BİLGE NCTS is Türkiye's implementation of the New Computerised Transit System (NCTS), the electronic infrastructure of the Convention on a Common Transit Procedure, and runs on the BİLGE Customs Platform of the Ministry of Trade (Ticaret Bakanlığı). Transit declarations, guarantees, release and arrival notifications are handled in this system through electronic messages. Türkiye has been part of the system since 1 December 2012.
How do NCTS and BİLGE come together?
NCTS (New Computerised Transit System) is the common system that has handled transit operations in Europe paperlessly since 2005. BİLGE is the name of the automation system Turkish customs has used since 1998. When Türkiye became a party to the Convention on a Common Transit Procedure on 1 December 2012, NCTS went live as the transit module of BİLGE. With the move to NCTS Phase 5 on 17 November 2024, operations were transferred to the web-based BİLGE Customs Platform. In short, "BİLGE NCTS" is not a separate system but the counterpart of NCTS within the Turkish customs infrastructure.
Why did it replace the paper T1?
In the paper era, T1 copies were stamped at each customs office and returned by post from the office of destination to the office of departure. Closing the procedure could take weeks, and the guarantee remained tied up throughout. In NCTS, the office of departure receives the declaration electronically and notifies the office of destination in advance; when the goods arrive, the closing message comes back instantly and the guarantee is released. In the words of the Ministry of Trade, goods can be carried to Europe under the Common Transit Procedure with a single declaration and a single guarantee.
Where is NCTS valid?
The Convention on a Common Transit Procedure covers the EU as a single contracting party, as well as Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, North Macedonia, Serbia, Ukraine, Türkiye, Georgia, Moldova and Montenegro. Georgia started applying the system on 1 February 2025, and Moldova and Montenegro on 1 November 2025. Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan and the Central Asian countries are outside this system; the TIR carnet is used in these directions.
Who plays a role in a transit operation?
- Holder of the procedure: The person who lodges the declaration or on whose behalf it is lodged. They are financially responsible for presenting the goods at destination within the time limit and with the seals intact.
- Office of departure: Accepts the declaration, checks the guarantee and releases the goods.
- Office of transit: Records the passage of the goods at the border of a contracting party.
- Office of destination: Confirms the arrival of the goods and notifies the office of departure. The duties of the two offices are explained in the entry on customs offices of departure and destination.
- Authorised consignor and consignee: Companies authorised to dispatch goods from their own premises or to receive them at their premises.
How does a transit operation progress with an MRN?
- The holder of the procedure or their representative submits the declaration to NCTS. With Phase 5, the declaration can be lodged up to 30 days before the goods are presented to customs.
- Once the declaration is accepted, an 18-character MRN number is generated.
- After risk analysis and, if necessary, a control, the goods are released; the transit accompanying document (TAD) with the MRN barcode is printed.
- The office of transit at the border records the passage in the system.
- The office of destination registers the arrival of the goods and reports the unloading results.
- The office of departure discharges the operation and the guarantee is released.
What did Phase 5 and Phase 6 change?
With Phase 5, a layered declaration structure of consignment–house consignment–item, compatible with the EU data model, was introduced, and the 6-digit GTİP (Turkish HS/tariff code) became mandatory for all parties. The Ministry had announced 1 June 2026 as the estimated transition date for Phase 6; the current timetable and web service status should be followed on the Ministry's NCTS Phase 5 page. Login screens and user types are explained step by step in the entry on logging in to the NCTS BİLGE portal.
How does Voltim Global help?
Within transit customs clearance, Voltim Global plans T1 declarations for the EU direction and TIR operations for the Russia direction within the same operation. For electronic declaration and system integration needs, it offers a digital customs service.