Tapu process in Turkey

Turkey is an attractive, comfortable, and profitable country to live in. According to statistics of 2021, 64,500 apartments were sold to foreigners. Foreign investment in real estate was $3 billion.

The popularity of real estate in Turkey is due to the mild climate, relatively low cost of living compared to European countries, the availability of vegetables and fruits all year round.

If you want to buy a property in Turkey this article will help you to understand what documents are needed and how the process is going on.

TAPU is an official document confirming the ownership of the real estate in Turkey. TAPU can be issued for houses or apartments and farmland or building land. TAPU contains all information about the owner and the property.

The title deed document in Turkey is given for one person, but it can be issued for several persons. This procedure is simple in a legal sense. If one of the owners wants to sell his portion of the real estate, he has to get the permission of the other owners. You you don't have to issue TAPU for your children or wife/husband, because they are lineal descendants and can get a portion of their property.

The process of obtaining TAPU in Turkey begins with the preparation of the necessary documents. The list of documents can always be obtained from the Land and Cadaster Office. Sometimes a foreigner must provide permission from the military department that the property is not located in the security zone. At the same time, it is possible to collect the necessary documents in a short time, and you have not to obtain a residence permit. You can do it after buying the real estate. If you want to buy property in Turkey, you have to go through the following steps:

Step 1. Sale and purchase agreement. The contract between the seller and the buyer specifies the terms of the transaction, terms of payment, penalties. It should be noted that the contract is not enough to transfer the house or apartment to the property of the buyer.

Step 2. Making a deposit. According to the contract of sale, the buyer is obliged to make a deposit (guarantee prepayment) for the real estate. Usually, the deposit is 5-10% of the price. If the seller cancelled the agreement, he has to pay the deposit to the buyer in double amount. If the agreement was canceled by the buyer, the prepayment is not compensated to him.

Step 3. Preparing the necessary documents for the Land and Cadaster Office. For the final transfer of real estate into ownership, the buyer must provide the following documents for TAPU:

• Passport valid for at least 6 months,
• Certified translation of your passport, if required by the Land and Cadaster Office,
• Tax number, which you can get free at the nearest tax office,
• A special form indicating with buyer’s address in Turkey, names of the parents, marital status, date, and place of birth,
• The previous title deed if available,
• Dask - Compulsory Earthquake Insurance,
• 1 photo of the seller and 2 photos of the buyer (6x4),
• A document on the declared value of the property received from the municipality to which the property belongs,
• If the buyer or the seller doesn’t speak Turkish, there must be an accredited interpreter.

Step 4. Payments. The amount of TAPU registration, which includes various taxes and duties, is determined by state authorities. The buyer must also pay for the property in full at the time of receipt of the TAPU.

Registration of property rights can be carried out by power of attorney. To do this, you must provide a notarized power of attorney.

You can also apply for a title deed TAPU online using the seller's E-devlet, which helps to access the services offered by government institutions. Usually, the process of obtaining a TAPU takes several days. The buyer becomes the legal owner of the property in Turkey after getting the TAPU.