To collect inherited bank funds, heir status, the state of the account on the date of death, joint entitlement and tax conditions must be completed. For a foreign heir or an heir living abroad, identity, foreign-document and representation checks are added to these. Obtaining a certificate of inheritance (veraset ilamı) does not mean that every heir can withdraw their own share from the bank alone. [1] [2]
First the account and the balance on the date of death are located
Through a suitable inquiry service, an heir can find out the bank where the account is held; the heir then submits a notice of death and an information request to the bank. The existence of an inquiry result does not establish the balance or a right to payment. From the bank, the account number, currency, balance on the date of death, maturity, block, joint account and loan relationship are requested. [3]
Not every amount deposited into the account after death is necessarily part of the estate. A survivors’ pension (ölüm aylığı), an erroneous salary payment, rent, interest or a transfer by a third party are assessed differently. In particular, social security payments whose return may be demanded should not be withdrawn without investigation. In a foreign currency account, the amount, the valuation rate and the rate on the payment date are recorded separately.
Documents the bank may request
| Document | Function |
|---|---|
| Death record | Verification of the account holder’s death |
| Usable certificate of inheritance | Identification of the heirs and their shares |
| Identity document, passport and tax information | Identification of the entitled person and of the customer |
| Tax letter or applicable withholding procedure | Tax security |
| Power of attorney or decision on representation | The applicant’s authority |
| Joint instruction or valid document of division | To whom the payment is to be made |
| Account details of the entitled person | Secure and traceable payment |
The apostille and translation of a foreign document are checked separately. The bank’s requirements as to which document it wants and in what form should be obtained in writing. A branch saying “suitable” in a preliminary review does not by itself create an obligation to pay if a dispute among the heirs later arises.
Must all the heirs act together?
Where there are several heirs, a community of heirs (miras ortaklığı) exists over the estate until division. Requesting information or protective measures is different from collecting an estate receivable into a personal account. The bank may request a joint instruction, proper representation of all entitled persons, or a document showing the division. Where there is a single heir, the problem of acting together does not arise; the other document requirements continue. [1]
If one of the heirs does not take part in the transaction, no one can sign on that heir’s behalf. Depending on the nature of the dispute, the appointment of an estate representative, division or another judicial route is considered. Filing an action for damages directly against the bank for every missing signature is not appropriate; first, a basis on which the bank can lawfully make payment must be established.
How does an heir abroad receive payment?
A power of attorney suitable for the inheritance and banking transactions is prepared; the authority to collect, to carry out foreign currency transactions and to transfer abroad is checked as needed. The bank may also separately request identity, tax residence and recipient account details. If the money is first to be paid to the heir’s account in Türkiye and then sent on, the two stages are documented separately.
If direct payment to a foreign account is possible, the conditions of the bank and of the receiving institution are confirmed. The IBAN, SWIFT/BIC, recipient’s name and choice of charges are put in writing. For the source of the transfer, the certificate of inheritance, tax documents, the account letter as of the date of death and the bank receipt (dekont) for the payment are kept together. Distributing all the heirs’ money from the account of a single person is not a mandatory procedure.
An information request and a payment request must be prepared differently
An heir’s request to the bank for account information does not produce the same legal consequence as a request that the money be transferred to the heir’s own account. In an information application, together with the certificate of heir status and the document of representation, the bank is asked to disclose, as of the date of death, all account types, time deposits, foreign currency, investment links and loan relationships. In a payment application, on the other hand, entitlement, the community of heirs, the joint instruction or valid division, and the tax procedures are assessed separately. If this distinction is not made, the bank may be thought to be “not providing information” even though it is rightfully requesting additional documents for payment. [1] [2]
If the application is limited to a single account number, it should not be assumed that the bank will examine its other products within the same scope on its own. The period of the request is stated for transfers between accounts, closed accounts and unusual transactions shortly before death. Specifying the time range and types of transactions connected with the dispute, instead of very broad and vague record requests, makes it easier to check the reply.
Why does the balance on the date of death differ from the balance to be paid?
