Transferring an inherited asset in Türkiye to a foreign or overseas-resident heir is not limited to obtaining a certificate of inheritance. First, the heir’s status and the applicable law are determined; then the assets and debts are investigated, tax obligations are met, and registration or payment is completed with the relevant institution. Registering a property in the heir’s name, paying out money held in a bank and an insurance beneficiary receiving compensation are different legal transactions.
This guide covers Turkish citizens living in another country, foreign nationals, dual citizens and Blue Card holders. In every file, the date of death, the citizenship held at the time of death, the last place of residence, the country where the property is located and the personal status of each heir must be examined separately. A single legal system cannot be applied to the entire estate merely by looking at the country where the heir lives. [1] This subject is also addressed in the article procedures for heirs holding a Blue Card or dual citizenship.
Which country’s law governs an inheritance in Türkiye?
Separating immovable property from other assets
Under Article 20 of Law No. 5718 on Private International and Procedural Law (MÖHUK), an inheritance is in principle governed by the national law of the deceased; Turkish law applies to immovable property located in Türkiye. The law of the country where the estate is located also matters for the causes of the opening of the succession, its acquisition and its partition. For this reason, it is incorrect to apply the same share calculation without question to a foreign national’s apartment in Antalya and to a bank deposit. First, it is determined which connecting rule applies to which issue. [1]
In a file governed by Turkish law, a surviving spouse’s inheritance alongside children produces a different share from inheritance alongside the parents of the deceased. In addition, a claim arising from the matrimonial property regime is not the same thing as a direct inheritance share. Treating all assets as a net estate available for division, without first resolving the spouse’s participation claim or personal property claim, may lead to a wrong result. [2]
Why are citizenship and the date of death necessary?
Where a person with more than one citizenship holds Turkish citizenship among them, the rule in Article 4 of MÖHUK giving priority to Turkish law is considered. Holding a Blue Card, however, does not carry the same status as being a Turkish citizen. For deaths that occurred in the past, the regulations in force at that time are also examined separately; today’s rules on the acquisition of immovable property by foreigners do not automatically apply retroactively. [1] [3]
Which documents should be prepared at the first stage?
The death certificate, family and population registry records, marriage or divorce documents, identity cards and passports and, if any, a will form the core of the file. For foreign documents, the issuing authority, the certification procedure, the Turkish translation and the consistency of names are checked. An apostille serves to verify signatures and official capacity; it does not, as a matter of Turkish law, conclusively establish that the person named in the document is in fact the sole heir. [4]
| Question in the file | Main document | Completion criterion |
|---|---|---|
| Who died, and when? | Death and population registry record | Date and identity match |
| Who are the heirs? | Certificate of inheritance and family lineage | All heirs and their shares |
| Which assets exist? | Responses from institutions, registers and account statements | Inventory of assets and debts |
| Who will act? | Appropriate power of attorney or representation decision | Sufficient authority for the transaction |
| Who receives what? | Partition or payment instruction | Valid form and consent |
| Is the transaction complete? | Registration, bank receipt, handover record | Economic result achieved |
Documents may contain a former surname, a different alphabet or more than one passport number. Rather than changing words in the translation, an official link must be established between the records. If lineage is incomplete, additional birth or marriage records are obtained; if there is a representation problem, custody, guardianship or trustee (kayyım) documents are obtained.
Where is the certificate of inheritance obtained?
A certificate of inheritance (mirasçılık belgesi) shows the heirs and their shares. Although notaries have authority to issue such documents, the notary route is limited where population records are insufficient, judicial proceedings are required or a foreign national’s request is involved. In files that require review of foreign law and documents because of a foreign element, the route through the civil magistrate court (sulh hukuk mahkemesi) is considered. Living abroad alone does not mean that the notary route is closed. [5] [2]
A foreign certificate of inheritance is also reviewed separately. Recognition of a foreign court decision, use of that document as evidence in obtaining a new certificate of inheritance in Türkiye, and transactions under Article 37 of the Land Registry Law (Tapu Kanunu) are not the same route. The nature of the document as res judicata (kesin hüküm), the issuing authority and the transaction to be carried out are decisive. Details are in the article on foreign certificates of inheritance in this series. [6] [1] At this stage, the explanations in the guide on a foreign heir’s land registry transfer may also be helpful.
Asset and debt research must be carried out together
A certificate of inheritance does not state the address of an apartment, the name of a bank or the amount of any debt. Land registry records, banks, vehicle registrations, investment accounts, company shares, insurance policies and BES contracts are researched separately. Rental income, receivables from third parties and suspicious transfers made before death are also included in the inventory. The absence of results from an internet search does not conclusively show that no property exists.
