Which Provisions of the Turkish Civil Code Apply to Foreigners?
In short: what the Civil Code gives a foreigner and what it does not
✅ Allowed
- Have rights and bear obligations on an equal footing with others: everyone has legal capacity (Law No. 4721, Article 8).
- Buy property and become the owner after registration in the land register (Article 705); the deal is made in the official form (Article 706).
- Look at the land register entry for a property: the register is open to anyone with an interest (Article 1020).
- Take a loan secured by property in a foreign currency from a credit institution (Article 851).
- Count on protection if you relied in good faith on an entry in the land register (Article 1023).
⛔ Not allowed
- Treat a notarised contract of sale as a transfer of ownership: registration is required.
- Claim that you did not know about an entry in the land register (Article 1020).
- Think that the Civil Code cancels the restrictions for foreigners: the list of countries and the limits are set by Law No. 2644.
- Expect Turkish law to apply to a foreigner’s capacity and marriage: under Law No. 5718 they are governed by their national law (Articles 9 and 13).
- Assume that the inheritance of a Turkish flat is governed by the law of your country: Turkish law applies to property in Turkey (Law No. 5718, Article 20).
This is a short summary of the text of the law. Details, quotations of articles and links to the official texts are below. The visa-free stay depends on your citizenship, and amounts and lists of countries are set by secondary acts, so check them on the date of your decision.
There is no separate “code for foreigners” in Turkey, so the Turkish Civil Code and foreigners are connected through general rules: the code applies to everyone in the country, and the special features of foreigners are determined by the law on private international law. Below are the provisions of the Civil Code (Law No. 4721) and of Law No. 5718 that most often affect foreign buyers and residents: legal capacity, domicile, property deals, the land register, mortgages, inheritance and disputes.
The material is for information and does not replace advice from a lawyer. The articles are quoted from the texts on the official portal.
Where the laws are published
The Civil Code was adopted on 22 November 2001 and published in the Official Gazette on 8 December 2001 under No. 24607. Text: mevzuat.gov.tr, Law No. 4721; the Gazette issue: resmigazete.gov.tr. Law No. 5718 on Private International Law and Procedural Law was adopted on 27 November 2007 and published on 12 December 2007 under No. 26728: mevzuat.gov.tr, Law No. 5718.
Equal legal capacity: Article 8
Article 8 of the Civil Code provides that every person has legal capacity, that is, the ability to have rights and bear obligations, and that all people are equal in this within the legal order. The article contains no separate exception for foreigners. In practice, though, the rights of foreigners are limited by special laws, for example Article 35 of Law No. 2644 for the purchase of property. This explains why the general principle of equality does not cancel the list of countries and the area limits.
“Her insanın hak ehliyeti vardır” (Article 8). Every person has legal capacity.
A foreigner’s capacity to act is determined not by the Civil Code but by their national law: Article 9 of Law No. 5718 says that legal capacity and capacity to act are governed by the person’s national law. If a person lacks capacity under the laws of their country, a Turkish notary or the land registry will take that into account.
Domicile: Articles 19 and 20
Article 19 defines domicile as the place where a person lives with the intention of staying permanently, and allows only one such place. Article 20 clarifies that when the country of residence changes, the new place has to be “acquired”. Other laws use this definition. For example, the tax law refers to it when deciding whether a person is “settled” in Turkey, and Law No. 5718 uses domicile for inheritance disputes (Article 43). Moving to Turkey on a residence permit does not automatically make you a “resident” under the Civil Code: what matters is where your centre of life actually is.
Real property: Articles 705 and 706
Article 705: the right of ownership of immovable property arises on registration. In exceptional cases (inheritance, a court decision, enforcement, occupation, expropriation) ownership arises before registration, but it can be disposed of only after entry in the land register. Article 706: a contract aimed at transferring a right to immovable property is valid only if drawn up in the official form. This explains why a foreigner signs the deal at the land registry and not merely at a notary.
“Taşınmaz mülkiyetinin kazanılması, tescille olur” (Article 705). Ownership of immovable property is acquired by registration.
The land register: Articles 1020, 1023 and 1024
Under Article 1020 the land register is open to everyone: anyone who has convincingly shown an interest may demand to be shown a page of the register and the documents or to be issued copies, and one cannot rely on ignorance of an entry. This means that before buying you are entitled to see what is recorded for the property: the owner, mortgage, restrictions. Article 1023 protects a third party who relied in good faith on an entry and acquired a right. Article 1024 says that an incorrect entry does not protect someone who knew or should have known of the error, and a person whose right is infringed may demand correction. For the buyer a simple rule follows: check the entry before paying.
A mortgage in foreign currency: Article 851
Article 851 allows property to be pledged in a foreign currency to secure loans issued by credit institutions in Turkey or abroad. Each level of the mortgage is stated in the currency in which the amount of the claim is set, and the same rank cannot be secured in several currencies. The list of currencies in which a mortgage may be set is determined by the President. This matters if you are buying property with a loan or taking a loan against property.
Associations of foreigners: Articles 92 and 93
Foreign non-governmental organisations may work in Turkey with the permission of the Ministry of the Interior, after obtaining the opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Article 92). Foreign natural persons who have the right to reside in Turkey may form associations or join existing ones (Article 93).
Law No. 5718: inheritance, property, contracts and disputes
- Inheritance (Article 20). Inheritance is governed by the national law of the deceased, but Turkish law applies to immovable property located in Turkey.
- Rights in rem (Article 21). Ownership and other rights in rem in property are governed by the law of the country where it is located, and the form of deals in immovable property by the law of the country where it is located.
- Contracts on immovable property (Article 25). Contracts on immovable property and its use are governed by the law of the country where the property is located.
- Inheritance disputes (Article 43). Cases are heard by the court of the last domicile of the deceased in Turkey, and if there was none in Turkey, by the court where the property is located.
- A foreign claimant (Article 48). Foreign natural and legal persons who bring a claim in a Turkish court must provide security for the legal costs and possible damage to the other party, unless the court exempts them on the basis of reciprocity.
How it works in practice
If you are buying a flat, Articles 705 and 706 of the code and Article 35 of Law No. 2644 apply, a contract on immovable property is governed by Turkish law under Article 25 of Law No. 5718, and you can check the entry under Article 1020. If you are thinking about inheritance, remember Article 20: a Turkish flat will be inherited under Turkish law, and the rest of the property under national law. For more on how the laws connect when buying, read the article “Which laws regulate the purchase of property by foreigners” and the analysis of Law No. 2644. You can look at flats in the property catalogue.
Conclusion
For a foreigner in Turkey the Civil Code provides general rules: equal legal capacity, the concept of domicile, registration as the basis of ownership, the openness of the land register and the protection of a good-faith acquirer. Special restrictions and inheritance questions are decided by other acts, above all Law No. 2644 and Law No. 5718. The other questions of this section are on the page “Laws of Turkey”.
The material does not replace advice from a lawyer. The information was checked against the texts of Laws No. 4721 and No. 5718 as of 21 October 2026.
Photo: Dosseman (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons; photos of the complexes are used with the site owner’s consent.
