Short answer: A Turkish tax number for foreigners (vergi kimlik numarası) is a 10-digit number that the Revenue Administration (GİB) issues to people who have no Turkish foreign identity number. It can be requested on GİB's Digital Tax Office form Potential Tax Number Application for Foreigners or at any tax office with a passport. Foreigners who already hold a foreign identity number (yabancı kimlik numarası, 11 digits starting with 9) use that number as their tax number, a rule in force since 1 July 2010. Having a tax number does not by itself make anyone a Turkish taxpayer.
Check a number's format and check digits: Turkey tax ID validator.
Almost every financial step a foreigner takes in Turkey asks for a tax number: opening a bank account, signing at the land registry, completing a notarial deed or registering a car. Turkish law obliges banks, notaries and land registries to record the number of each party, so the request is not a formality that can be skipped.
This guide explains which number applies to you, how to get one online or in person, how to find a number you already have and how the formats differ. Rules and form fields are as published by GİB and in the Resmî Gazete, checked in October 2026. Residence permits, which produce the foreign identity number, are a separate subject handled by the Presidency of Migration Management and are not covered here.
What is a Turkish tax number and who needs one?
A Turkish tax number is the identifier that institutions must record for every party to certain transactions, and a foreigner needs one as soon as such a transaction comes up.
The legal basis is Law 4358 of 1998 on extending the use of tax identification numbers. As the Ministry of Finance's General Communiqué No. 1 under that law summarized it in 1998, the number is used in notarial transactions, enforcement proceedings, land registry (title deed) transactions, vehicle registration, use of checks, transactions with banks and similar financial institutions, and other transactions the Ministry designates. The Banking Law (No. 5411, Article 76) adds a direct rule: banks may not open deposit, credit or any other account, or provide transfers and other services, for customers who have not documented their identity and tax number.
Three numbers can serve as a tax number, depending on who you are:
| Number | Format | Who uses it |
|---|---|---|
| Tax identification number (vergi kimlik numarası, VKN) | 10 digits | Foreigners without a foreign identity number; companies and other entities |
| Turkish identity number (T.C. kimlik numarası) | 11 digits | Turkish citizens |
| Foreign identity number (yabancı kimlik numarası, YKN) | 11 digits, starting with 9 | Foreigners registered in the foreigners' population records, for example after a residence permit |
A number issued to a foreigner who has no taxable activity is called a potential tax number (potansiyel vergi kimlik numarası). GİB's internal circular on tax numbers (Series 2006/1) separates this from taxpayer registration: people who start an activity that creates tax liability register at the competent tax office, while people who only need a number for a transaction receive a potential number.
How to get a tax number in Turkey online
The fastest route is GİB's online form, which returns the number as a downloadable document straight after submission unless the system rejects the application.
The form is called Potential Tax Number Application for Foreigners (Yabancılar İçin Potansiyel Vergi Kimlik Numarası Başvurusu) and sits in the Digital Tax Office at dijital.gib.gov.tr. Its information note says it is for foreigners who have entered Turkey. As of October 2026 the form asks for:
- name, surname and gender;
- foreign identity number, which is optional and accepted only as 11 digits starting with 9;
- date of birth, place of birth, mother's name and father's name;
- country, passport number, passport validity date and passport issue date;
- mobile phone number, entered in international format with a plus sign, and address;
- a security code and confirmation that the information is accurate.
- Open the form and enter the details exactly as they appear in the passport.
- Submit; the system returns a document showing the number, which you should download and keep.
- Give the number to the bank, notary or land registry that asked for it.
The form has no payment step. Its information note also warns that a passport number can already have a number assigned to it, which happens if you, an employer or a previous transaction obtained one earlier; in that case the existing number has to be looked up rather than created again (see below).
Applying at a tax office (vergi dairesi)
Any tax office can issue a potential tax number in person, which is the fallback when the online form rejects your application.
Under GİB's internal circular 2006/1, foreigners who need a number for a transaction but have no taxable activity may apply to any tax office with their passport, either a notarized copy or the original together with a photocopy for the officer to certify. Tax offices also issue the 10-digit numbers that the 2010 communiqué describes as the numbers foreigners without a foreign identity number continue to use. GİB's February 2026 guide to provisional Article 67 adds a route used mainly by non-residents investing from abroad: banks, brokers and custodians can obtain numbers in bulk for foreign clients who cannot present one, by sending GİB's request form and the clients' documents to the Boğaziçi Tax Office in Istanbul.
A different procedure applies if you will earn income that has to be declared or taxed through registration, for example self-employment in Turkey. In that case the tax office responsible for the activity registers you as a taxpayer, which brings filing obligations of its own; see Turkey income tax brackets for how individual income is taxed. Employees on a payroll do not register this way; their employer withholds tax, as explained in the minimum wage guide.
When the foreign identity number replaces the tax number
Once you hold a foreign identity number, that 11-digit number is your tax number and the 10-digit potential number should no longer be used.
