Guide to Leases, Eviction and Rent in Türkiye
Open a topic below to find the relevant issues in Turkish tenancy law.
Leases, Procedure and Termination
Types of lease
- Residential and roofed business premises
- Property leases under general rules
- Movable property and movable structures
- Agricultural or business yield leases and animal leases
- Applicable rules and unification judgments
Residential or business lease, or general rules?
- Purpose, characteristics and home offices
- Conversion from residence to workplace
- Scope of the special rules under Article 339 onwards
- Expiry and one-month period for direct enforcement
- Predominant character of the property
Public tenders and Treasury leases
- Law No. 2886 and priority of special rules
- Expiry, occupation compensation and eviction
- Declarations of tenancy and resolution of disputes over status
- Treasury property rules and notices
Court with subject-matter jurisdiction
- Civil court of peace under Article 4(a)
- Proceedings before the enforcement court
- Combined lease and services, with or without operator
- Negative declaratory action over a note given in connection with a lease
Venue and mandatory mediation
- Contractual lease claims and exclusive venue for rights in rem
- General venue and place of performance
- Pre-action mediation in tenancy disputes
- Exception for eviction through enforcement without a judgment
Landlord and proper parties
- A landlord who is not the owner
- Letting through an agent
- Rights of a co-owner who did not let the property
- Proper parties depending on the contract and claim
Term, renewal and notice periods
- Renewal on the same terms or for the same period
- Conversion to an indefinite lease
- Three months’ notice and six-month periods under Article 329
- Interpreting the stated term
Lease contents
- Property, rent, start date and agreed term
- Written form as evidence
- Fixtures, incidental expenses, utilities and building rules
- Business rent withholding and conflicting contracts
- Invalid linked contracts under Article 340
Guarantees
- Formalities under Article 583
- Spousal consent under Article 584
- Express terms on the guarantor’s liability for damages
Use, defects and damage
- Duty of care under Article 316
- Damage beyond ordinary wear and expert evidence
- Tenant remedies for defects under Article 305
- Termination for a serious defect
- Essential repairs and temporary vacation
Expenses, subletting and assignment
- Alterations under Article 321
- Necessary, useful and luxury expenses
- Written consent for subletting and notice for breach
- Assignment under Article 323
- Use by family members or co-occupants
Rent, ending the lease and security
- When rent falls due under Articles 314 and 91
- Contractual increases and the CPI ceiling
- Key handover, records and mutual termination
- Reasonable-period compensation under Article 325
- Return and offset of security under Article 342
Eviction, Rent Determination and Adjustment
Eviction grounds and default
- Eviction grounds and standing of a non-landlord owner
- At least 30 days to pay for residential or roofed business premises
- Building charges and incidental expenses
- Form 13 enforcement and payment order
Eviction through enforcement
- Six-month application period after the payment deadline if no objection or payment
- Service of objections and filing deadlines
- Application before the 30-day period expires
- Payment deadline falling on a holiday
- Enforcement of eviction orders and applicable deadlines
Recovery of rent
- Monthly arrears and pending proceedings
- Removal versus annulment of an objection
- Effect of enforcement court decisions
- Payments to the enforcement office or another recipient or account
- Proof of lease and payment
Breach of lease
- 30-day period for homes and roofed workplaces
- Written termination without a cure period under Article 316(3)
- Underreporting turnover rent
- Neighbour relations and disturbances
- Intentional serious damage to the property
Extraordinary termination and ten-year extension
- Intolerable continuation under Article 331
- Notice periods and compensation
- Article 347 for fixed and indefinite leases
- Effect of a new contract or addendum
- Wording of the notice
Residential need
- Genuine, sincere and necessary need
- Need for a holiday home
- Notices and changes to the claimed need
- Marriage and retirement
- Effect of offering the home for sale
Business need and renovations
- Need of the company or a shareholder
- Opening a branch and expanding the business
- Suitability of premises
- A descendant’s need to start a business
- Major renovations and rebuilding
New owner and reletting restrictions
- One-month notice, action after six months, and alternative after expiry
- Compliance with the period given in the notice
- Failure to give notice of need and separate rent default rules
- Lease annotation and deadline examples
- Alleged sham sale
- Three-year reletting restriction without good cause
Eviction undertaking
- Validity, burden of proof and conditional undertakings
- Blank undertakings later completed and evidence by oath
- Form 14 enforcement or civil court proceedings
- Signature objections, notarisation and use by new owner
- Family home objections and effect on subtenants
Two justified notices
- Two notices in one rental year and service
- Indefinite leases and annual payments
- Splitting arrears and abuse of rights
- Rent months already covered by the first notice
- Default based on rent admitted by the tenant
Other home and filing deadline
- Other home of tenant or spouse
- Suitable home in the same district or municipal area
- Inherited home
- One rental-year extension by timely written notice
Rent determination
- Effective rental period, 30-day rule and contractual increase clause
- Index-based and equitable assessment periods
- Co-ownership and joint ownership
- Turnover rent and contractual increase rate
- Net or gross rent and finality
Expert evidence and calculations
- Comparables, expert report and equitable discount
- Tenant improvements
- Examples by rental period
- Appeal threshold
- Unification judgments on rent determination
Rent adjustment
- Requirements for excessive hardship
- Force majeure and extraordinary events
- Adjustment, rescission and termination
- Distinction from rent determination
- Adjustment of turnover leases
Court fees, legal costs and mediation
- Fees on the annual difference
- Lawyer’s fees and litigation expenses
- Amendment of the amount sought and judicial limits
- Effect of mediation on filing deadlines
- Premature application and standing