LumenWhen does a foreigner become a tax resident in Turkey?
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Turkey's Income Tax Law treats you as settled in Turkey, and taxes your worldwide income, if your domicile is in Turkey or you stay continuously for more than six months in a calendar year; temporary trips abroad don't break the stay. Foreigners here for a specific temporary job, study, treatment, rest or travel are not settled.
Key facts
| What | The law says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Resident (full liability) | Taxed on all income earned inside and outside Turkey | Gelir Vergisi Kanunu, art. 3 |
| Test 1: domicile | Your domicile (ikametgah, as defined in the Civil Code) is in Turkey | Gelir Vergisi Kanunu, art. 4.1 |
| Test 2: length of stay | You stay in Turkey continuously for more than six months in one calendar year | Gelir Vergisi Kanunu, art. 4.2 |
| Short trips abroad | Temporary departures don’t interrupt the stay | Gelir Vergisi Kanunu, art. 4.2 |
| Foreigners who are not settled even after six months | Those here for a specific and temporary duty or job, or for study, medical treatment, rest or travel; those held by detention, conviction or illness | Gelir Vergisi Kanunu, art. 5 |
| Non-resident (limited liability) | Taxed only on income earned in Turkey | Gelir Vergisi Kanunu, art. 6 |
The two tests
The Income Tax Law calls a tax resident a person “settled in Turkey” (Türkiye’de yerleşmiş). Article 4 gives two separate tests, and meeting either one is enough:
- Domicile. Your domicile is in Turkey, in the sense of the Civil Code’s articles on domicile.
- More than six months in a calendar year. You stay in Turkey continuously for more than six months within one calendar year. The law says temporary departures don’t interrupt this period.
A settled person pays Turkish income tax on everything they earn, in Turkey and abroad (article 3).
Foreigners the six-month rule doesn’t catch
Article 5 lists foreigners who are not treated as settled even if they stay more than six months:
- business people, scholars and scientists, experts, officials, press and media correspondents, and people in a similar position, who come to Turkey for a specific and temporary duty or job;
- people who come for study, medical treatment, rest or travel;
- people held or kept in Turkey for reasons beyond their control, such as detention, a prison sentence or illness.
If you are not resident
A person who isn’t settled in Turkey is taxed only on income earned in Turkey (article 6). For wages, the law says they are earned in Turkey if the work is done in Turkey or “valued” in Turkey. Valued means the payment is made in Turkey, or, if it’s made abroad, it is booked to the accounts in Turkey of the payer or of the person on whose behalf it is paid, or set aside from its profit (article 7).
Related questions
- What rates apply: see the 2026 income tax brackets page for Turkey.
- Tax already paid abroad on foreign income can be credited, with limits (Gelir Vergisi Kanunu, art. 123).
Sources
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