Inheritance and wills for foreign clients in Fethiye

What can an inheritance lawyer in Fethiye do for a foreign heir?

An inheritance lawyer in Fethiye can coordinate the Turkish part of an estate when a foreign owner, heir or beneficiary is involved. Av. Seyfullah Yanatma assists with the succession certificate, inheritance tax declaration, tapu (title deed) work, sale planning, wills and disputes. He works in English and Turkish and explains which documents must come from the home country and which steps must be completed in Turkey.

A foreign nationality does not by itself decide every inheritance question. Under Turkish private international law, the deceased’s national law generally governs the inheritance, but Turkish law governs immovables located in Turkey. The deceased’s last residence, the location of the assets, the will and the family relationship therefore need to be reviewed together.

Which inheritance services are available in Fethiye?

Turkish certificate of inheritance for foreign heirs

A Turkish succession certificate is called a mirasçılık belgesi or veraset ilamı. It identifies the heirs and their shares. Civil Code Article 598 allows a Sulh court or notary to issue the document in the relevant circumstances, but Notary Law Article 71/B expressly prevents a notary from issuing it when it is requested by a foreigner, when a judicial examination is required or when civil-status records are insufficient.

For a foreign-element estate, the practical route is an application to the competent Sulh Hukuk Mahkemesi (Civil Court of Peace). Av. Yanatma can organise the evidence, present foreign family records in the required form and follow the court file. A foreign probate document may support the application; it does not automatically replace the Turkish certificate needed for Turkish property work.

Transfer of inherited property at the land registry

Inheritance passes as a whole to heirs at death under Civil Code Article 599, but the land registry still needs a record that can be used for dealings with the property. After the succession certificate and tax steps are addressed, the heirs’ shares can be recorded at the competent Tapu Müdürlüğü. The parcel and its current registry, rather than an heir’s preferred town, determine which office must be used; the current office and procedure should be checked through TKGM or WebTapu.

The file normally needs the succession certificate, identity documents, property and parcel information, translations where required and evidence of tax compliance requested by the relevant office. If several heirs live in different countries, a carefully worded power of attorney can allow one representative to coordinate the appointment and documents. Property due diligence can be considered alongside this work through the property lawyer in Fethiye service.

Inheritance tax declaration and clearance

Law No. 7338 treats inheritance and gifts as taxable transfers subject to its exemptions and progressive rates. The declaration period is not always the same. For an inheritance where death occurred in Turkey, the period is four months when the taxpayers are in Turkey and six months when they are abroad. If death occurred abroad, the period is six months for taxpayers in Turkey, four months for taxpayers in the deceased’s country and eight months for taxpayers in another foreign country. A declaration after a presumed-death entry has a one-month period; other gratuitous transfers generally have a one-month period.

The official consolidated law currently shows these 2026 exemptions: TRY 2,907,136 of each inheritance share going to a descendant, adopted child or spouse; TRY 5,817,845 for a spouse’s share where there are no descendants; and TRY 66,935 for other gratuitous transfers. These values are for the 2026 tax year and must be checked again when the declaration is filed. The taxable base and each heir’s share matter, so an online calculator cannot replace a tax-office assessment.

For 2026, the inheritance tariff displayed in Article 16 is progressive: 1% on the first TRY 3,000,000, 3% on the next TRY 7,000,000, 5% on the next TRY 15,000,000, 7% on the next TRY 30,000,000 and 10% on the excess. The figures and rates applicable to a particular return should be confirmed against the current law. Once assessed, inheritance tax is paid over three years in two equal instalments each year in May and November under Article 19.

Selling or dividing inherited property

A sale is usually considered after the heirs, their shares and the title-deed position are clear. All owners must sign, or each absent owner must grant authority that expressly covers the proposed sale. Av. Yanatma can review the certificate, title record, tax position and powers of attorney before a sale instruction is implemented.

If heirs agree, the property may be sold and the proceeds divided according to their rights. If they disagree about sale, use, valuation or shares, a negotiated solution may not be enough. The appropriate claim can include inheritance-related relief, partition or a reserved-share assessment. No particular outcome can be promised because the evidence and the positions of every heir matter.