The balance on the date of death serves to show the value of the estate at a particular moment. On the actual payment date, however, a different amount may exist because of interest or profit share, maturity, expenses, tax withholding, currency conversion and withdrawals that are lawful or disputed. Asking the bank only for a single total figure conceals the reason for this change. A statement of movements between the opening balance and the closing balance should be obtained.
Breaking a time deposit early may cause a loss of income. A problem of joint administration may arise between one heir’s wish for immediate payment and the other heirs’ request to wait for maturity. The bank’s product terms, the heirs’ authority to act together and the economic result are assessed together. Death does not mean that every product will be converted into cash on the same day at the same value. In the instruction to be given to the bank, the preservation of maturity, the currency and the payment date should be clear. [1] [5]
How is the bank’s offsetting or pledge defense examined?
The bank may assert the decedent’s loan debt, a pledge over the account, or a contractual right of set-off and offsetting (takas-mahsup). This defense is neither automatically invalid nor accepted without limit on the mere statement that “the bank has a claim.” To whom the debt belongs, whether it has fallen due, the scope of the security, the contractual provision, and which item the bank offset on which date must be examined. A third party’s claim in a joint account that the funds belong to them may also affect this assessment. [5]
If there is credit-linked life insurance, the bank’s claim and the insurance claim are tracked together. Offsetting the entire balance against the debt before an insurance application is made may change the economic result of the file. At the same time, disregarding the existing loan debt on the assumption that the insurance will certainly pay is also incorrect. The policy coverage, the rights holder and the result of the payment must be documented separately.
Tax withholding and the final tax calculation are distinct
The mechanism in Article 17 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law (VİVK) is aimed at banks and other responsible parties checking the tax relationship. The five percent withholding that can be applied under statutory conditions in a transfer by succession is not a fixed final tax rate for the heir’s entire inheritance. The actual tax is calculated on the basis of the heir’s status, the exemption, the tax base and the rate schedule. If there is a withholding, one should track in whose name and on which file it was paid to the tax administration, how it was reflected in the accrual, and the offsetting procedure. [2]
It is checked which decedent, heir, bank and amount the letter obtained from the tax office covers. It should not be assumed that a letter obtained for another asset applies without limit to all bank accounts. For an account found later, an additional declaration or a clearance procedure (ilişik işlemi) may be required. The bank’s request for documents and the legal arising of a tax debt are not the same event; the records of the two institutions should match.
The right party and the right claim in a payment dispute
Is it an estate receivable or the heir’s personal receivable?
In the decision of the 11th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay 11. Hukuk Dairesi) dated December 20, 2013, E. 2013/9709, K. 2013/23385, concerning a receivable based on an allegation of unauthorized withdrawal before death, what stands out is that claiming a right belonging to the estate only in proportion to the inheritance share gives rise to a procedural problem. This decision does not mean that the same arrangement of parties applies in all bank cases; first it is determined whether the claim rests on the estate or on the heir’s personal right. [4]
For a right belonging to the community of heirs, the need for the participation or approval of the other heirs, or for the appointment of a representative, is investigated. A claim directed at the bank on the basis of the bank contract and a claim for return or accounting directed at the heir who withdrew the money are separate legal relationships. Suing the wrong person may delay the examination of the real merits. Before applying, the account contract, the transaction records, the person who made the withdrawal and the date on which the bank became aware of the death should be determined. [1]
How are the court and the preliminary application chosen?
Subject-matter jurisdiction is not determined merely by the dispute bearing the heading “inheritance.” The character of the banking transaction as a consumer transaction or a commercial transaction, the parties and the claim are investigated. If rules such as the threshold of the consumer arbitration committee (tüketici hakem heyeti) or mediation as a condition precedent to litigation can apply, the arrangement in force in the year of application is taken as the basis. An internal bank complaint or an application for administrative supervision does not have the same effect in every case with regard to applying to a court or to the statute of limitations. [6]
Practical payment and account check
Hypothetically, suppose that in a file suitable for division in which three heirs are equally entitled, the bank reports the balance on the date of death as 900,000 Turkish lira (TL). The appearance of 930,000 TL on the payment date does not necessarily mean that 310,000 TL will be paid per person. The nature of the increase, any valid expense, the tax withholding and the condition for distribution are examined separately. If the account contains a third party’s money or a valid pledge, the basis of the example changes. First the net distributable balance, and then the amount of each entitled person, is determined.
