Being a foreign heir or an heir living abroad does not by itself remove the inheritance and transfer tax liability on an inheritance in Türkiye. The scope of the tax is determined by the location of the property, citizenship and the type of transfer. The filing period, the exemption, the valuation and the conditions for receiving payment from an institution must be assessed separately. [1]
Which property does the tax cover?
Article 1 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law (VİVK) governs the inheritance or gratuitous transfer of property located in Türkiye and of property belonging to Turkish citizens. Where property located outside Türkiye passes to a foreign person, the special scope exception in the law is examined separately. The question of which country’s law governs the inheritance and the question of Türkiye’s taxing authority are not the same issue.
In Türkiye, a house, a bank deposit, a vehicle and a company share may each be subject to separate valuation rules. Debts and deductible expenses are documented. A low amount that the heirs agree on among themselves is not a value that is automatically accepted for the tax base. [1]
Filing periods where there is a foreign connection
| Place of death | Place where the taxpayer is located | General filing period |
|---|---|---|
| Türkiye | Türkiye | 4 months following the death |
| Türkiye | Foreign country | 6 months following the death |
| Foreign country | Türkiye | 6 months following the death |
| Foreign country | The same country in which the death occurred | 4 months following the death |
| Foreign country | Another foreign country | 8 months following the death |
This table shows the general periods in Article 9 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law. The starting points and periods for declaration of absence (gaiplik) and for gratuitous transfers other than inheritance are different. There is no “six months for everyone living abroad” rule. Obtaining the certificate of inheritance later does not automatically start the tax period from that date. [1]
2026 exemptions and tariff
In 2026, an exemption of 2,907,136 Turkish lira (TL) applies to the inheritance share falling to each descendant, including adopted children, and to the spouse; where there are no descendants, an exemption of 5,817,845 TL applies to the share falling to the spouse. This higher spouse exemption should not be limited to the case in which the spouse is the sole heir; the condition in the law that there are no descendants should be taken as the basis. This exemption is not automatically applied to other heirs. [2]
Under the general inheritance tariff, the rates are 1 percent for the first 3,000,000 TL, 3 percent for the next 7,000,000 TL, 5 percent for the next 15,000,000 TL, 7 percent for the next 30,000,000 TL, and 10 percent for the part of the tax base exceeding 55,000,000 TL. The brackets are applied not to the total estate in one go but to the taxable share of the taxpayer concerned. [2]
The special provision that entered into force on June 4, 2026 regulates a 1 percent rate for inheritance transfers, occurring within the prescribed period, from persons who benefit from the income tax exemption under Article 20/D (repeated) of the Income Tax Law (GVK). This conditional provision does not mean that the tax of all expatriates (gurbetçi) or foreign heirs is 1 percent. Whether the person benefits from the special regime and the time conditions must be verified separately. [1]
How should a numerical example be set up?
In an example that only explains the calculation method, assume that the net inheritance share falling to a child in 2026 is 4,000,000 TL and that there is no special rate or other deduction. When the exemption of 2,907,136 TL is subtracted, the tax base is 1,092,864 TL. Because all of it falls within the first bracket, the general inheritance tax is 10,928.64 TL. This example is neither a tax calculation for an entire estate nor the accrual (tahakkuk) of tax in a specific file. [2]
The exemption should not be applied until the net share has been determined. The tax value of the property, the deductibility of debts, the spouse’s claim arising from the matrimonial property regime and partial transactions made earlier may change the calculation. If the bank has made a deduction on account of tax, the offsetting (mahsup) is tracked separately.
How are the return and payment made?
The competent tax office is determined according to the connecting factors in Article 6 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law. The death record, the certificate of inheritance, asset values, debt documents and information on the persons entitled are prepared. The transaction may be carried out through an appropriate electronic application channel or by representation; for a foreign heir without system access, a written application is planned.
