Land Registry Law (Law No. 2644)

In the registration of immovable property, the competent persons are: where the immovable belongs to the State, the most senior finance officer of the place where it is located; where it belongs to a special provincial administration, the governor; where it belongs to the pious foundations (evkaf), the director or officer of pious foundations; where it belongs to a municipality, the mayor; where it belongs to a village, the village headman (muhtar); and where it belongs to other legal persons established under a special law, their legal representatives. The provisions of the laws setting out the manner in which these representatives exercise their powers remain in force.

In the land registry transactions of legal persons, it is mandatory to submit a document, to be obtained from the most senior civil administrative chief of the place where their head office or branches are located, certifying that they are authorised under their statutes to dispose of immovable property and attesting to the authority of the representative who will carry out the registration. Commercial companies shall obtain this document from the trade registry officer.

Immovable property owned, on the basis of firmans and Government decisions, by religious, scientific and charitable institutions belonging to foreigners whose existence has been recognised by the Government of the Republic of Türkiye may be registered in the name of the legal personality of such institutions, provided that the limits of those documents are not exceeded and the permission of the Government is obtained.

In transactions relating to the registration of mines, the documents to be issued pursuant to the special laws and regulations thereon must have been certified by the Ministry of Economy (İktisat Vekaleti).

Repealed: 4/11/1990, Law No. 3678, Art. 31

Repealed: 11/6/1945, Law No. 4753, Art. 64

Repealed: 16/2/1995, Law No. 4070, Art. 15

For areas intended to be reclaimed from the sea, permission must be obtained from the most senior finance officer of that place. This permission shall be granted for a period of 3 years after the consent has been obtained of the municipality if the area to be reclaimed is within municipal boundaries, of the harbour office or the maritime trade administration if it also concerns the port, and, in places where there is a fortified zone command, of the fortified zone command. If the area is outside municipal boundaries, the consent of the provincial or district administrative board, as relevant, shall be obtained. Areas reclaimed with permission in this manner shall be entered in the land registers in the name of the person who reclaimed them, on the basis of documents to be obtained from the authorities that granted the permission, without requiring payment of their value. Persons who fail to complete the reclamation within three years without a valid excuse shall be divested of such areas.

If the relevant authorities and boards accept that there is no objection to the registration of areas reclaimed without permission, the reclaimed areas shall be registered in the name of the person who reclaimed them, provided that one tenth of the value of the reclaimed areas in their reclaimed state is collected.

Where the relevant authorities referred to in Article 8 notify that there is no objection to the sale of areas on the seashore formed by alluvial deposits or by the ebb and flow of the sea, the owner of an immovable adjoining such areas shall have the right to purchase the portion adjoining his immovable, at the value to be assessed, within two years from the service of notification upon him. Those who purchase such areas shall have the right to build a quay in order to protect them.

Where it is intended to reclaim the area in front of or adjoining an owned immovable, permission may not be granted to anyone other than its owner. Where the relevant authorities and boards notify that there is no objection to the registration of such an area reclaimed by its owner without permission, one tenth of the value of the reclaimed area in its reclaimed state shall be collected and the area shall be registered, merged with the principal property, in the name of the person who reclaimed it or of the person who has succeeded him.

In reclamation works to be carried out by the State or by a provincial, municipal or village council for health, social or economic reasons, the owners of immovable property referred to in the paragraph above shall be offered to carry out the reclamation and shall be granted a period sufficient for it. If they do not carry out the reclamation within this period, they shall lose this right.

Where, before completion of the reclamation of an area in front of or adjoining an immovable which its owner intends to reclaim, that immovable passes into the ownership of another person or is encumbered with a right in rem, such transaction shall, unless otherwise agreed, also extend to the reclaimed area, subject to the conditions of the works.

Land formed through the construction of ports and breakwaters and through cleaning and dredging carried out by the State or by provinces and municipalities shall be subject to the provisions of their special laws.

The provisions of Articles 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 shall also apply to the shores of lakes and rivers that are not marshland. However, a technical report shall be required showing that the main bed of the river and the flow of the waters will not be disturbed and that no harm will be caused to downstream areas or to others.

