Enforcement & Debt Collection · Turkey

Debt Collection Lawyer in Turkey for Foreign Creditors

Unpaid invoices, unpaid rent, bounced cheques and unpaid debts are enforced through Turkish enforcement offices from our Turkish Debt Collection Law Firm.

Your invoice, rent or loan is months overdue. The debtor has stopped answering. You are abroad, the money sits in Turkey, and every month you wait is a month their assets can move.

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On the lists of lawyers published for their nationals by

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Debt collection lawyer in Turkey preparing an enforcement file for a foreign creditor

Antalya Bar Association, registration no. 9892

Verifiable on the Bar's own register.

We tell you which track your document opens

A cheque, a notarised deed and an email chain each open a different route at a different speed. We read what you actually hold before filing, and say so when it is too weak to carry a file.

Filed on your power of attorney, you never travel

Payment orders, objections, garnishment and auction steps are all handled here. You sign one notarised document abroad and send documents of the debt paperwork.

Can a foreign creditor collect a debt in Turkey?

Quick answer

Yes. Turkish enforcement offices open a file for any creditor, Turkish or foreign, with no court judgment first. A payment order is served; if the debtor stays silent for seven days the debt becomes enforceable and bank accounts, vehicles and property can be seized. Uncontested files often resolve in two to four months. Cost tracks whether the debtor objects.

On This Page

02 Is This Your Situation? → 03 What Turkish Law Gives You → 04 How the Enforcement File Runs → 05 What Debt Recovery Costs → 06 Case Outcomes → 07 Frequently Asked Questions →

Is This Your Situation?

Why foreign creditors lose Turkish debts

Most foreign creditors do not lose their money in a courtroom. They lose it to delay. A Turkish company that stops paying usually keeps trading for months afterwards, and the bank balance or the van you could have frozen is gone by the time anyone files. Turkish law does not make you sue first: under the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law No. 2004 an unpaid invoice, unpaid rent, a bounced cheque or a signed acknowledgement of debt is enough to have a payment order served.

What changes once a Turkish enforcement file is open:

The file opens where the debtor is, not where you are, normally the enforcement office for their registered address.
A bank account is frozen by a written notice under article 89, served on the bank. No hearing, and the debtor is not warned first.
The seven-day objection clock starts on service, so how quickly the payment order reaches the debtor decides how quickly the file becomes final.
The document you hold picks the court. A signed contract or notarised deed opens the fast Enforcement Court route; emails alone force a full lawsuit.

Creditors Who Come to Us

"I shipped goods to a Turkish importer, they took delivery, and the invoices are now eight months overdue."
"I rent out my Antalya apartment from abroad. The tenant stopped paying in March and is still living in it."
"I lent money to a business partner against a signed acknowledgement of debt. He has stopped replying to everything."
"I have a County Court judgment in England against someone who has since moved back to Turkey."
"A contractor took my deposit for a villa renovation and never finished the work."
"I was paid with a Turkish cheque. The bank refused it, there was nothing in the account."

What Turkish Law Gives You

Four statutes decide almost every foreign creditor's file in Turkey. This is what each one actually does, in plain English.

The main instrument

Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law No. 2004

Article 42 lets you start a money claim with a filing, not a lawsuit. Article 60 makes the enforcement office issue a payment order giving the debtor seven days to pay; article 62 gives the same seven days to object. Silence makes the debt enforceable, and article 78 then opens attachment of everything the debtor owns. Article 89 is the notice that freezes a bank account, it is served on the bank, not on the debtor.

Read Law No. 2004 on mevzuat.gov.tr

When you hold a cheque

Cheque Law No. 5941

A bounced Turkish cheque is more than a debt. Article 5 makes writing a cheque without cover punishable: the holder applies to the Enforcement Criminal Court, and the drawer faces a judicial fine and a registered ban on writing cheques. That ban is frequently what makes a silent debtor call back. The cheque also runs on the special enforcement track, where the objection window is five days and objecting does not automatically halt the file.

Read Law No. 5941 on mevzuat.gov.tr

The clock you cannot stop

Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098

Article 146 gives most contractual debts ten years. Article 147 cuts that to five years for rent, service fees and similar recurring claims, and a cheque claim against the drawer expires in three years under the Commercial Code. A time-barred debt can still be filed, but the debtor only has to say the word "zamanaşımı" and the file collapses with your costs already spent. Check your dates before anything else.

Read Law No. 6098 on mevzuat.gov.tr

How the Enforcement File Runs

Four routes. Which one your file takes is decided by the document you hold, and it changes the deadlines, the objection rules and how quickly you see money. All four are filed by Debt Collection Lawyer in Turkey and run on your power of attorney rather than your presence.

Route one · No judgment required

Enforcement Without a Court Judgment

Document and time-limit review

We read the contract, invoices or acknowledgement of debt and check the claim against the ten-year and five-year limits. From you: scans, nothing more.

