Apply for the 20-year foreign-income exemption.

What the law provides

Income Tax Law No. 193, repeated Article 20/D, introduced by Law No. 7582, provides a 20-year Turkish income-tax exemption for qualifying foreign-source income and gains of eligible individuals who become settled in Türkiye on or after 1 January 2026. Communiqué No. 333, published on 4 July 2026, explains the procedure. This is an individual exemption; corporate taxpayers cannot claim it.

Citizenship is not the central test. Foreign nationals, returning Turkish citizens and Mavi Kart holders should assess the same settlement and prior-history requirements. A residence card alone is not a tax decision. Under the general domestic residence rules, Turkish domicile and continuous presence exceeding six months in a calendar year are relevant; exceptions and treaties need separate assessment. Do not reduce the test to a universal “183 days” rule.

Check the three previous calendar years

The starting condition is no Turkish domicile and no Turkish tax liability in the three calendar years preceding settlement. However, prior liability from Turkish rental income, investment income or capital gains does not by itself block relief. This carve-out does not waive the separate domicile test.

The communiqué gives examples where prior Turkish salary income, including salary taxed by withholding, or prior Turkish commercial income prevents eligibility. Having no self-filed annual return is therefore not proof that you had no disqualifying liability.

For settlement in 2026, examine all of 2023, 2024 and 2025. For settlement in 2027, examine 2024, 2025 and 2026. Ask an adviser to review actual facts and historic registrations, including any unregistered activity. Later findings of disqualifying circumstances can lead to cancellation, tax, interest and penalties.

Apply for the İstisna Belgesi

1. Establish and document that you are settled in Türkiye at the application date. Confirm the competent tax office for your residence.
2. Prepare a written application identifying you, your settlement date and your request under repeated Article 20/D and Communiqué 333. Ask the office for the current submission channel and evidence requirements.
3. Provide the historic residence/tax evidence requested. Our preparation checklist is not an official exhaustive attachment list. Disclose prior Turkish income and explain any statutory carve-out rather than omitting it.
4. Apply by the end of the calendar year in which you become settled. If settlement occurs in November or December, the communiqué allows application by the end of February of the following year. Confirm how holidays and your exact dates are handled.
5. Keep dated proof of submission, reference number and all supporting documents. Follow up on requests for further information. The tax office checks the conditions and issues the exemption certificate.
6. Keep the issued certificate and written advice about its effective period. Annex 1 is the certificate model, not an automatic approval or substitute for the application. Seek written clarification for departure/re-entry or uncertain period calculations.

What remains taxable or reportable

Only qualifying foreign-source income is covered. Turkish-source rent, earnings and other domestic income remain under the ordinary rules. The communiqué’s example of engineering consultancy provided in Türkiye for overseas clients’ Turkish investments is outside the exemption. Analyse your own services and where they are performed; foreign billing alone is insufficient.

Covered income does not require an annual Turkish income-tax return solely for that income and is omitted from an annual return filed for other income. Costs attributable to exempt income cannot reduce taxable income. Foreign tax on exempt income cannot be credited against Turkish income tax.

The exemption does not remove company tax, VAT, payroll, social-security, banking due-diligence, foreign-country tax or unrelated information obligations. Maintain records showing why each receipt was treated as covered. Do not claim the scheme offers anonymous banking or “no paperwork”.

After the certificate

Review new income, business activity and residence changes before relying on the original analysis. Starting a Turkish business after settlement is not, by itself, a retrospective disqualification in the communiqué’s example; the business’s Turkish income still needs ordinary tax treatment.

Do not assume a new 20-year period starts each time you leave and return. Record the tax office’s stated period and obtain advice before moving again. The communiqué explains that someone who ceases to be Turkish resident returns to the general non-resident framework; that is a separate analysis from continuing the exemption while resident.

Your document checklist

This is a preparation list. The receiving authority or bank may require additional or different documents.

• Identity and current residence/address evidence
• Settlement-date chronology
• Prior three-calendar-year residence and tax evidence
• Details of prior Turkish income and registrations
• Application copy and dated submission receipt
• Issued exemption certificate and income-classification memorandum

Ask your adviser

• Do any prior liabilities disqualify me, or fall within a carve-out?
• What is my exact application deadline and effective period?
• Which of my income streams remain outside this exemption?