Wills, reserved shares and inheritance disputes

Turkish law calls protected minimum entitlements saklı pay (reserved shares). Under Civil Code Articles 505–506, a descendant’s reserved share is one-half of that descendant’s legal share; each parent’s reserved share is one-quarter of the parent’s legal share; and the surviving spouse has the whole legal share when inheriting with descendants or parents, or three-quarters in the other listed combination. A will that exceeds the disposable part may be challenged to the extent necessary to protect those shares.

Av. Yanatma can review a Turkish or foreign will, assess the family structure and explain potential reduction, validity or inheritance-sharing issues. The separate guide on making a will in Turkey explains the three Turkish will forms and how a home-country will may interact with Turkish property.

Rejecting an inheritance

A legal or appointed heir may reject an inheritance under Civil Code Article 605. Article 606 generally gives three months: for a legal heir, from learning of the death unless later knowledge of heirship is proved; for an heir appointed by will, from formal notification of the disposition. The declaration is made orally or in writing to the Sulh court and must be unconditional. Missing this period can have serious consequences, so the date of knowledge and any evidence of it should be recorded immediately.

How does the process work when heirs live abroad?

1. Map the estate and family. Collect the death record, family records, will, property details, known debts and the identity and address of every possible heir.
2. Prepare foreign documents. Ask the issuing authority whether an apostille or legalisation is available. Turkey is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, but acceptance still depends on the country, document and receiving authority. Arrange a Turkish sworn translation where required.
3. Apply for the succession certificate. Because the requester is foreign, plan for the competent Sulh court rather than assuming that a notary can issue the document.
4. File the tax return. Identify the correct deadline under Article 9, value the assets under the statutory rules and claim only exemptions supported by the current law and documents.
5. Complete title-deed work. Submit the certificate, tax documents, identity papers and any requested forms to the competent Tapu Müdürlüğü. Confirm the live procedure through TKGM before attending.
6. Choose sale or division. Agree instructions among the heirs, prepare the necessary sale authority if someone is abroad and check the title and tax position before signing.
7. Address disagreement early. A dispute about heirship, a will, reserved shares, debts or division needs a separate assessment before deadlines or evidence are lost.

The power of attorney guide sets out practical questions for an heir who cannot attend Turkey. Av. Yanatma can work from Fethiye while coordinating documents and instructions from heirs abroad, subject to the authority actually granted.

Which documents should a foreign heir prepare?

The exact list depends on the estate, but an initial file should include:

• the death certificate and any foreign probate or succession decision;
• passports or identity cards for the deceased and each heir;
• birth, marriage, adoption and other civil-status records proving family links;
• the original will or a certified copy, with apostille or legalisation and Turkish translation where required;
• tapu details, parcel information, municipal valuation information and known mortgages or annotations;
• information about bank accounts, debts, gifts and other assets relevant to the tax return; and
• any power of attorney, together with proof of signature and the required translation.

Names, dates and spellings should match across records. A mismatch can require further evidence and may delay the court application or the registry step.

How long do inheritance work and title transfer take?

There is no reliable single probate application timeline or universal number of “probate opening hours” for a foreign-element estate. The court’s workload, whether family records are complete, translation and apostille work, objections, the number of heirs and the tax office’s review all affect the sequence. The statutory tax declaration periods are deadlines, not promises that a court or registry file will finish within them.

Costs can include court charges, official certificates, translations, apostille or legalisation, notary and power-of-attorney charges, tax and land-registry charges, and legal fees agreed for the actual work. The current official tariff and the scope of the file should be checked before instructions are finalised. A general estimate without the documents could be misleading.

What is the local Fethiye point to check?

Fethiye has Sulh Hukuk courts, but the correct court depends on the deceased’s last Turkish residence and the estate’s circumstances. For a person with no Turkish residence, the location of Turkish estate assets can be important. The venue should be confirmed from the current court and procedural records rather than inferred from a foreign address.

For title work, use TKGM’s current service channels to identify the competent land-registry office for the parcel. Göcek, Ölüdeniz, Çalış, Seydikemer and other nearby locations can involve different local offices or court relationships, so a local name alone is not a substitute for a jurisdiction check.

If you need an initial review of a foreign inheritance, a will or a Turkish property record, send the available documents through the contact page. The inheritance in Turkey guide explains the legal framework in more detail, including tax deadlines and shares.