Power of attorney

You sign a Turkish-language power of attorney at a Turkish consulate, or before a notary abroad with an apostille and sworn translation. It must expressly cover collection and settlement. See our guide on issuing a power of attorney abroad.

Enforcement request filed

Filed at the enforcement office for the debtor's domicile. Electronic and same-day. You pay the state an advance fee of 0.5 per cent of the claim at this point.

Payment order served

A company is served by registered electronic mail and counts as served on the fifth day. An individual is served physically: one to two weeks generally or longer if they have left their registered address.

The seven-day window

Seven days to pay, seven days to object. An objection on this route stops the file automatically, and it then falls to you to have it set aside in court.

Attachment of assets

Once the file is final we attach bank accounts, vehicles, salary, rent receivable and real estate. The garnishment notice under article 89 goes to the bank, which must answer within seven days, which is why a Turkish bank account gets blocked without warning.

Sale or settlement

Attached property must be put up for sale within one year. In practice the attachment ends the file: most debtors pay once the account is frozen, and any instalment plan reaches you in writing first.

Money leaves the file

Funds are released from the enforcement office account.

Route two · You already hold a judgment

Enforcement on a Judgment or an Equivalent Document

What opens this route

A Turkish court judgment, an arbitral award, a notarised acknowledgement of a money debt, or a mediation settlement carrying an enforceability annotation. Each one skips the objection stage below.

A foreign judgment needs a Turkish decision first

A London, Berlin or Copenhagen judgment has no force here until a Turkish civil court declares it enforceable, roughly eight to eighteen months at first instance. See our guide to enforcing a foreign judgment in Turkey.

Payment order with no automatic objection

The debtor gets seven days to pay. Objecting stops nothing: they must persuade the enforcement court to suspend the file, and only on payment, release or expiry, each proved by a document.

Straight to attachment

After seven days we attach without waiting for a hearing. The debtor's remaining move is to post security at the appeal court in exchange for a stay, which most will not fund.

Route three · Cheque, bill of exchange or promissory note

Enforcement on a Negotiable Instrument

The instrument must be formally valid

It has to meet the form requirements of the Turkish Commercial Code. A missing date, a missing amount in words or an irregular signature drops you back onto the slow first route.

Ten days to pay, five to object

The payment order gives the debtor ten days to pay. Any objection, including a denial of their own signature, goes to the enforcement court within five days, not to the enforcement office.

Objecting does not stop the file

The file keeps running unless the enforcement court orders a stay. A debtor who denies their signature and loses pays a fine of 10 per cent and compensation of at least 20 per cent of the claim.

The criminal lever on a bounced cheque

On the holder's complaint, the enforcement criminal court can impose a judicial fine of up to 1,500 days and ban the drawer from writing cheques or opening cheque accounts. That ban moves silent debtors.

Route four · Unpaid rent

Enforcement for Rent Arrears With an Eviction Request

One file, two demands

The same enforcement request claims the arrears and asks for the tenant out. No separate court case is needed to start it, and you do not have to be in Turkey.

Thirty days to pay, seven to object

For a home or a roofed business premises the payment order gives the tenant thirty days to clear the arrears, and seven days to dispute the lease or the amount.

Eviction order from the enforcement court

If the tenant neither pays nor objects, we apply for eviction. The application must be made within six months of the end of the payment period, or the eviction right is lost for that default.

Eviction carried out, arrears attached

Enforcement officers clear the property. The unpaid rent is collected in the same file against the tenant's bank accounts, salary and vehicle. Detail in our guide on evicting a tenant who does not pay rent.

What Debt Recovery in Turkey Costs

Official costs are published and identical for everyone. Our fee is not, but it sits between a statutory floor and a statutory ceiling, and both the percentage and the retainer are agreed in writing before anything is filed.

Paid to the state and to third parties

Official Costs

Advance enforcement fee, files opened without a judgment

0.5% of the claim, at filing

Application fee

TRY 732 in 2026

Expenses fee

Set by the scope of the file

Power of attorney copy fee

TRY 104 in 2026

Bar stamp on the power of attorney

TRY 164 in 2026

Notary

Annual notary tariff

Sworn translation

Priced per page

Fee of Debt Collection Lawyer in Turkey

How We Charge

How the fee is set

A percentage of the debt

What sets the percentage

Scope and detail of the file

Paid at the outset

A retainer, part of that percentage

Statutory ceiling

25% of the value in dispute

Statutory floor

Minimum Attorney Fee Tariff

Cost drivers, ranked

What Moves Your Total

1. Does the debtor object?

Biggest single factor

2. Is the debt on a signed document?

Decides which court

3. Can the debtor be served?

Weeks or months

4. Is a foreign judgment involved?

Adds a separate court case

The Minimum Attorney Fee Tariff, published each year in the Official Gazette by the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, is the floor below which a Debt Collection Lawyer in Turkey may not charge; a fee under it is a disciplinary matter, not a bargain. Article 164 of the Attorneys' Act No. 1136 sets the ceiling: a fee expressed as a percentage may not exceed 25 per cent of the value in dispute. The 2026 figures above are reset every January. Wider context in our guide to how much a lawyer costs in Turkey.