Where ownerless areas consisting of land abandoned by the sea, a lake or a river which are capable of being possessed independently are located in front of or adjoining an owned immovable, the owner of that immovable shall be offered to purchase them at their value. If he does not apply within one year, they shall be sold to others.

Where such areas are not capable of being possessed independently, they shall be transferred to the owners of the adjoining immovables at the value to be assessed, and those owners shall be made debtors for that value.

To the owners of areas invaded or destroyed by a lake or river, without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 636 and 637 of the Civil Code, an equivalent may be given free of charge if there is land formed on the opposite side for these reasons.

Repealed first paragraph: 18/1/1950, Law No. 5516, Art. 12

Where the necessity of draining marshes formed on owned land arises for health reasons and the owners do not drain them within a reasonable period to be granted by the State or the province, the marsh shall be drained by the State or the province. The land of those owners who contribute to the cost of drainage shall be given to them. The land of those who do not contribute to the cost shall become the property of the party that drains it. Amended: 18/10/1962, Law No. 79, Art. 1 In this case, the provisions of Expropriation Law No. 6830 shall apply in determining the price to be paid to the landowner as the real value of the immovable in its marshy state.

Except as permitted under their special laws, no fields may be opened and no private buildings may be constructed in forests, groves and coppices belonging to the State, municipalities and villages. Even in forests belonging to private persons, no fields may be opened unless permission is obtained from the competent ministry.

The second-instance approval of the values assessed by experts shall be the responsibility of the local administrative boards, with the participation of two persons to be selected by the municipalities.

The tax values referred to in this Law are the values that constitute the tax base under the Building Tax Law No. 1837 and the Land Tax Law No. 1933.

The values shall be collected together with the tax, in equal instalments within five years, in accordance with the Law on the Collection of Public Receivables (Tahsili Emval Kanunu). Once the instalments for two years have been paid, the immovable shall be registered in the name of the owner, and it shall be mortgaged for the remaining instalments.

Values accrued in respect of transactions completed before the publication of this Law shall also be collected in instalments in the manner set out in Article 19.

Closed roads and surplus road land within village and municipal boundaries shall be registered in the name of the village or the municipality.

Added paragraph: 17/1/2019, Law No. 7161, Art. 1 Cadastral roads in the use of the Turkish Armed Forces, the General Command of the Gendarmerie, the Coast Guard Command and the General Directorate of Security shall be registered in the name of the Treasury.

Repealed: 4/7/2019, Law No. 7181, Art. 4

Where, for transactions requiring a certificate (ilmühaber), the municipal council or the council of elders refuses to certify the certificate, it shall be obliged to explain the reasons for such refusal by annotation. If it fails to do so, legal proceedings shall be instituted against it.

If the land registry administrations, upon their examination and inquiry, find that these reasons are not lawful, they shall refer the matter to the land registry commission. If the commission also decides that the reasons are not lawful, the transaction shall be carried out by the land registry administrations. If it decides otherwise, the land registry administrations shall refer the person concerned to the court in cases falling outside the scope of Law No. 1515. Persons concerned have the right to object to the decisions of district land registry commissions before the provincial land registry commissions.

Abandoned and unclaimed cemeteries in villages and public cemeteries belonging to foundations shall be registered in the name of the legal personality of the village.

Special provisions shall be laid down concerning the registration and the manner of purchase and sale of places deemed to be common village property, such as pastures and coppices, other than those covered by Article 159 of the Municipal Law No. 1580 and Article 21 of the Settlement Law No. 2510.

Amended: 6/1/1954, Law No. 6217, Art. 1

Official deeds concerning ownership, rights in rem other than ownership, and the establishment of, or a promise to establish, a servitude pursuant to the provisions of Article 753 of the Civil Code for the purpose of securing, among the co-owners of a common plot of land or among the owners of adjoining immovables, the exclusive use by one or more of them of a specific floor or flat, or of an independently usable section, of a building existing or to be constructed on that immovable, shall be drawn up by the land registry director or land registry officials.

