The rule in one paragraph
Article 20/D of the Turkish Income Tax Law, added by Law No. 7582 (Official Gazette, 21 May 2026), provides that individuals who are considered resident in Turkey, and who had no domicile and no tax registration in Turkey in the three calendar years before becoming resident, are exempt from Turkish income tax on income earned outside Turkey for twenty years. It applies to people who become resident on or after 1 January 2026.
Who is a Turkish resident?
You are considered resident if your domicile is in Turkey or you stay in Turkey continuously for more than six months in a calendar year. Temporary absences do not interrupt the stay.
Conditions
- Become a Turkish resident on or after 1 January 2026.
- No Turkish domicile and no Turkish tax registration in the previous three calendar years.
- Earlier registration only for rental income, investment income or capital gains in Turkey does not disqualify you; registration for salary or business income in those three years does.
- Apply to the competent tax office in time and obtain the exemption certificate.
- Companies cannot use this exemption; it is for individuals only.
Deadline and certificate
Apply by the end of the calendar year in which you become resident. If you become resident in November or December, the deadline is the end of Februaryof the following year. The tax office checks your residence date, the three-year look-back and the timing, and issues the “Exemption Certificate for Income Earned Abroad”. Late applications are refused.
What the exemption covers — and what it does not
- Exempt foreign income is not declared in Turkey, even if you file a return for other income.
- Turkish-source income (rent from Turkish property, Turkish dividends, salary, business income) remains taxable.
- Expenses relating to exempt income cannot be deducted from taxable Turkish income.
- Foreign taxes paid on exempt income cannot be credited against Turkish tax.
- According to the Revenue Administration, inheritance transfers within the 20-year period are taxed at 1%.
If it later turns out that the conditions were not met, the unpaid tax is collected with a tax loss penalty and late-payment interest, and the certificate is cancelled.