Inheritance laws in Turkey for foreigners and citizenship holders
The inheritance law in Turkey is one of the issues around which foreigners revolve question marks, especially since the inheritance law in Turkey differs in many things from the laws followed in the Arab countries, so we found it our duty in Aram Real Estate to share with you information Detailed information on this subject for foreigners, how the inheritance law in Turkey deals with this situation, and what are the ways of distributing inheritance in Turkey, along with other detailed and important information
Before we start talking in detail about the inheritance law in Turkey, we must briefly take note of some general information, terms and laws so that the picture is clear to the reader when we talk about the details of the inheritance law in Turkey in the subsequent paragraphs.
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Terminology of inheritance law in Turkey
Here are some of the terms we will use to talk about inheritance in Turkey
- Inheritance: It is what remains of the property of the deceased person
- Heir: The person entitled to transfer the property of the deceased to him, and the deceased person may have one or more heirs.
- Inherited: The deceased person whose personality has ceased or ceased, his non-existence and the resolution of his death, which is either a natural death or a judgmental death.
- Inheritance inventory: The process of counting the deceased’s property, debts, and taxes owed on him, in order to accurately determine what remains of his property.
- Inheritance tax: It is the fees to be paid to the Turkish government during the inventory of the inheritance and the distribution of the inheritance to its beneficiaries
- Will: It is the statement signed by a person before his death and included in it the manner in which he would like to distribute his inheritance.
Types of inheritance in Turkey
Inheritance in Turkey is all the remainder of the deceased’s movable and immovable property and money on Turkish lands, and it is of three types:
- The financial inheritance, including the balance of the deceased in the bank, or the regular cash money found with the deceased.
- Property includes homes, cars, companies, shops, land, and everything that belongs directly to the deceased
- Receivables: This includes unpaid debts and taxes
Legal heirs in Turkish law
Turkish law divides the legal heirs into two parts, the first section: the husband/wife and children
Section Two: Parents, Brothers, Grandparents, and Grandchildren
The first section always has priority in distributing the inheritance in Turkey and obtaining the largest share of it
The method of inventorying the inheritance in Turkey
For Turkish citizens, after the death of the Turkish citizen, the hospital that issued his death statement directly sends this statement to the relevant government departments, which are
- Civil Records Department
- taboo circle
- Competent Courts
This is done without any request from the heirs, it is automatically done.
In order for the heirs to begin the process of limiting the inheritance, the “information of inheritance” document must be extracted from the Noter Department. This document contains an explanatory statement of the share of each of the heirs and their rights in the property of the deceased person, whether transferred or immovable.
After that, the heirs go to the tax department to pay the inheritance fees, then go to the court and determine the inheritance distribution session, after which the court issues a decision to transfer property according to the approved distribution
Inheritance laws in Turkey for foreigners
Inheritance laws in Turkey, inheriting real estate in Turkey, inheritance laws in Turkey
What is meant by a foreigner is any person who resides in Turkey legally and does not hold Turkish citizenship, whether it is a tourist residence, a work residence, an investment residence, or any type of legal residence in Turkey
Syrians, Palestinians and Iraqis residing in Turkey fall under the temporary protection clause on the list of foreigners, but they cannot buy real estate or inheritance according to Turkish law
Cases of inheritance law for foreigners in Turkey
- If the country of the deceased was within the Hague Convention
If the deceased foreigner holds the nationality of one of the signatory countries to the Hague Convention on the Law of Inheritance for Foreigners in Turkey, the heirs have the right to bring the inheritance information documents and the family statement, and after their translation into Turkish and ratification by the notary in Turkey, they are approved in Turkish courts and the inheritance is distributed according to the law Inheritance for foreigners in Turkey or the law of the deceased’s home country at the request of the heirs.
- If there is a reciprocity agreement between Turkey and the country of the deceased
In the absence of the country of the foreign deceased within the Hague Convention, the court looks at the treatment received by the Turks in the country of the deceased, and accordingly, if there is a principle of reciprocity between the two countries, the inheritance information documents and the family statement are brought from the mother country of the foreign citizen, then translated and certified, a transaction is initiated Inheritance in Turkey in the competent courts.
- In the absence of the previous two options
In this case, the heirs need to file a lawsuit in the Turkish court to demand that the inheritance notification be removed from Turkey, and the court will verify the declaration of death and identify those involved in distributing the inheritance and those entitled to it by making contact with the competent authorities in the home country of the deceased
After granting the document informing the heirs from Turkey, the process of limiting the inheritance in the Turkish court begins normally.
Final note:
Among the Arab signatories to the Hague Convention:
- Egypt
- Jordan
- Tunisia
- Morocco, West, sunset
In general, all Arab nationalities whose children in Turkey can limit the inheritance easily and without any legal complications
- Documents required to determine the inheritance of foreigners in Turkey
To open the issue of the distribution of inheritance according to the inheritance law for foreigners in Turkey in the Turkish court, the following documents must be provided for each of the heirs
Document “Information of Genetics” translated and certified by the Noter Department
The family statement translated and certified by the Noter Department
Valid passport
Personal Photos·
- Inheriting real estate in Turkey
Real estate properties are also subject to the same inheritance laws in Turkey that we explained in the previous paragraphs, and the heirs can limit the inheritance and distribute it either by Turkish law or the law of the mother country
Also, the fees for inheriting real estate are calculated after valuing the property.
- The will of the deceased in Turkey
A will in Turkey is a document or statement in which a person declares his desire to distribute his inheritance after his death according to a specific path that he chooses. Hiring a Turkish lawyer to write and notarize the will in Turkey to make it official
The will in Turkey can be modified or revoked by its writer before his death, or another will be written, and the will in Turkey is approved in Turkish law, the last copy of the will if it has been modified
- Types of wills in Turkey
There are three types of wills in Turkey:
- The regular will: It is written by the Notre’s employees and documented there
- Manual will: It is written in the testator’s handwriting, with the date it was written and the signature of its owner, and must be documented in the notary as well.
- Oral will: It is accepted in Turkish law only in special circumstances, such as cases of severe illness, where the testator can tell his will to two witnesses who write it and sign their testimony, as well as document it in the notary.
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