Added paragraph: 4/7/2019, Law No. 7181, Art. 1 In contracts aimed at the transfer of ownership of immovable property, where the parties are located at different land registry directorates or at the organisation abroad, the contract may be completed by the declarations of intent of the parties being taken separately by public officials. The procedures and principles concerning the application of this paragraph shall be determined by regulation.

Added paragraph: 15/1/2009, Law No. 5831, Art. 1 Among the directorates other than the land registry directorates located in provincial centres, in places where contractual and non-contractual transactions number fewer than 500 per year, authority may be granted by the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, on specified days, to a land registry director serving in nearby provinces or districts or to an authorised officer assigned for this purpose, to carry out such transactions.

Added paragraph: 15/1/2009, Law No. 5831, Art. 1 The procedures and principles concerning the drawing up of official deeds shall be determined by regulation.

Upon the request of the persons concerned, officers shall go to their residences in order to draw up the official deed; any attachment and restriction orders issued in the meantime shall be served on the officer who has gone to the residence to draw up the official deed.

Added provision: 2/4/1998, Law No. 4358, Art. 3 The tax identification numbers of the parties shall be recorded in the official deed together with their identity information. Amended: 6/3/1981, Law No. 2421, Art. 1 The official deed shall be signed by the parties and by the land registry directorate officials who prepared it, and shall be approved by the land registry director or the assigned officer. Where there is doubt as to the identity of the parties, the production of witnesses may be requested. Provisions of laws making the presence of witnesses mandatory are reserved. The same procedure shall also apply to contracts to be concluded pursuant to Law No. 711 dated 11 January 1926.

Promises to establish a servitude referred to in the first paragraph shall be annotated ex officio in the land register. Official deeds concerning a promise to establish a servitude, upon being annotated in the land register, shall also bind subsequent owners of the immovable to which they relate.

Promissory contracts for the sale of immovable property and construction contracts in exchange for land shares, drawn up by notaries pursuant to subparagraph (B) of Article 44 of the Notaries Law, shall also be annotated in the land register upon the request of either party.

If, within five years from the annotation, the sale is not made or the servitude is not established and registered in the land register, such annotation shall be cancelled ex officio by the land registry director or land registry officials.

Added: 26/4/1984, Law No. 3000, Art. 1; Amended: 15/2/2018, Law No. 7099, Art. 1 Mortgage transactions concerning immovables provided as security for all debts and loans extended or to be extended by public institutions and organisations, credit institutions, banks, tradesmen and craftsmen credit and guarantee cooperatives and agricultural credit cooperatives shall, upon the request of the parties, be registered in the land register at land registry directorates on the basis of the loan or debt agreement signed by the parties.

Added: 12/3/1985, Law No. 3163, Art. 1; Repealed last paragraph: 15/1/2009, Law No. 5831, Art. 1

Added paragraph: 4/3/2021, Law No. 7292, Art. 19 Mortgage transactions concerning immovables provided as security for financing extended or to be extended to customers by savings finance companies within the scope of the Financial Leasing, Factoring, Financing and Savings Finance Companies Law No. 6361 dated 21/11/2012 shall, upon the request of the parties, be registered in the land register at land registry directorates on the basis of the signed savings finance agreement.

Repealed: 4/7/2019, Law No. 7181, Art. 4

Land registry transactions relating to contracts and registration may not be suspended by administrative orders.

Repealed: 25/2/1952, Law No. 5887, Art. 126

For immovable property not based on a plan or an official survey, the boundaries known and determined from of old shall be taken into account. The provision of Article 215 of the Code of Obligations remains in force.

Amended: 25/1/1950, Law No. 5520, Art. 1

Where the surface area of immovable property turns out to exceed the amount recorded in the land register and the court decides that this excess does not result from encroachment upon adjoining land and that there has been no change in the boundaries, the area shall be recorded in the register in accordance with the decision.

The court shall conduct examinations at the site of the immovable and shall hear the owners of the adjoining immovables. A map of the place, to be prepared by land registry technical officers or, where there are none, by authorised technical officers or engineers, shall also be attached to the court decision. In the event of objection, an action shall be brought within the framework of the general provisions.