In a transfer by inheritance, falling below the exemption does not automatically remove the filing requirement. The tax is generally paid over three years from the accrual, in a total of six equal installments in May and November. The filing period and the installment period should not be confused. [1]
Tax conditions in bank and land registry transactions
Article 17 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law regulates the tax certificate (vergi tasdiknamesi) or statutory withholding mechanism for institutions that pay out money and instruments. The five percent deduction for inheritance is not the final tax rate. At the land registry, under Article 19, registration of the transfer by inheritance can be made without waiting for the accrual of the tax; for a later transfer or the establishment of a real right, payment of the relevant tax or the security route permitted by law is considered. [1]
For this reason, the approach that “all of the tax must be finished first, and only after that can a transaction be made” is not correct. Which tax document is required for which transaction should be determined institution by institution.
Late filing, missing property and tax in a foreign country
A supplementary declaration and correction may be required for an account or share found later. If the time limit has been missed, the special tax procedure provisions and the penalty and delay consequences are examined according to the file; when the delay is noticed, the application should not be postponed any further. The tax office’s notice of assessment (ihbarname) and the date of notification are kept.
For tax paid in a foreign country, there is no automatic offsetting in every case. The location of the property, the provisions of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law on deduction and, if there is one, the scope of the relevant treaty as to types of tax are examined. It should not be assumed that an income tax treaty also covers inheritance tax.
How is the tax file prepared on a per-person and per-asset basis?
In preparing the return, the legal owner of each asset on the date of death is determined first. The entire total balance in a joint bank account should not be accepted as the property of the deceased without investigation. The spouse’s claim arising from the matrimonial property regime is also different from the inheritance share. The existence of a debt and its deductibility from the tax base are not the same examination; the characteristics and documents the law requires for deduction are assessed separately. [1] [3]
The valuation criteria in Article 10 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law vary by type of property. It would not be correct to use the same market listing for real estate, securities traded on the stock exchange, company shares and other property. The value determined for transfer tax and an expert appraisal obtained for the purpose of a fair division among the heirs may produce different results. This difference alone does not show that one of the documents is wrong; the purpose and date of each value should be stated.
Which details matter for deducting debts?
It must be shown that the debtor was the decedent, that the debt existed on the date of death and that it is eligible for deduction. The loan agreement, the account statement and the creditor’s document are evaluated together. A loan that the heir took out in the heir’s own name after the death does not automatically become a debt of the estate merely because it was used to cover the costs of the transfer. Concrete documentation is provided for the debt and expense deductions regulated in Article 12 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law. [1]
There are special limits as to debts relating to property in a foreign country and tax paid there. The existence of an income tax treaty does not mean that the whole of the inheritance tax in Türkiye will be offset. Which property and which tax the amount to be deducted relates to should be clarified; the payment receipt and the explanation of the foreign administration should be translated when necessary.
Multiple heirs and property found later
The exemption and the tariff are assessed according to each taxpayer’s share. Two heirs of the same estate may face different tax outcomes because of their kinship status and the size of their shares. Even where a joint declaration is possible, it should not be assumed that the tax of all heirs is a single, indivisible debt. Which accrual has arisen in whose name is monitored.
For an investment account or a company receivable found after the filing, an additional notification linked to the existing file is required. Applying the exemption used earlier afresh and independently to each newly found asset may distort the tax calculation. The earlier return and accrual information should be submitted to the tax office, and the date and manner in which the new item was identified should be documented. When the omission is noticed, merely giving an explanation to the bank does not correct the tax return. [1]
How is the bank deduction compared with the final tax?
Let us hypothetically assume that, in an inheritance payment, an institution makes a deduction of 50,000 TL under the statutory safeguard. This amount does not prove that the heir’s definitive tax debt is 50,000 TL. The final tax base is calculated with the exemption, the tariff and the other elements of the return. It should be monitored in whose name and to which tax office the deduction was paid and whether the offsetting was carried out. If an excess arises, the refund or offsetting procedure is assessed separately. [1]
The heir should compare the amount that left the bank account and the tax office accrual in the same table. In this way, both the payment of the same item twice and the incorrect recording of the deduction to another heir’s account can be noticed. It is useful to ask for the deduction document instead of the bank’s mere statement that “tax was deducted”.
Notification, objection and closing the file
Living abroad does not make notification in Türkiye irrelevant. The address given, whether there is an obligation of electronic notification, and the authority of the representative are checked. When a letter from the tax administration is seen, the type of the action should be identified: a request for information, an accrual, a penalty notice and a payment order are not subject to the same legal route and time limit. In a claim of incorrect valuation, a valuation document; in a claim of incorrect share, a corrected certificate of inheritance may need to be submitted.
