Employer of Record (EOR) in Türkiye

Navigating the complexities of Türkiye labor law is a significant challenge when expanding into this dynamic market. Employer of record (EOR) products and services provide businesses a streamlined approach to navigate these challenges effectively. G-P EOR solution simplifies your expansion by enabling you to hire and onboard talent in Türkiye in minutes, without the need to establish a local legal entity.

Through our global entity infrastructure, G-P acts as the legal employer, handling payroll, tax compliance, benefits administration, and HR matters in full compliance with Türkiye laws and regulations. This allows you to focus on managing your operations and growing your business prospects while we manage the complexities of employment compliance in Turkey and legal requirements.

Hiring in Türkiye

Expanding your team into Türkiye means navigating the country's specific employment regulations, primarily governed by the Turkish Labor Law No. 4857. When negotiating an employment contract and offer letter with an employee in Türkiye, it’s essential to understand Turkish standards for compensation, benefits, and termination. An EOR provides expert guidance through this process, ensuring compliance from day one.

While trade unions and Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) exist in Türkiye, their prevalence varies by industry. It's important to determine if a CBA applies to your sector when defining employment terms.

Employment contracts in Türkiye

While it is a best practice for all employment relationships, a written employment contract is legally mandatory for fixed-term contracts or contracts lasting one year or more. The contract must be in Turkish and clearly state the terms of the employee's compensation, benefits, and termination requirements. All monetary values, including salary and any allowances, must be specified in Turkish Lira (TRY).

Partnering with an EOR like G-P ensures the generation of a locally compliant employment contract for every hire, protecting your business and setting clear expectations for your employees.

Working hours in Türkiye

The standard workweek in Türkiye is a maximum of 45 hours. These hours can be distributed unevenly over the working days, provided the daily working time does not exceed 11 hours. Any work exceeding 45 hours in a week is considered overtime.

Overtime is compensated at a rate of 150% of the employee's normal hourly wage. Alternatively, an employee can opt to receive 1.5 hours of paid time off for every hour of overtime worked. The total amount of overtime is capped at 270 hours per year.

Public holidays in Türkiye

Employees in Türkiye are entitled to paid leave for the following national and religious holidays:

• New Year's Day: January 1

• National Sovereignty and Children's Day: April 23

• Labour and Solidarity Day: May 1

• Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day: May 19

• Democracy and National Unity Day: July 15

• Victory Day: August 30

• Republic Day: October 29 (1.5 days, begins at 1:00 PM on October 28)

• Ramadan Feast (Ramazan Bayramı): 3 days (dates vary)

• Sacrifice Feast (Kurban Bayramı): 4 days (dates vary)

Vacation days in Türkiye

Employees are entitled to paid annual leave after completing one year of service, including the probationary period. The minimum statutory leave entitlement increases with tenure:

• 1 to 5 years of service: 14 working days

• More than 5 and less than 15 years of service: 20 working days

• 15 years or more of service: 26 working days

Sick leave in Türkiye

Employers are not legally required to pay an employee's salary during sick leave. Instead, the Social Security Institution (SGK) provides a temporary incapacity benefit to eligible employees from the third day of their illness, based on an official medical report. In practice, many employers choose to pay the employee's full salary and then deduct the amount received from the SGK.

Maternity and paternity leave in Türkiye

Female employees are entitled to 16 weeks of paid maternity leave, typically taken as 8 weeks before birth and 8 weeks after. After this period, they can request up to 6 months of unpaid leave. Fathers are entitled to 5 days of paid paternity leave.

Health insurance and supplementary benefits in Türkiye

Türkiye has a universal healthcare system funded by mandatory social security contributions from both employers and employees. While the public system is comprehensive, many employers offer private health insurance as a supplementary benefit to attract top talent. Other common perks include meal allowances (often via a meal card), travel allowances, and company cars.

Termination and severance in Türkiye

The maximum probationary period is 2 months, during which either party can terminate the contract without notice or severance pay. This can be extended to 4 months through a CBA. For terminations after the probation period, employers must provide a valid reason. If an indefinite-term contract is terminated without a just cause in Turkey, the employer must provide statutory notice or payment in lieu of notice:

• Less than 6 months of service: 2 weeks’ notice

• 6 months to 1.5 years of service: 4 weeks’ notice

• 1.5 to 3 years of service: 6 weeks’ notice

• More than 3 years of service: 8 weeks’ notice

Employees with at least one year of service who are terminated without just cause are entitled to severance pay. Severance is not paid in cases of termination for just cause (e.g., misconduct) or resignation (with some exceptions). The payment is calculated as 30 days' gross pay for each year of service and is subject to a government-mandated cap that is updated bi-annually. All accrued, unused vacation must also be paid out upon termination.

Navigating termination requirements in Türkiye can be complex and carries significant financial risk if handled incorrectly. An EOR like G-P manages these processes to ensure compliance and mitigate potential liabilities.

Taxes in Türkiye

Employers in Türkiye are responsible for withholding and remitting taxes and social security contributions from employee salaries. An EOR simplifies this process by managing all payroll calculations and payments to the relevant authorities in Türkiye.

Türkiye social security contributions:

• Employee share: 14% (pension, disability, health) + 1% (unemployment) = 15% total

• Employer share: 20.5% (standard rate) + 2% (unemployment) = 22.5% total. The standard 20.5% rate can be reduced by 5% if premiums are paid on time.

Türkiye personal income tax (PIT):

Türkiye has a progressive tax system. As of 2025, employers withhold income tax from salaries based on the following brackets:

• Up to TRY 130,000: 15%

• TRY 130,001 - 260,000: 20%

• TRY 260,001 - 950,000: 27%

• TRY 950,001 - 3,200,000: 35%

• Over TRY 3,200,000: 40%

Why choose G-P as your employer of record in Türkiye?

G-P EOR is the award-winning, AI-powered SaaS platform that empowers ambitious companies to build global teams. Onboard, manage, and pay top talent in over 180 countries in minutes, bypassing the typical time, cost, and complexity of local entity setup. G-P EOR is the preferred partner for leading HCM, PEO, and payroll platforms. Bring your workforce data together in one place to maintain existing workflows while guaranteeing consistent and accurate data across your integrated systems.

Request a proposal today to learn more.