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Company Formation in Turkey: Costs, Structures and Process in 2026
TRY 50,000 for a limited şirket with nothing payable up front, or TRY 250,000 for a joint stock company with a quarter blocked before registration. One hundred percent foreign ownership, no local partner, and three to seven days at the registry.
Is a Turkish company the right vehicle?
Turkey is a G20 economy of eighty-five million people sitting between Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia, with genuinely open foreign ownership rules. It is also a lira economy with real inflation exposure and one liability rule that catches foreign founders out.
Works well if
- You are trading with the region: customs union with the EU, and a domestic market of eighty-five million
- You want full control: one hundred percent foreign ownership, no local partner, no nationality requirement on directors
- You want low entry cost: TRY 50,000 of capital, none of it payable before registration
- You are already pursuing Turkish citizenship by investment and want the corporate side to match
- You need real substance: offices, staff and banking in a functioning domestic economy, not a brass plate
Does not work if
- You want a low-tax holding vehicle: twenty-five percent corporate tax is well above the UAE at nine
- You want residence from the company alone: it does not confer any, and managing the business needs a work permit
- You want to avoid currency exposure: accounts are kept in lira, with the inflation consequences that follow
- You want shareholders insulated from tax debts: in an Ltd. Şti. they are not
- You want minimal admin: monthly VAT and withholding filings, and a mandatory certified accountant
Limited şirket or anonim şirket
Two vehicles cover almost all foreign investment. The choice is not administrative: it determines capital, governance, share transfer mechanics and, critically, whether shareholders can be pursued for the company’s tax debts.
| Limited şirket (Ltd. Şti.) | Anonim şirket (A.Ş.) | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum capital | TRY 50,000 | TRY 250,000 |
| Paid before registration | Nothing. Full amount within 24 months | 25% in a blocked account |
| Shareholders | 1 to 50 | Unlimited |
| Liability for public debts | Shareholders personally liable where the company cannot pay | Limited to capital committed |
| Share transfers | Notarised, with statutory pre-emption rights | Simpler, and freely transferable |
| Capital gains on shares | No equivalent relief | Exemption available on shares held over two years |
| Public offering | Not available | Available, including Borsa Istanbul |
| Typical use | Trading, services, wholly owned subsidiaries | Outside investors, regulated sectors, exit planning |
The public-debt rule is the single most important line in this table and the one most guides omit. In a limited şirket, unpaid corporate tax, VAT and social security premiums that cannot be collected from the company can be pursued against shareholders personally, in proportion to their holding. An anonim şirket does not carry that exposure. If the business will run meaningful tax and payroll balances, the higher capital of an A.Ş. is often the cheaper decision.
Capital thresholds and the 2026 deadline
Law No. 7511 raised the minimums to their current levels. Companies incorporated before the change that still sit below the new thresholds must complete compliance, known as intibak, by 31 December 2026. If you are acquiring an existing Turkish company rather than forming one, check where it stands on this before you sign.
From decision to a trading company
The registry is fast. The paperwork abroad is not, and that is the part people underestimate.
Structure and liability review
Ltd. Şti. or A.Ş., decided against how much tax and payroll the business will carry rather than on headline capital. This is where the public-debt exposure is designed out or designed in.
Turkish tax numbers
Every foreign individual shareholder and director obtains a Turkish tax number. Filed with an apostilled, sworn-translated passport copy and usually issued the same day.
Documents, apostille and translation
Corporate documents from the home jurisdiction are apostilled, then sworn-translated and notarised in Turkey. This chain, not the registry, is what sets the timeline.
Articles of association and MERSIS
Bilingual articles are drafted and the trade name reserved through the MERSIS central registry system.
Capital deposit, where required
An A.Ş. deposits twenty-five percent of capital into a blocked account before registration. An Ltd. Şti. deposits nothing at this stage.
Trade registry registration
Filed with the local trade registry office. Registration typically completes within three to seven business days once documents are in order.
Tax office and social security
The company is registered with the tax office and with the social security institution, and a certified accountant is appointed. This is a statutory requirement, not optional.
Bank account and operations
A corporate account is opened and the company begins filing monthly VAT and withholding returns.
The single largest source of delay is the upstream document chain: apostille turnaround in your home country, sworn translation in Turkey, and the timing of tax numbers for foreign shareholders. Registry offices in different cities apply the same statutory checklist with slightly different document preferences, which is why local counsel shortens the process more than it appears to on paper.
What a Turkish company pays
| Item | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate income tax | 25% | Thirty percent for banks and financial institutions |
| Domestic minimum tax | 10% | Floor on liability, measured against pre-incentive corporate income |
| Value added tax | standard | Known locally as KDV, filed monthly. Reduced rates apply to some supplies |
| Withholding taxes | varies | On dividends, rent and certain services, filed monthly |
| Social security | employer and employee | Registered with the social security institution from the first employee |
The domestic minimum tax matters more than it looks. Incentives and allowances can reduce an effective rate substantially, but not below ten percent of pre-incentive income. Any model built on incentives alone should be tested against that floor before you rely on it.