The closing file contains the returns, additional declarations, accruals, installment payments, institutional deductions and clearance certificates (ilişik belgesi) obtained for the specific transaction. Obtaining a clearance certificate for one immovable property does not mean that another bank account or an obligation in a foreign country has also been closed. The 2026 figures should be used for this year; in later deaths or transfers, the official amounts of the relevant year should be checked again.
Council of State decisions: What happens if money has been withdrawn or the value is disputed?
Does another heir’s withdrawal of the money remove the filing obligation?
In the decision of the Tax Litigation Chambers Board of the Council of State (Danıştay Vergi Dava Daireleri Kurulu) dated September 27, 2002, E. 2002/149, K. 2002/336, the withdrawal by the spouse, after the death, of the money in the joint account of the decedent and the decedent’s spouse and the other heirs’ filing of an action concerning this money were examined. The Tax Court annulled the tax assessment; after the reversal it insisted on its earlier decision. The Board, however, evaluating the acquisition of the inheritance by death and the civil court decision recognizing the heirs’ shares, reversed the decision to insist. Therefore, the outcome of the decision is not that an heir who has not actually received the money remains outside the declaration in every case. Council of State, Tax Litigation Chambers Board, September 27, 2002, E. 2002/149, K. 2002/336.
The prosecutor’s opinion in the text and the final judgment of the Board point in different directions. In practice, if only the search-result summary or the opinion section is read, the exact opposite conclusion of the decision may be drawn. What is relied on here is the Board’s final judgment of reversal. The penalty concepts appearing in the historical decision should not be used in place of the current penalty regime.
The practical meaning of this decision is as follows: to whom the money in the account belongs, on what date the inheritance was acquired and the ability to pay are separate questions. It is also not accepted that the whole or half of a joint account automatically belongs to the estate. The account agreement, the source of the funds and the relevant court file are collected; while the actual difficulty of collection is explained in the tax file, the filing period is separately protected.
When a company share and a receivable from the company are calculated together
In the decision of the 7th Chamber of the Council of State (Danıştay 7. Daire) dated November 15, 2021, E. 2018/27, K. 2021/4821, the tax assessment relating to the valuation of an inherited company share and of a receivable from the company was discussed. It was emphasized that the connection between the amounts and the documents in the examination report, the assessment committee (takdir komisyonu) decisions and the notices must be clarified, and that the balance sheet items as of the date of death must, where necessary, be examined with an expert; the decision dismissing the action was reversed. Council of State, 7th Chamber, November 15, 2021, E. 2018/27, K. 2021/4821.
This is a reversal for insufficient examination; it is not a judgment that all company receivables are taxed twice or that the assessment has definitively disappeared. For the heir, what needs to be done is to show from which balance sheet the value of the company share was found, how the shareholder’s receivable is tracked in the same account, and on which tax base difference each notice is based. Instead of a mere objection that “the tax is too high”, a verifiable calculation table should be prepared.
Order of steps and document file for a foreign heir
| Stage | Record to prepare | Control question |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Citizenship, place of death and location of the property | Does this transfer fall within the scope of the tax in Türkiye? |
| Entitlement | Certificate of inheritance, family connections | Are the taxpayer and the share correct? |
| Tax base | Values tied to the date of death, debt documents | Which valuation criterion is being applied? |
| Filing | Return and delivery/receipt record | Was the correct period and competent office used as the basis? |
| Collection | Accrual, installment, bank deduction | Was the deduction offset against the correct person’s account? |
| Institutional transaction | Tax document required for the transaction | Does the document relate to payment, registration or sale? |
The fact that an heir abroad does not have a Turkish identity number does not mean that the tax transaction cannot be carried out at all. The necessary tax identity and method of representation are determined with the relevant office. Using the account of a relative who can log in to the system in Türkiye does not give that person authority to file on behalf of the heir. It should be clear in the file who filed the return and in what status.
