10 Tips For Foreigners who will Establish a Company in Turkey

When we come to 2021, the procedures required in order to establish a company in Turkey by foreign investors reduced and this process is facilitated. In this article, we have focused on the usual procedures for setting up different types of companies. You can find 10 tips for foreigners about the conditions of starting a business and the company establishment processes in Turkey.

1- Market Research for Turkey                                      

Before making an investment decision in any sector, you should know and evaluate the volume of that market and the opportunities it will create. Turkey has managed to attract many investments in many important sectors such as international logistics, tourism and software. If you are planning to invest in Turkey, you must know the legal procedures,types of companies and investment incentives. While doing this, we recommend that you work with a professional consulting company.

2- Special Investment Zones in Turkey

There are three types of special investment zones for foreign investors who want to establish a company in Turkey:

• Free zones
• Organized industrial zones
• Technology development zones

Other incentives offered to foreign investors are provided by double tax treaties and Free Trade Agreements. These agreements allows trade between Turkey and many countries such as Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Chile, Croatia, Egypt, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Mauritius, Macedonia, Montenegro, Morocco, Norway, Palestine, Serbia, South Korea, Switzerland, Syria, Tunisia without being subject to customs tax.

3- Investment Incentive Zones in Turkey

Increasing exports by reducing imports, increasing investment support provided to less developed regions, increasing the amount of support elements, encouraging clustering activities, supporting future-oriented investments that will provide advanced technology transformation are among the main objectives of the new investment incentive system in Turkey. There are 6 investment incentive zones that have been created by taking these issues into consideration and displaying different characteristics in terms of their advantages and benefits. Investments are more supported in the provinces located in the 5th and 6th regions.

4- What are the Types of Companies in Turkey?

First of all, foreign entrepreneurs who want to invest in Turkey should know the basic characteristics of the legal entity types that have changed with the new Turkish Commercial Code enacted on July 1, 2012. The types of companies in Turkey are followed:

• Limited Company
• Joint Stock Company
• Commandite Company
• Unlimited Company
• Cooperative Company

5- Minimum Capital Amounts

Once the type of company that fits the above activities is selected, the registration and establishment process will not take too long. Foreign investors should also benefit from a certain amount of capital before starting the commercial activities of the company. For example, while a limited company requires a minimum capital of 10,000 TL, a joint stock company must have a minimum 50,000 TL collateral in bank account.

6- Which Incentives are Implemented in Turkey for Foreign Investors?

Wide-scale support mechanisms are implemented for foreigners who will invest in Turkey. Regardless of the investment region, all projects that meet the determined capacity conditions and the minimum fixed investment amount are supported within the framework of the General Investment Incentives Practices. The most common incentives are VAT exemption, Customs Duty exemption, investment location allocation and insurance premium support.

7- How Long Does It Take To Establish A Company In Turkey?

After the final arrangements for the provision of the necessary procedures to establish companies in Turkey takes an average of 30 minutes. It can take up to 3 business days for all legal procedures to be completed.

8- You Do Not Have to Come to Turkey for Establish a Company

You do not need to come to the country to establish a company in Turkey. You can resolve all of your company establishment processes in Turkey through an authorized consultancy firm. On the other hand, if you are not going to apply for a work permit in Turkey as the owner of the company, you will surely needTurkish nationality manager.

9- Legal Address

If you are going to establish a company in our country, you must have a legal address. For this, you can rent a physical office or contact companies that provide virtual office services.

10- Tax Issues in Turkey

First of all, if you are going to establish a company, you should know that there is a 20% corporate tax applied in Turkey. In addition, 3 types of Value Added Tax rates are applied in our country during product deliveries and service performances. The general rate is 18%, the discounted rates are 1% and 8% and vary according to the service sectors. On the other hand, companies are also liable for taxes such as withholding tax and stamp tax.