Tax Identification Number General Communiqué No. 4 (Resmî Gazete, 22 May 2010, No. 27588) set this rule. From 1 July 2010, foreign individuals who have a foreign identity number use only that number as their tax number in all transactions covered by the tax-number rules, and it is written in the tax number field of documents. They present the number shown on their residence permit or in letters from the competent authorities. Foreigners who are registered as taxpayers and later receive a foreign identity number must report it to their tax office: within one month in the general case, or with their first return if their income consists of wages, rental income, investment income or other earnings declared on that basis.
Hypothetical timeline: A software engineer arrives in Istanbul in March, obtains a 10-digit potential tax number online and uses it to open a bank account. In June she receives a residence permit with a foreign identity number starting with 9. From then on she gives the 11-digit number wherever a tax number is requested, and asks her bank to update its records. Because she is not registered as a taxpayer, she has no tax office to notify.
Banks and other institutions may still hold the old number in their files, so it is worth telling each institution when the number changes.
How do I find my Turkish tax number?
Most people find their number on the document they received when it was issued, and GİB offers two ways to recover it.
- Foreign identity number holders: the number printed on the residence permit is the tax number.
- Online application document: the document returned by the online form shows the number.
- Digital Tax Office inquiry: GİB's form notes that if a number is already assigned to your passport number, you can see it after logging in to the Digital Tax Office, under Inquiries/Verifications, in the section Potential Tax Number Inquiry for Foreigners.
- Tax office: any tax office can look the number up when you bring your passport.
Third parties can check registered taxpayers through GİB's verification services, but a potential number obtained only for a transaction does not mean you are a registered taxpayer.
Turkish tax number format and common mistakes
A tax number has 10 digits, while Turkish identity and foreign identity numbers have 11, and Turkish online forms usually accept either length in the same field.
GİB's own forms show the convention: fields labeled T.C. / Vergi Kimlik Numarası reject entries shorter than 10 or longer than 11 digits, and the foreign identity number field accepts only 11 digits beginning with 9. Typical mistakes are:
- entering the passport number where a tax number is requested;
- continuing to use a 10-digit potential number after receiving a foreign identity number;
- applying online again with a new passport while a number is already recorded against the old one; ask a tax office instead of creating confusion in the records;
- spelling the name differently from the passport, which creates records that do not match your identity document.
What the tax number is used for, and what it does not do
The number lets institutions report your transactions to the tax administration; it does not decide whether you are taxed in Turkey.
Common uses for foreigners include opening a bank account (see bank account in Turkey for foreigners), buying or selling property at the land registry, where fees and taxes are covered in Turkey property tax and title deed fee, notarial transactions and vehicle registration. Brokerage accounts for Borsa İstanbul shares are opened through banks and intermediaries that apply the same identification rules; see how to buy Turkish stocks.
Tax residence is a separate test. Under Article 4 of the Income Tax Law (No. 193), a person is resident if their domicile is in Turkey or if they stay in Turkey continuously for more than six months in a calendar year; Article 5 excludes foreigners who come for a specific temporary assignment or for study, treatment, rest or travel. Residents are taxed on worldwide income and non-residents only on income earned in Turkey (Article 6). Check how your home country taxes the same income and whether a tax treaty applies.
Frequently asked questions
Does it cost anything to get a Turkish tax number?
GİB's online form for foreigners has no payment step. In person, any tax office can issue a potential tax number when you bring your passport.
Do I need a new tax number after getting a residence permit?
No. Since 1 July 2010 foreigners who hold a foreign identity number use that 11-digit number as their tax number in all transactions, so the 10-digit potential number is no longer used.
How many digits does a Turkish tax number have?
A tax identification number issued by GİB has 10 digits. Turkish identity numbers and foreign identity numbers have 11 digits, and foreign identity numbers start with 9.
Can I get a Turkish tax number online?
Yes. GİB's Digital Tax Office has a form called Potential Tax Number Application for Foreigners that returns the number as a document when your passport details can be matched. Its information note says it is for foreigners who have entered Turkey.
Does having a Turkish tax number make me a taxpayer in Turkey?
No. A potential tax number is issued for transactions and does not create taxpayer registration. Tax residence depends on domicile or a continuous stay of more than six months in a calendar year under the Income Tax Law.
Sources
- GİB Digital Tax Office: Potential Tax Number Application for Foreigners (form and information note) (opens in a new tab)
- Resmî Gazete: Tax Identification Number General Communiqué No. 4 on the foreign identity number, 22 May 2010, No. 27588 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Resmî Gazete: Tax Identification Number General Communiqué No. 1 on Law 4358, 18 April 1998, No. 23317 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- GİB internal circular on tax identification numbers, Series 2006/1, foreign nationals section (Turkish, text via Lexpera) (opens in a new tab)
- Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi: Banking Law No. 5411, Article 76 (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi: Income Tax Law No. 193, Articles 4 to 6 on residence (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- BDDK regulation on accepting deposits and participation funds, Article 4 (identity and tax numbers) (Turkish) (opens in a new tab)
- GİB: Guide to provisional Article 67 of the Income Tax Law, February 2026, section 25 on non-resident individuals and tax numbers (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.