Turkey

Starting a Business in

Turkey

Listed below is a detailed summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles an entrepreneur must overcome in order to incorporate and register a new firm, along with their associated time and set-up costs.  It examines the procedures, time and cost involved in launching a commercial or industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10 times the economy's per-capita gross national income (GNI).

The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.

  • Standardized Company

  • Legal Form: Limited Sirket (LS)
  • City: Istanbul

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Execute and notarize articles of association, signature declaration of the managers, copies of each manager’s identity card or passport and commercial books.

The following documents are required:
- Notarized articles of association (three, one original).
- Notarized signature declarations (two copies).
- Notarized identity cards of company managers (two copies).

The incorporation documents are exempt from the stamp tax. There are no fees to be paid for the articles of association and the signature declarations. However, there still are fees for notary services and for the valuable papers.
1 day Paper cost: YTL 108.00 Notary services: YTL 286.52 Total = YTL 394.52
2 Deposit a percentage of capital to the account of Competition Authority

To register with the Commercial Registry, founders must obtain the original receipt from Ziraat Bankası. This receipt shows that 0.04% of the company’s capital has been paid to the Competition Authority at the central bank or a public bank.
1 day 0.04% of capital
3 Deposit the initial capital in a bank and obtain the certificate of paid-in capital

If the whole capital of the Company is not paid in advance, the capital of the Company can also be paid in within three months following the registration. Kindly note that another option is; 25% of the capital can be paid in the first 3 months following the registration of the company, and the balance of the subscribed capital shall be paid within 3 years of incorporation.
1 day no charge
4 File the incorporation notice form, commitment letter, and Chamber registration statement at the Trade Registry Office

Founders must submit the incorporation notice form, the commitment letter, and the chamber registration statement the Trade Registry Office. However, the formation of a limited liability company does not require a court application. Thus, upon gathering the following documents, founders may begin the registration process:
- For each individual shareholder who is not a Turkish citizen, one copy of the shareholder’s passport notarized by a Turkish notary.
- For each individual shareholder who is a Turkish citizen or for a Turkish representative of such shareholder, two certified copies of the identity card.
- Three copies of an establishment notification form (kuruluş bildirim formu).
- Three copies of the notarized articles of association.
- Bank deposit receipt from the Competition Authority Account (0.04% of the company’s capital).
- An undertaking (taahhütname) signed by the authorized company representatives.
- For each person authorized to represent the founders of the limited liability company, two copies of the signature.
The Commercial Registry Office notifies the Tax Office and the District Employment Office about the company incorporation. The Registry arranges for an announcement in the Commercial Registration Gazette within about 10 days of company registration.

A tax identification plaque must be obtained from the local tax office after the Commercial Registry Office notifies the local tax office. The Registry Office also notifies the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, Directorate of the Social Security Institution of the incorporation. A social security number must be obtained from the relevant Social Security Administration office, and company employees must be registered with that administration.

The registration fee for a limited liability company has been increased to YTL 580:
- Publication or advertisement fee: YTL 0.25 per word.
- Startup notice: YTL 40.
- Trade Registry Gazette fee: YTL 1.50.
- Publication: YTL 90–460.
- Registration fee for manager’s signature
-- First manager's signature: YTL250.
-- Each additional manager’s signature: YTL 214.10



Fee schedule for annual membership in the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (based on capital):
- YTL 1 - 999 (capital): YTL 70
- YTL 1,000 - 24,999 (capital): YTL 100
- YTL 25,000 - 249,999 (capital): YTL 150
- YTL 250,000 - 999,999 (capital): YTL 200
- YTL 1,000,000 and up (capital): YTL 225
2 days TRY 150 (initial registration fee of Chamber of Commerce) + TRY 580 (commercial registration including first manager’s signature) + TRY 214.10 (for each additional manager) + TRY 0.25 per word for publication+ TRY 1.50 (Trade Registry Gazette fee)+ TRY 40 (fee for start-up announcement)
* 5 Have a notary certify the legal books

The founders must certify the legal books the day they register the company with the Commercial Registry. The notary public must notify the Tax Office about the commercial book certification.

Fee schedule for legal book certification:
- Certification up to 100 pages: YTL 45
-Certification up to 200 pages: YTL 56
1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) Journal (200 pages) TL 51, Ledger (100 pages) TL 38, Case book (100 pages) TL 42.50, Inventory book (100 pages) TL 42,50
6 Follow up with the tax office on Commercial Registry’s notification

The Commercial Registry Office notifies the Tax Office and the Social Security Administration of the company’s incorporation. In practice, to expedite the registration process, company representatives follow up on whether the notification has been received. A tax officer comes to the company headquarters to prepare a determination report. There must be at least one authorized signature in the determination report. Trade Registry Officers send company establishment form which includes tax number notification to Tax Office.
1 day no charge
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.
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