In recent years, many countries have either abolished inheritance and estate taxes or exempted spouses from these taxes. However, Turkey still levies inheritance tax on foreign spouses and heirs despite an increase in marriages with foreigners. This study examines thirty-two cases of inheritance in Turkey and compares Turkish inheritance tax policies with another eleven European policies using data from OECD statistics and the 2018 Worldwide Estate and Inheritance Tax Guide. It also examines Turkish laws and court cases and identifies several legal issues that foreign widows encounter when inheriting assets from Turkish spouses. Finally, it discusses the potential implications for Turkey’s current tax policies. The results demonstrate that Turkish inheritance tax law is problematic for foreign spouses. Turkey’s lack of tax agreements with other countries increases the problems associated with double taxation. The results also identified the lack of provisions for same-sex spouses and couples as well as couples who live together but are not married, and Turkey trails behind many other European countries in this regard. In conclusion, Turkey should, like many other countries, abolish the spousal inheritance tax, or it should conclude agreements with other countries to avoid double taxation of foreign widows and heirs living in Turkey. Tax law, estate tax, inheritance tax, Turkish spouse, foreign widows, tax policy, tax exemption, double taxation, marriage with foreigners, same-sex spouses

PurposeThis study examines the effect of taxes, similar financial liabilities, and demographic variables such as respondent age, company age, and field of operation on the table wine market in Turkey.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey was conducted on the wine producers and importers via SurveyMonkey. Thirty-six survey questions were answered using a five-point Likert scale. The responses obtained from 51 owners and administrators of wine companies were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 23 program.FindingsExcise and value-added taxes affected the amount and price of table wine production in Turkey, whereas the banderole affected quality and price. The excise tax, value-added tax, banderole, Resource Utilization Support Fund, customs duty, and authorizations also affected the amount, quality and price of table wine imports. Although financial liabilities such as the banderole, Resource Utilization Support Fund and authorizations required for import do not constitute a heavy load on wine costs, they do have similar effects as other taxes on table wine imports.Research limitations/implicationsA limitation of this study was its sample size. Only 51 individuals responded, as it was an online questionnaire. However, this did not compromise the representativeness of the sample with regard to the company's field of operation (production and import of table wine), lending credibility to the opinions provided.Originality/valueThis study establishes that, contrary to popular belief, decisions regarding wine production and import are not solely affected by a heavy tax burden. Other factors, such as the banderole, Resource Utilization Support Fund, ages of companies and respondents and authorizations required for import, which are not viewed as a heavy burden in monetary terms, also prove to be decisive.