Starting a business in Türkiye
The şahıs şirketi opens online at the tax office - the young-entrepreneur exemption and the e-invoicing tiers are the parts worth planning.
Checked against the sources on 2026-08-30
Before anything else
A Turkish sole proprietorship (şahıs şirketi) is opened at the tax office - now practically online through the Interactive Tax Office with an e-Devlet login - free of charge, often within days. An accountant (mali müşavir) countersigning the books is a de facto requirement of the system, and their monthly fee is the real fixed cost.
Two structural facts shape planning: KDV (VAT) applies from the first invoice - there is no small-business threshold - and inflation keeps every lira figure moving, so rates survive in guides while amounts do not. The genç girişimci (young entrepreneur) relief is the standout: founders under 29 get a meaningful income-tax exemption for three years plus a year of Bağ-Kur premiums paid by the state.
The legal shell
Şahıs şirketi or Limited Şirket?
Şahıs şirketi
Solo start; fast and cheap.
Free to open; accountant ₺1,000-3,000/month; Bağ-Kur social premiums monthly.
Personal liability, progressive income tax to 40%, and the books still need the accountant.
Limited Şirket (Ltd. Şti.)
Liability, partners, or scale. Minimum capital ₺50,000 since 2024.
MERSİS filing, trade registry and notary - commonly ₺15,000-30,000 all-in at current prices.
25% corporate tax plus dividend withholding; minimum capital and fees track inflation upward.
The sequence
Open the activity at the tax office
Where: İnteraktif Vergi Dairesi (ivd.gib.gov.tr), with e-DevletCost: ₺0Takes: Days, including the address verification visit
Declare the activity (NACE code) and address; the tax office may verify the workplace. The vergi levhası - the tax plate - is generated and must be displayed, even for a home office, in the e-system.
Claim the young-entrepreneur relief if eligible
Under 29 and first registration: an income-tax exemption on a sizeable annual tranche for three years, plus twelve months of Bağ-Kur paid from the treasury. Claim at opening through the accountant - retrofitting is painful.
Watch out: This is the single largest founder subsidy in the system and routinely missed by a few weeks of age or timing.
Enter the e-document world
E-invoice (e-Fatura) and e-archive tiers depend on turnover, but most new businesses are pushed into e-documents from early on; the accountant wires the integrations. KDV filings are monthly from month one.
What it costs to start
| What | Amount |
|---|---|
| Opening | ₺0 |
| Mali müşavirThe de facto requirement. | ₺1,000-3,000/month |
| Bağ-KurA year covered for young entrepreneurs. | Minimum-wage-indexed monthly |
| Ltd. Şti. all-in | ₺15,000-30,000 + ₺50,000 capital |
The words on the forms
- Şahıs şirketi
- The sole proprietorship.
- İnteraktif Vergi Dairesi
- The online tax office where it opens.
- Vergi levhası
- The tax plate every business must display.
- Bağ-Kur
- Self-employed social security (4B).
- Genç girişimci
- The under-29 founder relief.
- KDV
- VAT - from the first invoice, no threshold.
- MERSİS
- The central registry system for companies.
- Mali müşavir
- The certified accountant the system assumes.
The traps
- Missing the genç girişimci window at opening.
- Budgeting from last year’s lira amounts.
- Skipping months of KDV filings because revenue was zero - filings are due anyway.
- Export-of-services VAT exemptions assumed rather than confirmed for foreign clients.
Where to check this yourself
- GİB - Interactive Tax OfficeThe opening and every filing.
- SGKBağ-Kur premiums.
- MERSİSCompany formation.
This is a map, not legal or tax advice - and an honest one about how it was drawn: the Germany guide was written by a person who walked the route; most other countries were drafted with AI against the official sources and have not yet been walked by someone who did it. Laws change. Every guide carries the date it was last checked and the sources to check it yourself - and if you have been through one of these routes, your corrections are exactly what this handbook wants.