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A company in Turkey (Türkiye) is usually formed to operate there: to sell to Turkish customers, run a factory, office or shop, employ staff and hold the contracts that go with them. Foreign investors start from a level field: under the Foreign Direct Investment Law No. 4875 they are treated on equal terms with Turkish investors, save where a treaty or a special statute provides differently. Turkish tax reaches the worldwide income of any company whose legal seat is in Turkey, and as Turkey is outside the EU, cross-border relief comes from its own treaties.
The usual vehicle is the limited şirket (Ltd. Şti.). Registration happens at a trade registry directorate housed in the local chamber of commerce and industry, using the MERSİS system, and is then announced in the Trade Registry Gazette (Türkiye Ticaret Sicili Gazetesi).
| Type | Statutory minimum capital | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Limited şirket (Ltd. Şti.) | TRY 50,000 | An owner-managed business with up to 50 partners; the form most foreign founders choose and the usual form of a ready-made Turkish company |
| Anonim şirket (A.Ş.) | TRY 250,000 (TRY 500,000 as initial capital under the registered capital system) | A company with a board of directors and transferable shares, for outside investors, a listing or activities a special law reserves to it |
| Branch (şube) | None | A foreign company trading in Turkey without a Turkish subsidiary; not a separate legal person |
| Liaison office (irtibat bürosu) | None | Representation only, with permission and no commercial activity in Turkey |
The minimums were raised by Presidential Decision No. 7887 in November 2023. The choice between the two capital companies, the documents a foreign founder needs and the MERSİS procedure are on company formation in Turkey.
| Tax | Position in 2026 |
|---|---|
| Corporate tax | 25%; 30% for banks, leasing, factoring and financing companies, payment and e-money institutions, insurers and other listed financial businesses |
| Domestic minimum corporate tax | From the 2025 period, tax of at least 10% of profit before deductions and exemptions; a newly active company is exempt for three accounting periods |
| VAT (KDV) | 20% standard, with reduced rates of 10% and 1% on listed supplies; the law sets no registration threshold, so VAT is due from the first taxable sale |
| Dividends paid abroad | 15% withheld at source; only a treaty, of which Turkey has about 90, can reduce it |
A company with foreign partners is taxed exactly like one with Turkish partners. What foreign owners notice is the tax on what leaves Turkey: no EU-style regime removes withholding on dividends to a foreign parent, so relief depends on the treaty with the shareholder’s country.
Nothing in the Turkish Commercial Code No. 6102 requires partners or managers to be Turkish or to live in Turkey. Each foreign partner and manager needs a Turkish potential tax identification number, which can be requested online from the Revenue Administration. One rule shapes every Ltd. Şti.: it always needs at least one partner who both manages it and can represent it, so a sole foreign owner is also its manager. A company can be a partner or a manager through a natural person it designates.
Managing from outside Turkey requires no Turkish permit. Someone who will actually live and work there, as managing partner of a Ltd. Şti. or as a shareholder sitting on an A.Ş. board, can hold an independent work permit (Law No. 6735), which then serves in place of a residence permit.
Ownership is public in part. The partners of a Ltd. Şti. appear in the Trade Registry Gazette. Beneficial owners, meaning natural persons holding more than 25% of the shares or, failing that, the person in ultimate control, are reported in confidence to the Revenue Administration alongside the corporate tax returns (General Communiqué No. 529), and that declaration is not a public register.
Turkish banks are supervised by the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK), and deposits, including those of trading companies, are insured by the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) up to TRY 1,200,000 per person per credit institution for 2026. A Ltd. Şti. blocks no capital before registration, while an A.Ş. must first deposit 25% or more of its cash capital in a bank account in its own name. Foreign partners should expect a branch visit at some banks: one participation bank opens accounts for companies with foreign partners only at its branches, and one large bank’s digital route requires every partner to be a natural person. The account of a ready-made company stays with the company, but after a sale the bank re-checks the new partners and may keep it, ask for more or close it. More on bank accounts for Turkish companies.
Form a new company in most cases. Invest in Türkiye, the government investment office, states that registration at the directorate is completed within the same day, and a newly formed company also keeps all three of its exempt periods under the minimum corporate tax.
Buy a ready-made company when an earlier registration date that anyone can check in the Gazette matters, or when you want a company whose tax file, certified books and signature circular already exist. Expect a notarised transfer, approval by the partners’ general assembly, and joint liability with the seller for unpaid public debts of the period before the transfer. The purchase is explained on ready-made shelf companies in Turkey, and shelf companies in general in our guide to off-the-shelf companies.
We supply ready-made Turkish companies and form new ones, preparing the formation or transfer documents and the trade registry filings. We also help with the bank application and, if we have a working contact at a suitable bank, introduce the company to it, with the bank deciding.
It abbreviates limited şirketi, the Turkish limited liability company, which one to 50 partners, natural or legal persons, may form. Its counterpart, the joint stock company, is marked A.Ş., for anonim şirket. Limited liability has one notable exception in Turkey: partners of a Ltd. Şti. answer, in proportion to their shares, for public debts the company cannot pay.
For an owner-managed business, usually the Ltd. Şti., with its lower minimum capital and nothing to pay in before registration. An A.Ş. suits a company expecting outside investors or a listing, or an activity that a special law reserves to it. A foreign company that only wants a trading presence can register a branch, and one that will not trade at all can apply for a liaison office.
Yes. Since the 2025 tax period, corporate tax may not be less than 10% of corporate income calculated before deductions and exemptions. A company starting activity for the first time is spared for three accounting periods, counted by the Revenue Administration from the year of establishment, so an older company bought from a seller may already have used part of that window.
Yes. Dividends paid by a Turkish company to a non-resident company without a permanent establishment in Turkey, and to individuals, bear 15% withholding under the Corporate Tax Law. Only a double taxation treaty with the shareholder’s country can lower it, and Turkey has about 90 of them. Because Turkey is outside the EU, the Parent-Subsidiary Directive does not apply.
No. Neither the partners nor the managers have to live in Turkey, and the company can be run from abroad without a permit. What a Ltd. Şti. cannot do is leave management entirely to outsiders, because one partner must hold management authority. Only a branch of a foreign company must appoint a commercial representative with full authority who is domiciled in Turkey.
Comparing a Ltd. Şti. with an A.Ş., or a new company with a ready-made one? Tell us who will own and manage the company and what it will do, and we will say which type fits and which ready-made Turkish companies are available now. We also answer on Telegram and WhatsApp at +48 663 247 166.