Ask for the number before you commit

Send the contract, the invoices and the debtor's information. We check the limitation date and the debtor's trade registry record, then set the percentage and the retainer in writing before you pay anything.

Get a Fee Estimate

Case Outcomes

Figures below come from closed files. Client names and identifying details are withheld.

Signature Denied, Assets Sold, Paid in Full Within a Year

An Italian creditor held a promissory note for more than TRY 2,000,000. We took the negotiable instrument route. The debtor denied the signature, which halts the sale but nothing else, so we attached their assets while the objection was still running. Once the signature objection was defeated we requested the sale and it went through. The client had the whole sum within a year.

Objection Set Aside, With 20 Per Cent Compensation on Top

A file opened without a judgment, where the debtor objected. On that route an objection freezes everything, so we sued at the competent court to have it set aside, and won. Because the objection had no basis behind it, the court ordered the debtor to pay a further 20 per cent of the claim as compensation. Two years from filing, the client had the debt, the compensation and the interest.

An English Judgment Made Enforceable, Then Collected

An English company sold goods to a Turkish buyer and was not paid. The contract sent disputes to the English courts, so the claim was heard and won there. A foreign judgment has no force in Turkey on its own: we brought the action to have it declared enforceable, and the moment that decision came through we opened enforcement on it. The client was paid.

From Our Legal Guides

Guides for Foreign Creditors in Turkey

Enforcement

Enforce Debt Collection in Turkey for Foreigners: The Six-Step Procedure

Read the enforcement guide

Unpaid Rent

How to Evict a Tenant Who Does Not Pay Rent in Turkey

Read the unpaid rent guide

Not Sure the Debt Is Worth Chasing?

Send Us the File for a Recovery Assessment

We check the limitation date and which enforcement route applies, then tell you whether to file.

Frequently Asked Questions

The questions foreign creditors ask us most often about debt collection in Turkey.

How do I collect a debt in Turkey if I live abroad?

You do not need to be in Turkey. You sign one Turkish-language power of attorney at a Turkish consulate or before a notary abroad with an apostille, and send documets regarding debt such as contract, invoices or cheque. We file the enforcement request as your Debt Collection Lawyer in Turkey, the enforcement office serves the payment order, and anything collected is transferred to the account you nominate.

Do I need a court judgment before starting debt collection in Turkey?

No. Article 42 of the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law No. 2004 lets you open an enforcement file on a money claim without suing first. The office issues a payment order and the debtor has seven days to pay or object. A court is only involved if they object, which is why the document you hold matters so much.

How long does debt collection in Turkey take?

If the debtor does not object, roughly two to four months from filing to funds, most of it spent serving the payment order. If they object and you hold a signed document, the Enforcement Court route usually runs three to nine months. Without a document, a full lawsuit plus mandatory mediation and a possible appeal can take two years or more.

Can a Turkish bank account be frozen for a debt?

Yes. Once the file is final we send a garnishment notice under article 89 of Law No. 2004 straight to the bank. The bank must answer within seven days and hold the balance; the debtor's consent is not required and they are not asked first. See why a Turkish bank account gets blocked.

My debtor gave me a cheque that bounced. Is that different?

Yes, and usually in your favour. A bounced cheque runs on the special enforcement track with a five-day objection window, and objecting does not automatically stop the file. Separately, article 5 of Cheque Law No. 5941 lets you apply to the Enforcement Criminal Court, where the drawer faces a judicial fine and a registered ban on writing cheques.

Can I enforce a foreign court judgment in Turkey?

Only after a Turkish civil court declares it enforceable, in a tenfiz case under Law No. 5718. You need the judgment marked final by the issuing court, an apostille and a sworn Turkish translation, and reciprocity must exist between Turkey and that country. Budget eight to eighteen months at first instance before enforcement can start.

How long do I have before a Turkish debt expires?

Ten years for most contractual debts under article 146 of the Turkish Code of Obligations, five years for rent and service fees under article 147, and three years on a cheque against the drawer.

What does it cost to start debt collection in Turkey?

At filing you pay the state an advance enforcement fee of 0.5 per cent of the claim on files opened without a judgment, an application fee of TRY 732 in 2026, and an expenses fee set by the scope of the file. Our own fee is a percentage of the debt, fixed when we take the file, with part of it paid at the outset as a retainer. Article 164 of the Attorneys' Act caps it at 25 per cent.

Enforcement office payment order and attachment paperwork in a Turkish debt collection file

Send Debt Collection Lawyer in Turkey the Debt and We Will Tell You If It Can Be Collected

The contract, the invoices and the debtor's name are enough to start. English-speaking, filed from Antalya across Turkey.

Talk to a Debt Collection Lawyer in Turkey: +90 530 936 94 64 Send Us the Debt File