At closing, the bank is asked which accounts were closed, which amount was paid in which currency and to whom, the type of deductions, and whether any block or time-deposit product remains. For a transfer abroad, the remittance receipt is compared with the net amount actually received in the recipient account. A statement that “the bank transaction is complete” does not show economic closure without this account reconciliation.
The applicable law and the document chain for a foreign heir
A foreign national’s becoming an heir to bank funds in Türkiye and the decedent’s being a foreign national are different issues. Article 20 of the Law on Private International and Procedural Law (MÖHUK) as a rule subjects the inheritance to the national law of the deceased; for immovable property in Türkiye, it provides for Turkish law. In the second paragraph of the same article, the connection relating to the opening, acquisition and division of the inheritance is separately regulated. For this reason, the existence of an account in a Turkish bank does not mean that the heirs and their shares will in every case be determined directly under Turkish inheritance law. Law on Private International and Procedural Law, Art. 20
The translation and apostille of a foreign certificate of heir status do not by themselves resolve what legal effect the document will have in Türkiye. The certificate of heir status that can be submitted to the bank, the population or family records, and the will are assessed together. If the surname differs between the Turkish document and the passport, a link should be established through marriage, a name change or a citizenship document. The bank’s identity verification and proof of the inheritance share do not substitute for one another.
In a power of attorney issued abroad, the authority to request information and the authority to collect are separated as needed. The authority to close the account, to convert foreign currency, to transfer, to divide and to settle is checked separately. Payment into the attorney-in-fact’s own account is not mandatory; it may be stated in the instruction that payment is to be made to the account of the entitled person and that the transaction receipts are to be given directly to that person. This method makes it easier to monitor expenses and exchange-rate differences.
When is the inheritance and transfer tax return filed?
The period for the tax return is not four months for every heir. Article 9 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law provides for different periods depending on the place of death and the place where the taxpayer is located. The table below shows the basic distinction for transfer by death; the period starts on the date of death. Special situations such as declaration of absence (gaiplik) are examined separately. Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law, Art. 9
| Place of death | Place where the taxpayer is located | Filing period |
|---|---|---|
| Türkiye | Türkiye | Four months |
| Türkiye | Foreign country | Six months |
| Foreign country | Türkiye | Six months |
| Foreign country | The country where the death occurred | Four months |
| Foreign country | Another foreign country | Eight months |
For example, in a death occurring in Türkiye, the period of an heir located in Germany and that of the heir’s sibling located in Türkiye may not be the same. This table does not show the period for disclaiming the inheritance. The tax filing period, the disclaimer period, the bank’s document review period and the foreign country’s notification obligation are tracked on separate calendars.
Applying the five percent tax withholding does not remove all private-law obstacles relating to the bank funds. If the other heirs’ necessary participation is absent or the account is under attachment, completing the tax procedure does not by itself bring about payment. Conversely, the presence of the signatures of all the heirs does not make tax security unnecessary. Because exemption and rate-schedule amounts can change annually, the payment file should be calculated on the basis of the documents of the year of death and the relevant taxation rules.
If one of the heirs does not come to the bank: the route under Article 644 of the Turkish Civil Code (TMK)
In a file with several heirs, the bank may be unable to make a personal payment on the strength of a document showing only the inheritance share, because the community of heirs continues. Article 644 of the Turkish Civil Code regulates the procedure for converting joint ownership into co-ownership in shares; its last paragraph applies these provisions also to the division, in proportion to the shares, of the other rights and receivables included in the estate. The judge of the court of peace (sulh hâkimi) summons the other heirs; situations such as an objection justifying the continuation of the joint ownership, or a partition action filed in time, are assessed. Turkish Civil Code, Arts. 640 and 644
This route is not the same as giving the bank an instruction such as “my share is clear, deposit it immediately.” Whether the account truly belongs to the estate, pledges, debts and third-party claims are also significant. The appointment of an estate representative, on the other hand, concerns the administration of the community and the pursuit of the rights; it is not in every case regarded as a division. The route should be chosen by explaining whether the purpose of the application is collection and protection or separation into a personal share.