For debts, loans, sureties (kefalet), mortgages, taxes, company liabilities and ongoing enforcement files are examined. Under Turkish law, disclaimer of an inheritance (mirasın reddi) is in principle subject to a three-month period; the starting point and exceptions are determined under Article 606 of the Turkish Civil Code No. 4721 (TMK) and the following articles. Because estate transactions that go beyond ordinary administration may affect the right to disclaim, no decision to sell or to withdraw money into a personal account should be taken while there is a debt risk and before the research is complete. [2]
A separate transfer route is followed for each asset
Land registry title, vehicles and company shares
For immovable property, acquiring the inheritance and the transfer entry in the land registry are separate matters. Registration, disposal and the completion of records for any later sale are required. For a foreign heir, acquisition restrictions and, where necessary, liquidation are examined separately. The general statement that all inheritance tax must be paid before a land registry transfer is not accurate; the conditions applying to the transfer and to any subsequent conveyance must be distinguished. [2] [6] [7]
For vehicles, notary and traffic registration procedures are examined, together with any pledge (rehin) or ÖTV exemption. For company shares, the provisions for limited and joint-stock companies, the articles of association, the share register and representation authority are important. Becoming a shareholder by inheritance does not automatically mean becoming a company manager or a board member. [8] [9]
Bank accounts, BES and life insurance
At a bank, the balance on the date of death, the account type, the co-heirship (miras ortaklığı) and the tax document are evaluated together. An heir obtaining information does not thereby gain authority to withdraw all of the money in their own name. In a joint account too, the authority to act against the bank and the real ownership of the money among the heirs may differ. [2]
For BES, the beneficiary named in the contract is examined; for life insurance, the beneficiary and any pledge (rehin) or record of a pledgee’s claim (dain-i mürtehin), if present, are researched. Not every death payment automatically enters the estate and is divided among the heirs. The SGK death pension also depends on the entitlement conditions under social security legislation. [10] [9] [11]
Crypto assets, digital accounts and valuables
The economic value of a crypto asset may pass by inheritance; however, documenting entitlement and gaining technical access are different matters. For an account on a platform, the institution’s own inheritance procedure is followed. If the private key of a personal wallet has been lost, a certificate of inheritance alone does not provide access. Keys or recovery phrases must not be placed in an open petition, an email or a shared folder. [2]
For a bank safe deposit box and for jewellery (ziynet) kept at home, the opening, inventory, photographing, ownership and handover records are important. It cannot be concluded merely from the safe deposit contract that every item in the box belonged to the deceased. If a third party claims safekeeping or ownership, that claim is assessed together with its evidence.
How do representation and money transfer from abroad work?
Many procedures can be carried out without coming to Türkiye, by means of a suitable power of attorney. However, inheritance research, a land registry sale, settlement (sulh), waiver (feragat), partition and collection of the price are not the same authority. The scope of the power of attorney must be set according to the intended transactions; to whom, to which account and on what conditions the sale price is paid should also be put in writing. [12] [4]
The certification route differs for a document issued by a Turkish consulate and one obtained from a foreign notary. For the second route, depending on the country concerned, an apostille or consular certification and a translation may be required. The bank may also request identity documents, a tax number, tax residence and documents on the source of funds. These checks do not replace the certificate of inheritance; they are added to it.
How are tax, deadlines and costs planned?
The filing deadline for inheritance and transfer tax varies according to the country where the death occurred and the country where the heir is located. It is wrong to say that six months applies to all overseas files. Filing a declaration, assessment of the tax, payment of instalments and the institution’s request for a tax notice for payment are separate stages. The 2026 exemptions and rates must be evaluated together with the year of death. [7] In a similar situation, the steps in the article on inheritance and transfer tax for foreign heirs living abroad can be compared.
The cost plan shows court fees, translation and certification, service of notices (tebligat), tax, land registry or notary fees, bank transfer costs and attorney’s fees separately. Correspondence with foreign authorities and disputes may extend the timeline. Giving a fixed end date or a single price for every file hides the scope of the work and the variable costs.
If a dispute arises, which route is followed?
First, it is determined whether the problem concerns the civil registry record, representation, tax, the heir’s share or the ownership of the property. While a missing document may be resolved through a supplementary application, a refusal by the heirs to sell may require division or the process of partition of co-owned property (ortaklığın giderilmesi). In disputes over the division of movable and immovable property and over partition of co-owned property, mediation as a precondition to litigation (dava şartı arabuluculuk) is considered. If there is a need for protection, interim legal protection is requested separately. [13]
The decision of the 7th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay 7. Hukuk Dairesi), dated April 29, 2024, E.2024/1330, K.2024/2250, shows the importance of completing an incomplete lineage investigation in an inheritance file involving a foreign element. The acceptance ruling issued after earlier reversals was upheld. This result does not mean that every foreign heir may acquire property without limit; the earlier date of death and the file-specific investigation context of the decision must be kept in mind. [14]
When is a file considered complete?