In the division into parcels of immovables that have a plan or an officially prepared map, whether by judicial decision or by consent, the preparation of a map is mandatory. In places within the municipal boundaries of cities and towns where there is a land registry technical officer, a map shall also be prepared for the division into parcels of immovables not linked to a plan or map. For immovables located outside municipal boundaries that are divided into parcels by judicial decision, the preparation of a map shall be at the discretion of the judge.

No fees or charges of any kind shall be collected, and no stamps shall be affixed, in respect of applications made to the court by the land registry keeper or officer pursuant to Articles 934 and 935 of the Civil Code for the rectification of the register and for the determination of whether a right in rem has been extinguished, or in respect of the decisions to be rendered thereon.

In contracts for consideration and in cases where the conclusion of one contract depends on the conclusion of another, the persons concerned may appoint the land registry keeper or officer as escrow holder (yediadil). In this case, payment of the money by the officer to the persons entitled shall depend on the completion of the contracts. If the contracts are not completed, the officer shall immediately return the money to the person from whom it was received, in the presence of the persons concerned and before they disperse, and shall cancel the related transactions.

Rearranged: 29/12/2005, Law No. 5444, Art. 1; Amended: 3/5/2012, Law No. 6302, Art. 1

Subject to compliance with statutory restrictions, foreign natural persons who are nationals of countries determined by the President of the Republic, in terms of bilateral international relations and where the interests of the country so require, may acquire immovable property and limited rights in rem in Türkiye. The total area of the immovables and of the independent and permanent limited rights in rem acquired by foreign natural persons may not exceed ten percent of the area of the district subject to private ownership and thirty hectares per person throughout the country. The President of the Republic is authorised to increase the amount that may be acquired per person throughout the country up to twofold.

Commercial companies with legal personality established in foreign countries under the laws of their own countries may acquire immovable property and limited rights in rem only within the framework of the provisions of special laws. Entities other than such commercial companies may not acquire immovable property, and no limited rights in rem may be established in their favour. The restrictions set out in this Article shall not apply to the establishment of immovable pledges in favour of such commercial companies and of foreign natural persons.

Where the interests of the country so require, the President of the Republic may determine, restrict, partially or completely suspend or prohibit the acquisition of immovable property and limited rights in rem by foreign natural persons and by commercial companies with legal personality established in foreign countries under the laws of their own countries, in terms of country, person, geographical region, duration, number, ratio, type, nature, surface area and quantity.

Foreign natural persons and commercial companies with legal personality established in foreign countries under the laws of their own countries shall be obliged to submit the project they will develop on the undeveloped immovable they have purchased to the relevant Ministry for approval within two years. The project approved by the relevant Ministry, with its commencement and completion periods determined, shall be sent to the land registry directorate where the immovable is located in order to be recorded in the declarations section of the land register. Whether the approved project is realised within its time limit shall be monitored by the relevant Ministry.

The maps and coordinate values of military forbidden zones, military security zones and strategic zones shall be provided by the Ministry of National Defence within one year at the latest from the date of entry into force of this Law, and the maps and coordinate values relating to decisions amending such places within one month from the date on which the amendments are made; and the maps and coordinate values of special security zones and of decisions amending them shall be provided by the Ministry of Interior within the same periods; in each case to the Ministry to which the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre is attached. After one year from the date of entry into force of this Law, land registry transactions shall be carried out according to the documents and information sent pursuant to this paragraph.

Immovables and limited rights in rem acquired in breach of the provisions of this Article, those determined by the relevant Ministries and administrations to be used contrary to the purpose of acquisition, those for which no application has been made to the relevant Ministry within the time limit or whose projects have not been realised within the time limit, and those acquired by inheritance outside the restrictions within the scope of the first paragraph of this Article shall, if not liquidated by the owner within a period not exceeding one year to be granted by the Ministry of Finance, be liquidated and converted into money, and the proceeds shall be paid to the right holder.

Rearranged: 3/7/2008, Law No. 5782, Art. 2; Amended: 3/5/2012, Law No. 6302, Art. 2

Companies with legal personality established in Türkiye in which foreign natural persons, legal persons established under the laws of foreign countries and international organisations, excluding persons within the scope of Article 28 of the Turkish Citizenship Law No. 5901 dated 29/5/2009, hold fifty percent or more of the shares or have the power to appoint or dismiss the majority of the persons vested with management rights, may acquire and use ownership of immovable property or limited rights in rem in order to carry out the fields of activity specified in their articles of association.

