Recovering Unpaid Commercial Debt from a Turkish Company

In short: debt collection in Türkiye normally starts outside court. A licensed Turkish lawyer opens an enforcement proceeding (icra takibi) and the enforcement office serves a payment order on the debtor, who has seven days from service to object (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Act, Law No. 2004, art. 62). A timely objection suspends the proceeding (art. 66) and the matter becomes court-based: the creditor has one year from service of the objection to sue for annulment of the objection (art. 67), and if the objection is held unjustified the court may, on request, order the debtor to pay compensation of not less than 20% of the sum awarded. For commercial money claims, applying to a mediator first is a condition of the lawsuit (Turkish Commercial Code, Law No. 6102, art. 5/A) — but not of the enforcement proceeding. A foreign creditor does not need to come to Türkiye for any of it.

Who this is for

This page is for businesses outside Türkiye that are owed money by a Turkish company. Typically you are an exporter, supplier, manufacturer, or service provider who delivered goods or performed services, invoiced, and has not been paid.

Common situations we see:

• Goods shipped to a Turkish buyer on open account; invoices now overdue.
• Services or work delivered under a contract or purchase order, then ignored.
• A debtor that acknowledged the debt, promised to pay, then went quiet.
• A signed contract, framework agreement, or a bounced cheque (çek) or promissory note (bono / senet) backing the debt.

The stronger your paper trail — contract, purchase orders, invoices, delivery records, correspondence, and any signed acknowledgment — the more direct the recovery route tends to be.

The legal route and who is liable

Debt is often pursued first through enforcement proceedings (icra takibi) at an enforcement office (icra dairesi), rather than starting with a full lawsuit. The office issues a payment order (ödeme emri) to the debtor. If the debtor does not object within the statutory period, the proceeding can become final and assets may be seized.

If the debtor files an objection (itiraz), the enforcement is generally suspended and the dispute moves to court. There are two main paths:

• Annulment of objection (itirazın iptali, İİK art. 67) — a lawsuit asking the court to set aside the objection and confirm the debt. Available on a wider range of evidence.
• Removal of objection (itirazın kaldırılması, İİK art. 68) — an enforcement-court route available where the debt rests on qualifying documents (for example, certain signed documents or instruments).

The party liable is normally the contracting Turkish company. Whether an individual director or a parent company can also be reached depends on the facts — guarantees, signatures, or grounds to look behind the company — and must be assessed case by case.

What you can claim

Beyond the principal debt, Turkish law generally allows you to claim:

• Default interest (temerrüt faizi) from the date the debt fell due or the debtor was put in default, calculated under the statutory framework (Law No. 3095). Between merchants, a higher commercial default rate (which may be tied to the Central Bank's short-term advance rate) can apply.
• Enforcement and litigation costs, and a portion of attorney's fees, which a successful party can typically recover under the applicable tariff.

Where the contract is in a foreign currency, claims can in many cases be pursued in that currency or its Turkish-lira equivalent, depending on the contract and the facts. The practical aim is the same: to turn an unpaid invoice into an enforceable claim and reach the debtor's assets.

We do not promise any particular amount or outcome — recovery always depends on the strength of the claim and, critically, on whether the debtor has assets to collect against.

Securing assets early (precautionary attachment)

A debt is only worth what you can actually collect. If there is a real risk the debtor will move or hide assets, Turkish law allows you to ask a court for a precautionary attachment (ihtiyati haciz, İİK art. 257) — an order freezing the debtor's assets (such as bank accounts or property) before or alongside the main proceeding, where the legal conditions are met.

Key points to understand:

• The court usually requires the creditor to post security (teminat) as a condition of the order.
• Once granted, the attachment must be followed up with enforcement or a lawsuit within the statutory time limits, or it lapses.
• Speed and good documentation matter — this tool is generally most useful when used early.

Whether a precautionary attachment is available and advisable in your case is a judgment call for the avukat based on your evidence and the applicable conditions.

Waiting rarely improves a debt.Time works against recovery: evidence ages, companies restructure, and limitation periods run. The earlier a file is looked at, the more options remain.

How long you have (limitation period)

Turkish law sets time limits (zamanaşımı) for enforcing a debt. As a general rule, ordinary contractual claims are subject to a ten-year period under the Turkish Code of Obligations (TBK art. 146), while certain categories of claim carry a shorter five-year period (TBK art. 147). Claims based on cheques or promissory notes have their own, generally shorter limitation rules under the Turkish Commercial Code.

Which period applies to your debt — and exactly when it started running — depends on the type of contract, the nature of the claim, and the facts, and the point can be contested for some commercial receivables. The period can also be interrupted by certain acts (for example, acknowledgment of the debt or commencing enforcement).

How it works when you are abroad

You do not need to travel to Türkiye to pursue a debt. The avukat acts as your counsel of record and handles the proceedings locally. To act for you, we generally need:

• A power of attorney (vekâletname) authorising the lawyer to represent your company. For use from abroad this is usually signed before a notary and apostilled (or legalised, if your country is not party to the Apostille Convention).
• A sworn/certified translation of the power of attorney and key documents into Turkish where required.
• Your evidence pack: contract, purchase orders, invoices, delivery and shipping records, correspondence, and any cheque, note, or written acknowledgment.

From there, communication is remote — by email and call, in English — and we keep you updated as the matter progresses. If you already hold a foreign court judgment or arbitral award against the Turkish debtor, that is pursued in Türkiye through recognition and enforcement; see our page on enforcing foreign judgments and awards in Türkiye.

How we work and your next step

We start by reviewing your documents and the debtor's profile, then set out the realistic options — a demand and enforcement, a precautionary attachment, or litigation — and the likely time and cost of each. Fees are agreed with you in writing before any work begins, within the framework of the Avukatlık Kanunu and the applicable minimum fee tariff.

To get a useful first assessment, send us:

• A short summary of what was supplied, when, and what is owed.
• The contract and the unpaid invoices.
• Any correspondence where the debtor admits or disputes the debt.

Contact us with these and we will tell you whether there is a workable route and what it would involve.

An honest note

This page is general information about Turkish law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Restitora is the practice of a licensed Turkish lawyer (avukat) who represents clients as counsel of record — it is not a debt-collection agency, a claims buyer, or a lead reseller.

Every case turns on its own facts and on whether the debtor actually has assets to collect against. We cannot and do not guarantee any outcome, amount, or timeframe. What we can do is assess your claim honestly and pursue it properly under Turkish law.

📚 Deep Dive: Read our in-depth legal analysis on how foreign creditors freeze Turkish debtor bank accounts (İhtiyati Haciz).