Turkey has eliminated its 6.5pc import duty on urea under a Presidential Decree published in the Official Gazette on 7 March.
Most urea origins, apart from Egypt, Qatar and Malaysia, faced a 6.5pc import duty prior to the move.
The amendment covers urea spanning HS codes 31021012, 31021015, 31021019 and 31021090, and took immediate effect upon publication.
Import dependence
Turkey remains heavily reliant on imported nitrogen products, with urea imports averaging 2.8mn t/yr in 2023-25.
Imports reached about 2.7mn t in 2025, with Iran — frequently listed as Oman — supplying roughly 44pc of total volumes. Egypt accounted for around 24pc, while Russia supplied about 13pc, mainly in the first half of the year. Deliveries from Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan together totalled around 300,000t.
Turkey also imported 60,000t of Qatari urea in 2025. Qatari urea last featured in the Turkish line-up in 2022 and 2023, with just 44,000t and 22,000t imported, respectively. Turkey opted to remove import duties on Qatari urea from 1 August.
Market implications
The removal of import duty is expected to increase urea inflows ahead of Turkey's spring demand peak, particularly for wheat top dressing, as well as barley, rapeseed and early corn applications. The change is set to reshape trade flows, eroding the previous duty-free advantage enjoyed by Egypt and more recently Qatar, and bringing other exporting origins into more direct competition.
Competitive pressure on domestic producers
The elimination of import duties will intensify competitive pressure on Turkish nitrogen producers, whose costs are structurally higher, given their reliance on imported gas and other feedstocks. Local producers may respond by focusing on contract sales or maybe blending products to protect market share.
The policy shift will likely reinforce Turkey's role as a growing import, blending and redistribution hub, a local market participant told Argus.