Sending the heir only a court decision does not show that the transaction is finished. New land registry entries, actual payment at the bank, vehicle registration, an internal transfer (virman) in an investment account, and the necessary company-share records and notifications are checked. If there is a division, equalization payments must be made; the rent and expense account must be handed over; and continuing tax instalments must be tied to a calendar.
In an overseas transfer, the net amount that reaches the recipient account is tracked as well as the sending receipt. It is noted that additional action may be needed for property or debt discovered later. The scope of legal work that Gunes & Gunes Law Firm performs in such files can be made concrete through the stages of document planning, review of heirship, institutional procedures, disputes and post-decision implementation.
The legal assessment to be made at the first consultation
An heir’s citizenship and the decedent’s citizenship do not play the same role
That an heir is a foreign national does not mean that the inheritance is necessarily governed by the heir’s citizenship law. The starting point under Article 20 of MÖHUK is the national law of the deceased. For the heir, citizenship becomes important in different areas such as the acquisition of immovable property and identity and representation documents. If the status of these two persons is confused, an incorrect share calculation may be made for the money in a bank, or a commitment to transfer may be given without any examination of whether the property can be acquired. In each file, the citizenship at the time of death, any change of citizenship and the identity records should be kept separate for each person. [1]
For a foreign national who owns property in Türkiye, a single share table prepared in the home country may not be sufficient for the entire inheritance. The law applicable to the Turkish property and the inheritance status of the other assets are separated. However, the phrase “Turkish law for the property” does not automatically resolve all preliminary questions. Issues such as the validity of a marriage, lineage, adoption and the matrimonial property regime may be researched under their own connecting rules. Where foreign law must be applied, the judge researches it within the framework of Article 2 of MÖHUK and may ask the parties for assistance. Rather than a share table taken from the internet, it is more useful to present legislation showing its date of entry into force together with a reliable legal explanation.
Order of deaths and successive inheritances
One of the heirs may have died after the first decedent but before the transfer procedures were completed. In that case, his or her share in the first inheritance is also included in his or her own estate. The second person’s certificate of inheritance does not replace the first person’s certificate; the two deaths and the two inheritance relationships are linked. Debts, taxes and the disclaimer period are assessed separately for each death. In particular, for family property that has not been transferred for decades, obtaining the signature of only the last living generation does not eliminate the shares of the intermediate heirs. [2]
What options exist when the estate is indebted?
In a file governed by Turkish law, acquiring an inheritance by operation of law gives the heir not only rights but may also create personal liability for the decedent’s debts. For this reason, the approach “I will first take all the assets and then look at the debts” is inappropriate. Disclaimer, the drawing up of an official estate inventory (resmî defter) and official liquidation (resmî tasfiye) are options with different conditions. A disclaimer by court judgment (hükmen ret), where inability to pay (aciz) is evident or officially established at the date of death, also does not mean that every indebted estate passes free of debt. The state of insolvency at the time of death and the transactions the heir carries out later are important. [2]
The one-month period for an official inventory request under Article 619 of TMK and the three-month disclaimer period under Article 606 must not be confused. An official inventory is not a list kept by the heir on a computer; it is a statutory procedure carried out by the civil magistrate judge (sulh hâkimi). Which option applies after the inventory is drawn up, and the effect of debts not recorded in the inventory, are determined according to the specific provisions. A person tracking the deadlines should record not only the calendar date but also the triggering event and the document that proves it.
Protecting estate property is not the same as personally appropriating it. Protecting a house whose roof is leaking, conducting a lawsuit or enforcement step needed to prevent a limitation period from expiring, and selling a vehicle and using the proceeds for personal expenses are assessed differently. TMK Article 610 attaches significant consequences to the right to disclaim of an heir who goes beyond ordinary administration or who treats the assets as their own. For this reason, while the debt review is ongoing, the use of the authority given to the attorney-in-fact (vekil) should also be restricted, and the reason for each protective act should be documented.
How is administration organized when there are several heirs?
