Short answer: As of 6 November 2026, capital controls in Turkey do not stop foreign investors: Law 4875 and Decree 32 let them bring money in and send profits, dividends, sale proceeds and loan payments out freely through banks. The limits fall on residents and exporters: most contracts between residents cannot be priced in foreign currency, firms without currency income generally cannot borrow it, and goods exporters must bring proceeds home within 180 days and sell at least 35% to a bank until 31 January 2027. Several of these limits change by Treasury letter, so check the date on any statement.
Yes or no does not fit this question, because Turkey treats cross-border capital and residents' foreign-currency dealings differently. The main text is Decree No. 32 (32 Sayılı Karar) of August 1989, and its working detail sits in Turkish-only circulars of the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (TCMB). This guide cites them by article, read on 6 November 2026.
It is general information and not legal advice; for a real transaction, ask a Turkish adviser and check your home-country rules. It forecasts no new rules and has nothing on avoiding these. Physical cash is in bringing cash to Turkey and gains tax in capital gains tax in Turkey.
Does Turkey have capital controls? Free and limited, by text
On the texts read on 6 November 2026, money a foreign investor brings in or takes out moves freely through banks, and the limits fall mainly on residents' foreign-currency dealings and on goods exporters.
| Flow | Rule | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign direct investment | Free, unless a treaty or special law says otherwise | Law 4875 Art. 3(a) |
| Net profit, dividends, sale and liquidation proceeds, license and management fees, foreign loan payments | Free to transfer through banks | Law 4875 Art. 3(c) |
| Securities held by non-residents | Trading free through authorized banks and brokers; proceeds leave through banks | Decree 32 Art. 15(4) |
| Non-residents' property income and sale proceeds | Free through banks after tax | Decree 32 Art. 16(1); Capital Movements Circular Art. 13(1) |
| Limited: foreign-currency contracts between residents | Banned for most property, employment and service contracts | Decree 32 Art. 4(g) |
| Foreign-currency loans to residents | None for individuals; firms need currency income or an exception | Decree 32 Art. 17, 17/A |
| Goods export proceeds | Home within 180 days; at least 35% sold to a bank until 31 January 2027 | Export Circular Art. 4, temporary Art. 4 |
| Property bought by non-citizens | Price paid in currency sold to a bank and the central bank before the title deed; the seller gets lira | Capital Movements Circular Art. 13(2) |
Free almost always means through a bank, and the bank checks documents and tax first. Banks also report transfers abroad above USD 50,000, other than imports, exports and invisible transactions, to the central bank within 30 days (Communiqué 2008-32/34 Art. 3(8)); that is a report, not a permission. The texts set no time limit for a bank's checks. Trading limits are separate: see Turkey short selling ban.
Foreign direct investment law Turkey: what Law 4875 gives
Law 4875 of 5 June 2003 makes foreign direct investment free and treats foreign investors like local ones, unless a treaty or special law provides otherwise.
- Who. Foreign nationals, Turkish citizens living abroad and entities formed under foreign law (Art. 2(a)).
- What. A new company or branch, a share purchase off the exchange, or an on-exchange purchase giving at least 10% of shares or votes (Art. 2(b)). A smaller listed stake follows the securities rule in Decree 32; see how to buy Turkish stocks.
- Filing. Investors report statistical data (Art. 4); the E-TUYS filing is covered in company formation in Turkey.
- Liaison office. No commercial activity (Art. 3(h)), and no transfers abroad except on closure and liquidation (Capital Movements Circular Art. 9(3)).
Decree 32 calls anyone with a legal domicile in Turkey a resident, so a Turkish company owned by a foreign parent is a resident (Art. 2(b)); tax residence is a separate test.
How a foreign parent receives dividends or profit
A bank sends dividends and profit abroad against corporate and tax documents, and the circular describes no ministry approval except for foreign petroleum right holders.
| Payment | Documents or condition |
|---|---|
| Profit of a foreign investor's company, branch or stake (code F-1) | Certified tax return, balance sheet and income statement; tax slips; profit distribution table; a signed undertaking. First transfer: proof of publication in the Trade Registry Gazette |
| Profit straight after a general meeting resolves to distribute it | May go first, with an undertaking to bring the certified return and tax slips later |
| Dividends, interest and rent of non-residents (F-2, F-3, F-4) | The tax check below |
| Return of capital | Proof that tax and similar duties are met |
The bank must check tax on these codes (Art. 7(1)). A firm's own statement that a payment is exempt does not count (Art. 7(3)(d)), and a treaty claim needs a letter citing the treaty article or a Ministry document (Art. 7(3)(ç)). The rate is in Turkey dividend withholding tax.