Where the companies referred to in the first paragraph become shareholders, directly or indirectly, in another company established in Türkiye, the same principles shall apply if the ultimate shareholding ratio of the foreign investor in the company in which the shareholding is held is fifty percent or more; the same principles shall also apply where foreign investors directly or indirectly acquire fifty percent or more of the shares of domestic-capital companies owning immovable property, and where, in existing foreign-capital companies owning immovable property, the shareholding ratio of foreign investors reaches fifty percent or more as a result of a share transfer.

Without prejudice to the provisions of the Military Forbidden Zones and Security Zones Law No. 2565 dated 18/12/1981, the acquisition by these companies of ownership of immovable property in military forbidden zones, military security zones and zones determined within the framework of Article 28 of the same Law shall be subject to the permission of the General Staff or of the commands it authorises; and the acquisition of ownership of immovable property in special security zones shall be subject to the permission of the governorship of the place where the immovable is located. In the assessments to be made under this paragraph, the compatibility of the acquisition with national security shall be taken as the basis.

Foreign-capital companies falling outside the scope of the preceding paragraphs may acquire and use ownership of immovable property and limited rights in rem within the framework of the provisions to which domestic-capital companies are subject.

The provisions of this Article shall not apply to the establishment of immovable pledges; to acquisitions of ownership within the scope of the conversion into money of immovable pledges; to the transfer of ownership of immovable property and limited rights in rem arising from company mergers and divisions; to acquisitions of ownership of immovable property and limited rights in rem in special investment zones such as organised industrial zones, industrial zones, technology development zones and free zones; or to immovables acquired by banks by reason of transactions deemed to be loans under the Banking Law No. 5411 dated 19/10/2005 or for the purpose of collecting their receivables, provided that the obligation to dispose of them within a certain period under the relevant legislation continues.

The use of immovables acquired under this Article shall be monitored at regular intervals by governorships on the basis of land registry records.

Immovables and limited rights in rem determined to have been acquired or used in breach of the provisions of this Article shall, if not liquidated by the owner within the period to be granted by the Ministry of Finance, be liquidated and converted into money, and the proceeds shall be paid to the right holder.

The procedures and principles concerning the application of this Article shall be laid down by regulation issued by the Ministry of Economy after obtaining the opinions of the relevant institutions and organisations.

Transfers by succession of foreign natural persons shall be carried out on the basis of certificates of inheritance issued by the courts of the Republic of Türkiye, or issued by their own competent authorities and certified by Turkish courts as being in conformity with the provisions of Turkish laws on the procedure of inheritance.

The Title Deed Regulation dated 8 Jumada al-Awwal 1275 and its supplements, the Property Regulation dated 28 Rajab 1291, the regulatory provisions on land dated 7 Muharram 1293, the Instructions on title deeds promulgated by imperial decree on 8 Rajab 1276, the Tariff promulgated by imperial decree on 28 Rajab 1276, the Provisional Law dated 3 March 1329 on the disposition of immovable property, the Regulation dated 17 July 1323 on the organisation and reorganisation of the land registry (defterhane) administrations and its supplements, and the Law dated 30 January 1926 on affixing photographs of the persons concerned to title deeds and records in transactions of disposition of immovable property, in respect of their provisions not already abolished by the Civil Code, the Law on the Implementation of the Civil Code and the Code of Obligations, as well as the provisions of other laws that are inconsistent with this Law, are hereby repealed.

Added: 3/5/2012, Law No. 6302, Art. 3

Where the transfer by inheritance has not been effected in the land register within two years at the latest from the date of death, the land registry directorate may apply to the judiciary for the issuance of a certificate of inheritance. The land registry directorate shall update the land register records by registering them as joint ownership (elbirliği mülkiyeti) in accordance with the certificate of inheritance. Applications of the land registry directorate within the scope of this power shall be exempt from all kinds of expenses, taxes, duties and fees.