It is checked in advance whether the power of attorney covers the intended transactions at the tax office, such as carrying out transactions, obtaining documents, correction and, where necessary, a refund request. For a foreign notarial document, the route of certification and translation is determined according to the country in which the document was issued and the applicable treaties. An apostille does not add a power of representation that is not in the text.
In which file should the 2026 figures be used?
The exemption and the tariff are not chosen merely by looking at the fact that the return is filed in 2026; the relevant year of the transfer that gives rise to the tax is determined. For example, preparing in 2026 the late return for a death that occurred in 2025 does not automatically entitle one to the 2026 exemption. The link between property found later and the earlier death file is also preserved. Communiqué (Tebliğ) Serial No. 57, which sets the 2026 amounts.
As to the new special 1 percent rate, the connection required is not that the heir lives abroad but that the decedent benefited from the exemption in repeated Article 20/D of the Income Tax Law and that the transfer by inheritance took place within the period in the law. For this reason, the heir’s foreign residence document alone is not sufficient. The documents for benefiting from the special regime and the dates are examined together. Law No. 7582, Articles 2 and 4.
What result is sought when the file is closed?
If a return has been filed but the accrual has not been checked, the tax file is not regarded as complete. The letter of the bank that made the deduction, the accrual and the payments are compared. For later-dated installments, the responsible person and the payment schedule are recorded. The obligation in Türkiye and the notification of inheritance or assets in a foreign country are tracked on separate lines. This method also makes it possible to build the source file quickly if documents are requested again in the transfer of the same money.
Conclusion
In cross-border inheritance tax, the correct result is obtained through a calculation of scope, time limit and valuation on a per-person and per-asset basis. The 2026 amounts should be linked to the year of death; the bank deduction, the land registry clearance and the obligations in foreign countries should be tracked separately.
Related articles: What to Do If Company Shares Are Inherited in Türkiye? Foreign Heir, Shareholding and Share Transfer; How Is Rental Income from an Inherited House Received? Management and Accounting Rights of an Heir Abroad; How Is Inherited Money in Türkiye Transferred Abroad? Bank Documents and Tax Procedures; How Are Estate Procedures Carried Out Without Coming to Türkiye? Power of Attorney from Abroad and Remote Follow-Up.; Inheritance and gift tax obligations; Inheritance transfer in Türkiye for foreign nationals; Dividing an Inheritance in Türkiye for Those Living Abroad; Why Can’t an Inheritance Transfer Be Completed in Türkiye?
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a foreign heir not pay tax in Türkiye?
Depending on the assets in Türkiye and the scope of the law, a liability may arise.
Is no return filed when the share falls under the exemption?
In a transfer by inheritance, the filing obligation continues separately.
Is the period six months for all inheritances abroad?
No. Depending on the place of death and where the taxpayer is located, it may be four, six or eight months.
Does the new one percent rate apply to everyone?
No. Special conditions and a time limit linked to repeated Article 20/D of the Income Tax Law are required.
If the death was in 2025 and the filing in 2026, which exemption is used?
The relevant year of the transfer is taken as the basis; filing the return late does not automatically secure the new year’s exemption.
Is the tax finished when the bank deducts five percent?
No. The deduction is a safeguard mechanism; the definitive tax and offsetting are checked separately.
If the money is withdrawn by another heir, is no filing necessary?
Being unable to actually collect it does not by itself remove the filing obligation. Entitlement and the scope of the tax are examined separately.
Are a company share and a shareholder receivable the same value?
They may be separate legal items; by checking the relationship between the balance sheet and the valuation, duplicate or missing calculation is avoided.
Sources and legal bases
- Law No. 7338 on Inheritance and Transfer Tax (Veraset ve İntikal Vergisi Kanunu)
- Revenue Administration (GİB), Inheritance and Transfer Tax, 2026 exemptions and tariffs
- Law No. 4721, Turkish Civil Code (Türk Medeni Kanunu)
- Council of State, Tax Litigation Chambers Board, September 27, 2002, E. 2002/149, K. 2002/336
- Council of State, 7th Chamber, November 15, 2021, E. 2018/27, K. 2021/4821
- Communiqué (Tebliğ) Serial No. 57, which sets the 2026 amounts
- Law No. 7582, Articles 2 and 4