As of October 2026, Turkish labour law caps normal working time at 45 hours a week, gives at least 14 to 26 days of paid annual leave once an employee has worked a year, and requires two to eight weeks’ notice to end an open-ended contract. Severance pay is 30 days’ pay for each year of service, capped at TRY 73,729.87 per year for contracts ending from 1 July to 31 December 2026. The 2026 gross minimum wage is TRY 33,030 a month.
This guide is for owners in mainland China and Hong Kong whose Turkish company is hiring local staff. It is general information for employers, not legal advice: a dispute with an employee is work for a labour lawyer.
At a glance
| Topic | Rule as of October 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Written contract | Required for contracts of one year or longer | Labour Law 4857, Art. 8 |
| Probation | Up to two months | Art. 15 |
| Working time | Up to 45 hours a week | Art. 63 |
| Overtime | Paid at 150%; at most 270 hours a year | Art. 41 |
| Annual leave | 14, 20 or 26 days, after one year | Art. 53 |
| Notice | 2, 4, 6 or 8 weeks | Art. 17 |
| Job security | 30+ employees, 6+ months’ service | Art. 18 |
| Severance | 30 days’ pay per year; ceiling TRY 73,729.87 per year (July–December 2026) | Law 1475, Art. 14 |
| Minimum wage | TRY 33,030 gross a month | 2026 Commission decision |
| SGK notice | Before work starts, as a rule | Law 5510, Art. 8 |
Most private-sector employment falls under the Labour Law (İş Kanunu) No. 4857; severance is still governed by Article 14 of the old Labour Law No. 1475, which Law 4857 kept in force (Art. 120).
Does every employee need a written contract?
No. An employment contract needs no special form unless the law says otherwise, but a contract for one year or longer must be in writing, and it is exempt from stamp duty and fees (Art. 8). Without a written contract, the employer must give the employee, within two months, a written statement of working conditions, working time, basic pay and supplements, the pay period, any fixed term and the termination terms.
Some contracts must be written whatever their length, for example:
- Fixed-term contracts, tied to objective conditions such as a time-limited job or a specific project (Art. 11). Back-to-back renewals need an essential reason; otherwise the contract counts as open-ended from the start.
- Remote work contracts (Art. 14).
Part-time employees receive pay in proportion to their hours (Art. 13). Pay is due at least monthly, in Turkish lira as a rule; a salary agreed in US dollars or another currency can be paid in lira at the rate on the payment day (Art. 32).
Probation
A probation period can last up to two months, or four under a collective agreement (Art. 15). During it either side can end the contract without notice or compensation, but the days worked are paid. Probation counts towards the year that earns annual leave (Art. 53).
Working time, overtime and breaks
- Normal working time: at most 45 hours a week, divided equally over the working days unless agreed otherwise (Art. 63). By agreement the hours can be spread unevenly, up to 11 hours a day, if the weekly average over two months stays within the normal week.
- Overtime: work above 45 hours a week, paid at 150% of the hourly wage (Art. 41). If the contract sets fewer than 45 hours, hours up to 45 are paid at 125%. The employee may take 1 hour 30 minutes (or 1 hour 15 minutes) off per hour instead, within six months. Overtime needs the employee’s consent and is capped at 270 hours a year.
- Night work: at most 7.5 hours, with limited sector exceptions (Art. 69).
- Weekly rest: at least 24 uninterrupted hours in every seven days, paid (Art. 46).
- Public holidays: working on one earns an extra day’s wage (Art. 47).
Breaks depend on the length of the working day, not on four-hour blocks (Art. 68):
| Daily working time | Minimum break |
|---|---|
| Up to 4 hours | 15 minutes |
| More than 4, up to 7.5 hours | 30 minutes |
| More than 7.5 hours | 1 hour |
Breaks do not count as working time.
How much paid leave do employees get?
Annual leave is earned after one year of work, probation included (Art. 53):
| Length of service | Minimum paid annual leave |
|---|---|
| 1 to 5 years (5 included) | 14 days |
| More than 5 and less than 15 years | 20 days |
| 15 years or more | 26 days |
Employees aged 18 or under, or 50 or over, get at least 20 days, and no employee can waive annual leave. By agreement leave can be split, with one part of at least 10 days; rest days and public holidays inside it are not counted, and the employer keeps a leave record (Art. 56). Unused leave is paid out when the contract ends (Art. 59).
Law 7578 lengthened two kinds of leave from 1 May 2026:
- Maternity: 24 weeks, 8 before and 16 after the birth (Art. 74).
- Paternity: 10 days’ paid leave, up from 5 (Additional Art. 2).
The same article gives 3 days’ paid leave for marriage, adoption, or the death of a parent, spouse, sibling or child.
Minimum wage and the cost of a local hire
The 2026 minimum wage is TRY 33,030.00 gross a month, or TRY 28,075.50 net (Minimum Wage Determination Commission, Official Gazette 26 December 2025, No. 33119). As of October 2026 the Ministry of Labour still lists it for all of 2026.