How a foreign company pays a Turkish supplier
A foreign customer can contract and pay in foreign currency, because the contract ban binds only residents dealing with each other, and the supplier's duties then depend on whether it sold services or goods.
| Question | Services, software included | Goods exported |
|---|---|---|
| Must the money come to Turkey? | No, it may be disposed of freely (Decree 32 Art. 11) | Yes, within 180 days of export, or 90 days after a longer agreed term, with country exceptions in the annexes (Export Circular Art. 4) |
| Must it be sold for lira? | No, it may stay in a currency account. If sold to a bank, the bank passes at least 35% to the central bank and pays the seller lira (Invisible Transactions Circular Art. 5) | At least 35% must be sold to the bank until 31 January 2027; the standing rule beside it is 25% (Export Circular temporary Art. 4, additional Art. 3) |
Label the wire. An unexplained transfer of USD 50,000 or more, or TRY 1,250,000 or more, into a firm's account makes the bank take a written statement on whether it is a loan, including debts to foreign shareholders. With no statement, the transfer is not completed and goes back (Capital Movements Circular Art. 19(6)).
Hypothetical example. A German company sends USD 60,000 to an Istanbul software supplier with no reference. The bank cannot tell why it arrived, so it asks the supplier for the statement; if none comes, the money returns. The same wire naming the contract and invoice gives the bank its reason.
- Turkish-owned buyers. A foreign company 50% or more owned by Turkish residents counts as a resident for the contract ban, unless the contract is performed abroad (Communiqué Art. 8(24)).
- Paying a foreign vendor from Turkey. A Turkish customer shows the documents for a software debt under code N-1 (Invisible Transactions Circular Art. 21); up to USD 5,000 needs only its statement, once tax is shown (Art. 6(4)). See withholding tax on services.
- Southern Cyprus. Transfer requests to the Greek Cypriot Administration, the circular's term, are referred to the Ministry of Treasury and Finance (Art. 6(6)).
Currency controls Turkey: FX contracts between residents and FX loans
This is where Turkey's real limits sit: residents may hold foreign currency freely, but most cannot price deals with each other in it or borrow it without currency income.
A resident may keep currency, deal through banks and hold accounts (Decree 32 Art. 4(b)), and may accept it from non-residents for transactions in Turkey (Art. 4(c)).
| Contract between residents | Currency or indexation allowed? | Paragraph |
|---|---|---|
| Property sale or lease in Turkey | No, unless the buyer or tenant is a non-citizen or a foreign-owned firm | (1) to (3) |
| Employment | No, unless a party is a non-citizen, the employer is foreign-owned or the work is abroad | (6), (14), (19) |
| Services | No, unless a party is a non-citizen, the client is foreign-owned, or the service is export-related or carried out abroad | (7), (19) |
| Goods other than vehicles; software made abroad; licenses and services for foreign-made hardware and software; capital market instruments | Yes | (9), (10), (11), (18) |
Foreign-owned means a branch, office or company in which non-residents hold 50% or more, directly or indirectly, or have control (paragraph 19). Tying a lira price to gold or commodities priced in foreign currency still counts as indexation (paragraph 23).
Foreign-currency loans
- Individuals and indexed loans. A resident individual cannot take a currency loan, and no resident can take an indexed one (Decree 32 Art. 17, 17/A, paragraphs 6 and 7).
- Firms without currency income. Not allowed unless an exception applies, such as a balance already at USD 15 million or more or an investment incentive certificate (Art. 17(3), 17/A(3)).
- Firms with currency income. With a balance under USD 15 million, the new loan plus the balance cannot exceed currency income of the last three fiscal years (Art. 17(4), 17/A(4)).
- Shareholder loans. Loans from non-bank lenders abroad count toward the balance (Capital Movements Circular Art. 19(10)).
- Lira loans from abroad. Free, through a bank (Decree 32 Art. 17(1)).
A breach is a breach of Law 1567 (Decree 32 Art. 1). Its Article 3 sets a fine of TRY 3,000 to 25,000 as written, raised each year by the revaluation rate (Law 5326 Art. 17(7)), and 5% of market value for those who do not bring required proceeds home in time.
Turkish lira and foreign exchange: what non-residents can do
Non-residents may hold lira and currency accounts at Turkish banks, pay and collect in lira in Turkey and deal in currency with banks.
