What is the Blue Card (Mavi Kart)?

The Blue Card is the system that tracks the waste of small craft such as yachts and boats. The boat hands its waste to a reception facility or a waste collection vessel, and the hand-over is recorded.

Which waste is covered?

Bilge water and other oil products, water from sinks and toilets, and all solid waste including plastic. Boats with no equipment that produces waste other than used engine oil are outside the system.

How often must waste be handed over?

A circular dated 9 September 2026 changed the periods: every 20 days for boats with a capacity of fewer than 12 people, every 15 days for boats with 12 or more. Capacity means passengers plus crew. Only time spent under way within maritime jurisdiction areas counts.

What if the tank fills up first?

A boat whose waste tank reaches 80 per cent hands over its waste without waiting for the period to end. The duty to hand over waste before every trip has been removed.

How do you register?

According to the Ministry, boat owners can register free of charge at the nearest coastal facility. A circular published in 2026 provides for hand-overs to be recorded digitally; the system is run by the Turkish Environment Agency (TÜÇA).

Source: Circular 2026/12 of 09.09.2026, Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change (notice of the İMEAK Chamber of Shipping); the Ministry’s statement on the Blue Card (Anadolu Agency, 21.07.2020). For information only. The binding text is the one published in the Official Gazette. Last checked: 6 October 2026.