Under Turkish inheritance law, until division, co-heirship (miras ortaklığı) and the principle of joint ownership (elbirliği) apply. That one heir holds a quarter share does not mean that a particular banknote, room or one quarter of a company share may be used alone. In the ordinary case, rights over the estate require joint action; statutory exceptions and protection claims are assessed separately. A representation agreement may be concluded among the heirs. If agreement cannot be reached, requesting the appointment of a representative to the co-heirship under Article 640 of TMK may be a different solution from selling each asset immediately. [2]
The existence of a representative neither closes every route by which each heir may make independent claims in his or her own name, nor gives the representative unlimited personal disposal authority. The duties, transaction limits and accounting obligations in the appointment decision should be read carefully. Establishing a common arrangement for collecting rent, meeting necessary expenses and sharing account statements may prevent long-term loss of value, particularly in files where the heirs live in different countries.
Order of steps in a sample file and work that can run in parallel
Suppose, hypothetically, that a Turkish citizen living in Germany leaves an apartment in Türkiye, a bank account and a loan debt, and that the spouse and two children are in different countries. The first task is not to sell all the assets. While the death and family records are being completed, the loan, insurance and land registry encumbrances are researched. The spouse’s possible claim arising from the matrimonial property regime is separated from the inheritance share. The preparation of the certificate of inheritance and of the power of attorney may run in parallel; the tax deadline, however, does not wait on its own until the documentary process is finished. After the debt table and the disclaimer option have been evaluated, a decision is taken on division, sale or retaining the property. The example rests on the assumption that Turkish law applies; foreign citizenship and a different matrimonial property regime may change the result. [2] [7]
In this file, the land registry transfer may remain pending even though the bank payment has been completed, and the insurance application is also subject to its own review. The measure of success is not a single “file complete” email, but documentation of the legal and economic result for each asset. The closing file handed to the heir should clearly show which assets were acquired, which debts were paid, which applications are still pending, and who holds which original document.
Conclusion
Cross-border inheritance transfer in Türkiye must be followed from the determination of entitlement through to actual registration and collection. The right starting point is information on the date of death and citizenship, family records, debt research and the separation of asset types. When the appropriate representation, tax and institutional steps have been completed for each asset, the inheritance right turns into a usable economic result.
Related articles: Handling Inheritance Matters in Türkiye Without Traveling: Power of Attorney from Abroad and Remote Follow-Up; How Does a Foreign Heir Obtain a Certificate of Inheritance (veraset ilamı) in Türkiye? Documents and Court Procedure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it necessary to travel to Türkiye?
Many procedures can be carried out with an appropriate power of attorney. Identity verification, the scope of the representation and the transaction conditions of the relevant institution are checked separately.
Does a certificate of inheritance show all the assets?
No. The document shows the heirs and their shares; research into assets and debts is carried out separately.
Does a foreign national necessarily lose an inherited house?
No. Citizenship, the nature of the property, acquisition restrictions and the law in force on the date of death are examined together. In some files, liquidation and payment of the price may come onto the agenda.
Can no transaction be carried out before tax is paid?
That generalization is not accurate. Filing a declaration, the land registry transfer, a sale and payment from a bank are subject to different conditions.
Does an agreement among the heirs solve all problems?
An agreement does not remove formal requirements, the rights of third parties, the representation of minors or the tax obligation.
Sources and legal bases
- Law No. 5718 on Private International and Procedural Law (5718 sayılı Milletlerarası Özel Hukuk ve Usul Hukuku Hakkında Kanun)
- Turkish Civil Code No. 4721 (4721 sayılı Türk Medeni Kanunu)
- Turkish Citizenship Law No. 5901 (5901 sayılı Türk Vatandaşlığı Kanunu)
- Law No. 6100 on Civil Procedure (6100 sayılı Hukuk Muhakemeleri Kanunu)
- Notaries Law No. 1512 (1512 sayılı Noterlik Kanunu)
- Land Registry Law No. 2644 (2644 sayılı Tapu Kanunu)
- Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law No. 7338 (7338 sayılı Veraset ve İntikal Vergisi Kanunu)
- Highway Traffic Law No. 2918 (2918 sayılı Karayolları Trafik Kanunu)
- Turkish Commercial Code No. 6102 (6102 sayılı Türk Ticaret Kanunu)
- Individual Pension Savings and Investment System Law No. 4632 (4632 sayılı Bireysel Emeklilik Tasarruf ve Yatırım Sistemi Kanunu)
- Social Insurance and General Health Insurance Law No. 5510 (5510 sayılı Sosyal Sigortalar ve Genel Sağlık Sigortası Kanunu)
- Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098 (6098 sayılı Türk Borçlar Kanunu)
- Law No. 6325 on Mediation in Civil Disputes (6325 sayılı Hukuk Uyuşmazlıklarında Arabuluculuk Kanunu)
- 7th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay 7. Hukuk Dairesi), April 29, 2024, E.2024/1330, K.2024/2250
Legislation and content update date: October 13, 2026. Access and review records for the decisions are also shown in the source file.