the complaint system are in principle to be resolved within ten working days of the application; where that is not possible, the operator must tell you the reason and the expected resolution date.
10. If that fails, take it to BTK and then to the consumer arbitration board If the operator's answer does not solve the problem, submit the same complaint through the system a second time; second complaints from the same subscriber on the same matter are forwarded to the Authority together with the replies. You can also apply to BTK's consumer complaint system yourself and call its information and reporting centre. Where the dispute continues, the route is an application to the consumer arbitration board: you can file it through the e-Devlet portal using the Consumer Information System without an electronic signature, completing the form in full and uploading your documents.

⚠ This guide is general information. Yudum cannot be held responsible for the outcome of following it; for official procedures always rely on the institution's own statement. Steps and fees change over time.

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