Real Estate in Turkey FAQ About Ownership in Turkey

Q1: Do foreigners have the right to own a property in Turkey? When was that? How?
Yes, they do. The Turkish Parliament has issued a decree in September 2012, which gives the
foreigners the right of ownership in Turkey, without taking into consideration the principle of
reciprocity.
Q2: What are the procedures of ownership in Turkey?
First: choose the right property and prepare the following documents:
1. A copy of the land registry (title deed) or instrument.
2. A legal location description or a copy of the property location from the municipality
plan.
3. (PIN) the property identification number in the municipality plan (for lands).
Second: get a tax number from the tax department, and that is a very easy process.
Third: translate the passport into the Turkish language, authenticate the translation at the
notary, and get 4 personal photos.
Fourth: sign the purchase contract with the seller and pay a deposit, which prefer not to be
more than 25% of the purchase value conditioned by the approval of the security authorities.
The paid deposit is often 25% of the property value, while the remaining amount is paid after
finishing the transfer process of ownership to the buyer through the competent authorities and
after getting the buyer the approval of the region management and the security agencies.
Finally: apply for transfer land ownership request to the security authorities and please know
that the approval of the security takes a period of time that ranges from 1 to 45 days. We advise
not to pay the full amount before receiving the Title Deed, and never before that. Go with the
seller to the Land Registry Department (instrument) when the approval is issued, and it is better
to take an interpreter with you to make sure of the validity of the data, the property
identification number (PIN), and the area of the property.
The payable expenses by the customer and the seller are the buying and selling tax, which is
almost about 3% of the property value in addition to the tax of exchange for a bill of the
property value, which is 1% of the property value and this is paid by the buyer.
Q3: What is the tax number? How do I get it?
Tax number in Turkey (vergı numarsı) is a number of your own; you are sometimes asked for it
in legal and official transactions or when opening a bank account in Turkey. You can get this
number, regardless of the existence of the residence permit in Turkey, easily through the
following:
1. You must get a copy of your passport and provide your address in Turkey.
2. Go to the nearest tax directorate (vergı müdürlüğü) in your region and ask for a tax
number.