- Accounts. Both kinds are open, and balances can be used freely (Decree 32 Art. 3(b), 19). Steps are in bank account in Turkey for foreigners, and tax on interest in Turkish lira deposit rates.
- The rate. The lira's value is set under central bank procedures (Art. 5). Published rates are in Turkish central bank exchange rates.
- Leveraged trading by residents. Only through firms authorized by the Capital Markets Board (SPK); no one else may intermediate, and transfers abroad for such trades are barred (Art. 6(9)).
- A 2022 rule that is gone. News pages still describe the June 2022 limits set by the banking regulator (BDDK) on lira commercial loans to firms holding foreign-currency cash above fixed thresholds; BDDK Board Decision 11145 of 6 February 2025 repealed those decisions.
- An incentive, not a control. Under TCMB Communiqué 2023/5, last amended on 1 August 2026, a firm selling foreign-sourced currency to the central bank through a bank can claim 3% of the lira amount until 31 January 2027 (the standing rate is 2%), within the central bank's position-ratio limit and caps.
Where rule changes appear first, and how to check
Check the central bank's foreign exchange legislation page first, because several limits move by Treasury letter printed in its circulars, not by a new Official Gazette text.
| In force from | Minimum | Treasury letter dated |
|---|---|---|
| 10 June 2024 | 30% | 7 June 2024 |
| 3 March 2025 | 25% | 28 February 2025 |
| 5 May 2025 | 35%, temporary | 2 May and 31 July 2025 |
| 1 November 2025 | 35%, temporary, now to 31 January 2027 | 30 October 2025, 29 April and 30 July 2026 |
On 6 November 2026 the page listed the Capital Movements and Export Circulars in July 2026 files and the Invisible Transactions Circular of 18 May 2026. The consolidated Decree 32 and Communiqué on mevzuat.gov.tr, read the same day, show no amendment after 9 July 2025; that database can lag the Official Gazette, so check both before you sign.
The power to change sits in Law 1567 Art. 1, which gives the decisions to the President, and in Decree 32 Art. 20, under which the Ministry of Treasury and Finance can take any measure it considers necessary to protect the currency.
Frequently asked questions
Does Turkey have capital controls in 2026?
Not on foreign investors' entry or exit on the texts read on 6 November 2026: those transfers are free through banks. Limits apply to foreign-currency contracts between residents, to residents' foreign-currency loans and to goods exporters' proceeds.
Can two companies in Turkey sign a contract in dollars?
Often not. Property, employment and most service contracts between residents cannot be priced in foreign currency, although Communiqué 2008-32/34 Art. 8 has exceptions, including foreign-owned clients and goods other than vehicles.
Does a Turkish software exporter have to convert its dollars to lira?
No. A service exporter may keep the currency in an account. If it sells to a bank, the bank passes at least 35% on to the central bank and pays the seller in lira.
Could Turkey change these rules quickly?
The legal route exists: Law 1567 and Decree 32 Art. 20 give broad powers, and the exporter sale rate has changed by Treasury letter several times since 2024. This guide makes no forecast, so date every check.
Sources
- Mevzuat: Foreign Direct Investment Law No. 4875, consolidated text (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Ministry of Treasury and Finance: Decree No. 32, consolidated text, July 2025 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Ministry of Treasury and Finance: Communiqué 2008-32/34 under Decree No. 32, consolidated text, July 2025 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- TCMB: Foreign exchange legislation page, read 6 November 2026 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- TCMB: Capital Movements Circular of 2 May 2018, July 2026 file (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- TCMB: Invisible Transactions Circular of 18 May 2026 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- TCMB: Export Circular of 16 January 2020, July 2026 file (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Mevzuat: Law No. 1567 on the Protection of the Value of Turkish Currency, Articles 1 and 3 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Mevzuat: Misdemeanors Law No. 5326, Article 17(7) on yearly revaluation of fines (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Resmî Gazete: TCMB Communiqué 2026/11 on conversion support for firms, 1 August 2026 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Mevzuat: TCMB Communiqué 2023/5 on conversion support, consolidated with temporary Article 1 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- BDDK: Board Decision 11145 of 6 February 2025 repealing the 2022 loan-use decisions (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
This guide is general information, not investment, legal or tax advice. Amounts, rates and rules in Turkey change often: check the date given for each figure and the official source before you rely on it, and ask a licensed adviser about your own situation. Sources, checks and corrections: see the editorial policy.