Added: 10/9/2014, Law No. 6552, Art. 84

Recourse claims to be brought against negligent personnel in respect of payments made owing to the strict liability of the State in connection with land registry and cadastral transactions shall be subject to limitation upon the expiry of two years from the date of payment and, in any event, ten years from the date on which the transaction causing the damage was carried out. The provisions of Article 73 of the Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098 dated 11/1/2011 shall be reserved for personnel whose liability is based on gross fault.

Added: 4/7/2019, Law No. 7181, Art. 2

Service shall be made on the owners of the shares adversely affected by an error arising from the cadastral survey or from transactions carried out in the land register, and on the beneficiaries of rights in rem and personal rights, showing the causes of the error and the share situation that will result after the correction.

An annotation concerning the transaction to be carried out shall be entered in the declarations section of the title deed record, and this annotation shall be maintained until the correction becomes final.

If the persons concerned give their consent within thirty days from the date of service, the correction shall be made. If consent is not given within this period, the land registry directorate shall correct the erroneous record ex officio and shall notify the person concerned of the outcome of the transaction, together with a warning that an action against the correction may be brought before the civil court of first instance within sixty days from service.

Added: 7/5/2026, Law No. 7579, Art. 1

Valuation reports prepared, pursuant to the housing finance and capital markets legislation, by valuation institutions authorised by the Capital Markets Board and the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency shall mandatorily be sent electronically and free of charge to the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, on the date the report is prepared, by the public institutions and organisations, banks and other financial institutions that commissioned them. The procedures and principles concerning the electronic transmission of the data shall be determined by the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre after obtaining the opinions of the relevant institutions and organisations.

This is the unnumbered Provisional Article of Law No. 2644 and has been numbered for the sake of sequence.

The provisions of Article 6 of this Law shall also apply to places that were cleared and turned into fields, vineyards or orchards before the entry into force of this Law but whose transactions have not yet been completed.

Added: 29/12/2005, Law No. 5444, Art. 2

All maps and coordinate values pertaining to the decisions on military forbidden zones, military and special security zones and strategic zones existing on the date of entry into force of this Law shall be sent by the Ministry of National Defence, within three months at the latest, to the Ministry to which the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre is attached.

During the period until the maps and coordinate values pertaining to the decisions on the zones specified above are sent to the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, transferred to digital format and conveyed to the provincial units, land registry transactions shall be carried out by consulting the competent military authorities, and after the said operations are completed, in accordance with the documents and information sent.

Added: 3/7/2008, Law No. 5782, Art. 3

The relevant institutions and organisations shall notify the commission, within three months at the latest from the date of entry into force of this Article, pursuant to the seventh paragraph of Article 35 of this Law, of the surface areas of the zones in which natural persons of foreign nationality and commercial companies having legal personality established under the laws of their own countries in foreign countries may not acquire immovable property and limited rights in rem, and the governorships shall notify it of the surface areas of the total areas falling within the boundaries of the implementary zoning plans and local zoning plans of the districts specified in that paragraph.

Annulled paragraph 2: by Constitutional Court decision of 12/5/2011, E. 2008/79, K. 2011/74

Added: 4/7/2019, Law No. 7181, Art. 3

In respect of fixed-term mortgages that have not been deregistered although their term expired before the date of entry into force of the second paragraph of Article 883 of the Turkish Civil Code No. 4721 dated 22/11/2001, the thirty-day period specified in the said paragraph shall begin on the date of entry into force of this Article.

The provisions of this Law shall enter into force on the date of its publication.

The provisions of this Law shall be executed by the Ministers of Justice, the Interior and Finance.

PROVISIONAL ARTICLE THAT COULD NOT BE INCORPORATED INTO PRINCIPAL LAW No. 2644 DATED 22/12/1934:

1 - Provisional Article introduced by Law No. 3000 dated 26/4/1984:

Provisional Article: The power to issue decrees having force of law granted to the Council of Ministers by the Law No. 2977 dated 2/2/1984 on Delegation of Authority Concerning the Reorganisation of Administrative Procedures and Transactions shall remain valid in respect of the Land Registry Law No. 2644 dated 22/12/1934 until the expiry of the period granted by the said Law.