Ongoing obligations
Residence and work permits
Owning shares in a Turkish company gives you no right to live in Turkey. If you intend to manage the business on the ground you generally need a work permit, which functions as a residence permit and carries its own conditions on capital and local staffing. If you hold shares without working, you may need nothing at all.
Residence and citizenship run on entirely separate tracks. If a Turkish passport is the objective, that is the citizenship by investment route, which is property-based and unrelated to forming a company.
How Sovera forms Turkish companies
We handle structure selection, the tax number applications, the apostille and translation chain, MERSIS filing, registry submission and the tax and social security registrations, working with Turkish counsel on the in-country steps. In most cases the founder never needs to travel, though a Turkish power of attorney is required.
Our first question is whether the business will carry material tax and payroll balances, because that determines whether the extra capital of an anonim şirket is worth paying for. Most providers default to the limited şirket because it is cheaper to sell. That is not always the cheaper answer for the client.
Sovera Global L.L.C-FZ is a licensed corporate services provider registered in the Meydan Free Zone, Dubai, and supervised by the UAE Ministry of Economy under Commercial Licence 2531729. We are not admitted to practise law in Turkey and work with Turkish counsel on matters requiring it. Registration decisions rest with the Turkish trade registry and the relevant authorities. Rates and thresholds change, sometimes at short notice. Nothing on this page is legal or tax advice.
Company formation in Turkey: frequently asked questions
How much capital do I need to form a company in Turkey?
A limited şirket requires TRY 50,000 and an anonim şirket TRY 250,000. The difference that matters is timing: an Ltd. Şti. requires nothing to be deposited before registration, with the full amount payable within twenty-four months, while an A.Ş. requires twenty-five percent in a blocked account before the company can be registered.
Can a foreigner own one hundred percent of a Turkish company?
Yes. Foreign investors are treated identically to Turkish nationals under Foreign Direct Investment Law No. 4875. There is no requirement for a local partner, and a single foreign shareholder can hold the entire company. There is also no nationality or residency requirement for directors.
How long does it take?
Three to seven business days at the trade registry once documents are in order. The realistic timeline is longer, because apostille turnaround in your home country and sworn translation in Turkey usually take more time than the registration itself.
Can I form the company remotely?
In most cases yes, through a Turkish power of attorney. Some steps still require an agent physically in Turkey, and the power of attorney itself must be executed and apostilled abroad.
What is the corporate tax rate in Turkey?
Twenty-five percent, and thirty percent for banks and financial institutions. A domestic minimum tax also applies, ensuring liability does not fall below ten percent of pre-incentive corporate income even where allowances would otherwise reduce it further.
Which is better, limited şirket or anonim şirket?
It depends on liability rather than cost. In a limited şirket, shareholders can be pursued personally for unpaid public debts such as tax and social security where the company cannot pay. An anonim şirket does not carry that exposure and also allows a capital gains exemption on shares held over two years. If the business will run meaningful tax and payroll balances, the A.Ş. is often cheaper despite the higher capital.
Does owning a Turkish company give me residence?
No. Shareholding confers no right to live in Turkey. If you intend to manage the business you generally need a work permit, which also serves as a residence permit and has its own conditions on capital and local staffing.
Do I need a Turkish tax number before registering?
Yes. Every foreign individual shareholder and every foreign individual director must obtain a Turkish tax number first. It is applied for at the tax office with an apostilled, sworn-translated passport copy and is usually issued the same day.
Do I have to appoint an accountant?
Yes. Engaging a certified public accountant, an SMMM or YMM, is a statutory requirement for Turkish companies rather than an optional service. VAT and withholding returns are filed monthly.
What is the 31 December 2026 deadline?
Law No. 7511 raised the minimum capital thresholds to TRY 50,000 and TRY 250,000. Companies incorporated before the change that remain below the new levels must complete compliance, known as intibak, by that date. It matters mainly if you are buying an existing Turkish company rather than forming a new one.
Is Turkey a good holding jurisdiction?
Generally not, if tax efficiency is the objective. Twenty-five percent corporate tax is well above the UAE at nine percent, accounts are kept in lira, and administration is heavier. Turkey earns its place as an operating jurisdiction with real market access, not as a holding vehicle.
Can I combine a Turkish company with Turkish citizenship?
They are separate routes. Citizenship by investment is property-based and requires USD 400,000 in real estate; forming a company does not lead to it. Many clients do both, but the company does not advance the citizenship application.
What does formation actually cost beyond the capital?
Notary and sworn translation fees, apostille costs in your home country, trade registry and chamber of commerce fees, accountant engagement, and professional fees. We set these out in writing before any engagement rather than publishing a headline figure that does not survive contact with a real file.
Turkey is one of 59 jurisdictions we cover. See company formation for the full list, or compare with Dubai, Cyprus and Georgia. Pursuing a Turkish passport as well? See Turkish citizenship by investment, which requires $400,000 in property and is unrelated to company formation. For residence elsewhere, see the golden visa overview. Operational support: business banking, nominee services and compliance and accounting.
Choose the structure before you file
A thirty-minute call covers whether a limited şirket or a joint stock company fits your risk profile, what the full formation cost is, and whether Turkey is the right jurisdiction at all.