At that wage the ministry puts the employer’s monthly cost at TRY 40,214.03 where the general 2-point premium discount applies, and TRY 39,223.13 in manufacturing with the 5-point discount. For other salaries, see payroll and the cost of running a company in Türkiye in 2026.
Registering each hire with SGK
As a rule, the employer notifies the Social Security Institution (SGK) of each new employee before work starts (Law 5510, Art. 8), and of each leaver within 10 days (Art. 9). It also keeps a personnel file for every employee (Labour Law, Art. 75).
How much notice is required to end a contract?
An open-ended contract ends after the notice period in Article 17:
| Length of service | Notice |
|---|---|
| Less than 6 months | 2 weeks |
| 6 months to 1.5 years | 4 weeks |
| 1.5 to 3 years | 6 weeks |
| More than 3 years | 8 weeks |
These are minimums. The side that skips notice pays the wages for the notice period as compensation; the employer may also pay those wages in advance and end the contract at once. During notice the employee gets at least two paid hours a day to look for work (Art. 27). A termination notice must be in writing (Art. 109). Where job security does not apply, a dismissal that abuses the right to terminate costs three times the notice pay (Art. 17).
Job security: when does a dismissal need a valid reason?
If the workplace has 30 or more employees and the employee has at least six months’ service on an open-ended contract, the employer needs a valid reason linked to the employee’s competence or conduct, or to the needs of the business (Art. 18). Workplaces of the same employer in the same line of business are counted together. Union membership, pregnancy, race, religion and similar grounds are never valid. The rule does not cover the employer’s representative who runs the whole business, or a manager who runs the whole workplace and may hire and fire.
- Notice is in writing and states the reason clearly (Art. 19).
- A dismissal for conduct or performance needs the employee’s defence first.
- The employee can apply to a mediator within one month, then sue within two weeks if mediation fails; the employer must prove the reason (Art. 20).
- If the dismissal is held invalid and the employer does not take the employee back within one month of their application, it pays 4 to 8 months’ wages, plus up to 4 months’ wages for the time out of work (Art. 21).
Severance pay: who gets it and how much?
Severance (kıdem tazminatı) is due in these main cases when the contract ends (Law 1475, Art. 14):
- by the employer, unless it dismisses for misconduct under Article 25/II of the Labour Law, such as dishonesty, theft or unexcused absence on two consecutive working days;
- by the employee for just cause under Article 24, such as unpaid wages;
- for compulsory military service, or to draw a retirement or disability pension;
- by a woman within one year of marriage, or by the employee’s death.
So a dismissal for poor performance or restructuring still pays severance; a plain resignation does not.
The amount is 30 days’ gross pay for each full year of service, with part years pro rata. The Ministry of Labour treats at least one year with the same employer as a precondition, so with less than a year nothing is due. Pay means the last gross wage plus regular benefits in money or money’s worth, such as meal and travel allowances. Each year is capped at the maximum retirement bonus of the highest-ranking civil servant, and the ceiling in force when the contract ends applies: TRY 64,948.77 for January–June 2026 and TRY 73,729.87 for July–December 2026.
Example, a contract ending in October 2026 after 3 years and 3 months:
- 30 days’ gross pay of TRY 50,000: 50,000 × 3.25 = TRY 162,500.
- 30 days’ gross pay of TRY 90,000: capped at 73,729.87 × 3.25 = TRY 239,622.08.
A misconduct dismissal must come within six working days of the employer learning of the act, and within one year of it unless the employee gained financially (Art. 26). Severance, notice pay and unused leave pay can be claimed for five years (Additional Art. 3), so keep the records.
Hiring staff from mainland China or Hong Kong
Foreigners may not work, or be employed, in Türkiye without a work permit unless a law or treaty exempts them (Law 6735, Art. 6). Visa-free entry for ordinary PRC passport holders since 2 January 2026 covers tourist trips and transit, not work. See visa-free entry for PRC citizens and work permits and social security for Chinese and Hong Kong staff.
Disputes go to mediation first
Claims for unpaid wages, compensation or reinstatement must go to a mediator before court (Labour Courts Law 7036, Art. 3). Disputes are for a labour lawyer; our part is the payroll.
What this means for you
Before the first hire, choose the contract type, put it in writing and budget for the full employer cost, not only the gross salary. Notify SGK before day one and keep leave and personnel records from the start.
Our payroll service covers the monthly gross-to-net calculation, SGK start and leaving notifications, the monthly withholding and social security return, and the final pay calculation when someone leaves. The monthly fee depends on headcount: USD 300 for 1–3 employees, USD 550 for 4–50 and USD 1,250 for more than 50. Prices exclude VAT. No VAT is charged to clients invoiced outside Türkiye; 20% VAT is added for companies in Türkiye. Work permit applications are not included.
Still setting up? See company formation and bookkeeping and tax filing. You can write to us in Chinese or English: WeChat ID etitax or info@etitax.com.