The right to disclaim, closing the account and using the money
Requesting documents from the bank in order to learn about the assets is not the same conduct as using the money in the account for personal needs. With regard to Article 610 of the Civil Code, interfering in transactions that exceed the ordinary management of the estate, or that are not necessary for conducting the decedent’s affairs, may lead to loss of the right to disclaim. Concealing or appropriating an item of the estate is also significant separately. It is not correct to equate the obtaining of information for protective purposes with these dispositions. Turkish Civil Code, Art. 610
In a file in which debt may outweigh the assets, it should not be assumed that it will always be possible to withdraw money and then disclaim the inheritance. At the first stage, the bank is asked to disclose the balance, the loan debt, the collateral and the insurance. Before any collection is made, the conditions for acceptance or disclaimer and for representation are assessed. This order is especially important for an heir abroad to whom news of the death arrived late.
A sample file flow that concludes the bank transaction
Hypothetically, suppose that two heirs of a person who died in Türkiye live abroad. Suppose that the letter obtained from the bank shows a balance on the date of death of 1,200,000 TL and a loan debt. First the balance of the loan, its collateral and the life insurance are examined; the transaction is not started by directly dividing the 1,200,000 TL in two. The certificate of heir status, a usable power of attorney and the tax file are completed; the accounts covered by the joint instruction are written out clearly.
When the bank’s net payment calculation arrives, the amount on the date of death, the later income, the debt-related transaction, the tax withholding and the transfer expense are checked separately. If an offsetting is disputed, the amount objected to and its basis are entered on the record. The equivalent of the amount sent abroad that appears at the recipient bank may change because of the exchange rate and the intermediary bank’s charges. Each of these changes is explained by a bank receipt.
The file is closed not merely when the final receipt is obtained, but when it is determined which accounts remain open and which obligations continue. A payment in Türkiye does not on its own satisfy the tax or reporting obligation in the country where the heir lives. The obligation in the country of residence and, if any, the arrangements preventing double taxation are assessed separately; a single result applicable to all countries cannot be given.
Conclusion
The passing of bank funds to an heir requires completing the certificate of inheritance, joint entitlement, tax security and the chain of actual payment. If the cause of a deficiency is correctly identified, unnecessary lawsuits and repeated applications can be avoided.
Related articles: Estate procedures without coming to Türkiye, and power of attorney; A foreign heir’s certificate of inheritance; The effect in Türkiye of a foreign certificate of inheritance; Foreign documents, apostille and name discrepancies; Land registry, bank, vehicle and debt searches; Blocks, joint accounts and a single heir withdrawing money; Transfer of inherited money abroad; Inherited Gold, Jewelry and Bank Safe-Deposit Boxes
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I withdraw my own inheritance share alone?
Without examining the community of heirs and the state of division, one cannot say yes in general.
Does the five percent withholding settle the entire tax?
No. The withholding that serves as tax security under Article 17 is different from the final tax calculation.
Can payment be received into a foreign bank account?
It is considered if the banks’ transaction conditions and the required documents are met; direct payment is not the same at every institution.
Can a salary that was deposited after death be withdrawn?
Whether the payment is an earned receivable or an amount that must be returned should be determined first.
Sources and legal bases
- Law No. 4721, Turkish Civil Code (4721 sayılı Türk Medeni Kanunu)
- Law No. 7338 on Inheritance and Transfer Tax (7338 sayılı Veraset ve İntikal Vergisi Kanunu)
- e-Devlet / Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK), bank inquiry in the name of an heir
- 11th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay 11. Hukuk Dairesi), December 20, 2013, E. 2013/9709, K. 2013/23385
- Law No. 6098, Turkish Code of Obligations (6098 sayılı Türk Borçlar Kanunu)
- Law No. 6100, Code of Civil Procedure (6100 sayılı Hukuk Muhakemeleri Kanunu)
- Law No. 5718 on Private International and Procedural Law, Art. 20 (5718 sayılı Milletlerarası Özel Hukuk ve Usul Hukuku Hakkında Kanun, m.20)