Inheritance Law and Inheritance Tax in Turkey

Many real estate investors do not have a complete idea of Turkey’s inheritance law and this information should be known before deciding to own a property in a foreign country.

Therefore, below we will review the important information to serve as a comprehensive guide for all real estate investors wishing to own property in Turkey. The Principle of Turkish inheritance laws:

The principle of Turkish inheritance laws can be summarized by the law of the site. This means that the location of the property is what determines the mechanism used in the legal dealing with the property, the property located in Turkish territory will be applied by Turkish law.

Another important principle is that movable property applies to inheritance laws of the country of the deceased owner’s nationality, while Turkish law is followed in respect of immovable property and property.

The direct heirs of the property in Turkey:

In the absence of an officially certified will, the legal heirs of immovable property in Turkey are determined in the following sequential order:

The first heirs of the deceased person are the children and the husband or wife who receive a fixed quota.

If the deceased person does not have children, his or her parents are considered his heirs (father and mother).

If the deceased’s parents are not alive, his brothers come directly into the succession sequence.

The last heirs of the deceased person in the sequential order in the Turkish inheritance law are the grandchildren and their children.

If the deceased person has no surviving relatives, his entire property goes to the husband or wife, and in the absence of any heirs at all, all his property goes to the Turkish government.

Inheritance Tax:

Any immovable property of the deceased person is subject to inheritance tax in accordance with legal regulations in Turkey.

The value of inheritance tax in Turkey is relatively low compared to other countries in the European Union, and varies according to the value of the investor’s property, i.e. the lower the price of the property is taxed by a lower percentage.

The inheritance tax rate varies from 1% to 30% depending on the residence status of the heir and the geographical location of the property.

The following table shows the rates of inheritance tax based on the value of the property in euros:

1% for properties with a value of € 53,333 or less

3% for property with value € 170,000

5% for properties with value € 426,667

7% for properties with value € 926,667

10% for properties with value € 926,667

Time of payment of inheritance tax:

The income tax payable under Turkish law is payable over a maximum period of 3 years and is paid in May and November of each year.

Writing wills in Turkey:

In Turkey, anyone can write a will explaining to anyone who wants to leave his property after his death, as is the case in many countries around the world. The Turkish Civil Code clearly and in detail details how the will is dealt with:

For foreigners, the will must be prepared as required by Turkish law in order to write a legally recognized will. There are certain conditions stipulated in Turkish law. If someone decides to write a will, the conditions are that a person is over the age of fifteen and has full mental power.

There are three forms of will writing, either official, authenticated by the writer justly and signed in front of two witnesses, or handwritten or verbally. The commandment shall also be written in the author’s hand and the date shall be mentioned in detail in the day, month and year and shall be appended to his signature. The person concerned must give the will either to the court or to the Notary.