Company Formation Procedures in Turkey: 2026 Institution Guide

Quick answer: Company formation in Türkiye is not one procedure handled by one institution. The process is a sequence of handoffs between the founder’s document file, MERSİS, the Trade Registry, the tax administration and licensed CPA/SMMM onboarding, banks and—only where applicable—SGK, work-permit, municipal or sector authorities.

This page is the institution-by-institution procedure map: it shows which authority or actor controls each handoff and what that stage does not guarantee. For the step-by-step order and dependencies between those stages, use Process of Establishing a Company in Turkey. For pre-filing readiness, use What Do You Need to Start a Company in Turkey?. For MERSİS/Trade Registry filing mechanics, use Company Registration in Turkey: MERSİS & Filing Guide. For timing, use the separate company formation timeline guide.

Company Formation Procedure Map: Who Controls What?

Procedure rule: A successful step in one institution does not automatically complete the next institution’s review.

Company formation is a sequence of connected but institution-specific procedures.

Procedure 1: Define the Company File Before MERSİS

Before any registration data are entered, define:

• shareholder identity and ownership percentages;
• LLC, JSC, subsidiary or branch route;
• company name and activity;
• registered headquarters;
• capital;
• manager/director appointments;
• representation and signing rules;
• whether a power of attorney will be used.

This is not merely planning. Those decisions determine which documents are required and what must later appear consistently in MERSİS, the Articles of Association and the supporting file.

Procedure 2: Prepare Foreign Documents for Turkish Use

A foreign shareholder document can be legally valid in its home country and still be unusable for the Turkish filing if it does not prove the right fact, lacks the required authority wording or follows the wrong legalisation route.

Build the document process in this order:

1. Identify what the Turkish filing must prove.
2. Choose the exact home-country record that proves it.
3. Confirm whether apostille or Turkish consular legalisation applies.
4. Arrange sworn Turkish translation and notarisation where required.
5. Cross-check names, dates, company numbers and signatories before filing.

See Apostille for Turkey Documents and Sworn Translation in Turkey.

Procedure 3: Prepare the Company Through MERSİS

MERSİS is the Ministry of Trade’s central registration system. The core company data are prepared there, including the company title, shareholders, capital, address, activity and management/representation rules.

MERSİS should be treated as a master data layer. The supporting documents must match the electronic record. The most common preventable problems are identity spelling differences, mismatched authority wording, address inconsistency and capital/shareholding data that do not align across the file.

Official portal: MERSİS.

Procedure 4: Submit to the Trade Registry

The relevant Trade Registry Directorate reviews the incorporation package and registers the company when the applicable requirements are satisfied. The registry procedure concerns the legal establishment of the company and its commercial-registry record.

Registration also triggers an important inter-agency handoff. Current Ministry and Invest in Türkiye guidance states that the Trade Registry/MERSİS framework sends company-incorporation information electronically to the relevant tax office and SGK. That notification reduces duplicate startup filings, but it does not mean every tax, employer, payroll or operational obligation has already been completed.

Do not mix the Trade Registry’s role with later institutions. It does not decide whether a bank will open the account, whether a foreign founder receives a work permit or whether an activity-specific licence is granted.

Workon coordinates the registration file and connected operational steps according to the agreed scope.

Procedure 5: Complete the Tax and Professional Onboarding Layer

After legal registration, the company’s tax-facing setup and recurring compliance responsibilities must be organised. For companies whose startup is registered through the Trade Registry within the statutory framework, current Revenue Administration guidance states that the Trade Registry notification satisfies the separate commencement-notification obligation; the taxpayer does not file a duplicate startup notice merely because the company was incorporated. A licensed SMMM/CPA is central to the continuing professional-compliance layer, but the exact engagement and ongoing scope should be confirmed for the company’s activity and filing obligations.

Important distinction: the CPA’s regulated professional work is not the same as Workon’s coordination role, and the tax-office procedure is not the same as the Trade Registry procedure.

Use Turkish CPA Requirement for the dedicated professional-compliance guide.

Procedure 6: Treat Tax-Office Address Verification as a Separate Process

The tax administration may carry out the commencement-of-business verification process according to its own rules. The company should have a real, supportable registered address and be prepared with the requested evidence and contact coordination.

This is not a routine Trade Registry “site inspection.” The institutions and purposes are different.

For registered-address and tax-verification detail, use Virtual Office Tax Office Verification in Turkey.

Procedure 7: Apply for the Corporate Bank Account Separately

A newly registered company does not receive an automatic bank account. Banks perform their own KYC/AML review covering the entity, shareholders, ultimate beneficial owners, directors/signatories, business model, expected transactions and source-of-funds information.

Many banks may require an authorised person to attend in person. Bank-specific remote processes can sometimes be available, but they are separate from Trade Registry incorporation and remain subject to the bank’s approval.

See How to Open a Business Bank Account in Turkey.

Procedure 8: Activate Only the Digital Tools That Apply

KEP, e-signature, financial seal, e-Fatura, e-Arşiv and e-Defter should not be described as identical mandatory steps for every company on incorporation day. Applicability depends on the legal entity, current thresholds/rules and how the company will operate.

The right method is to determine which digital tools are required for the specific company and sequence them after the registration data and authorised users are ready.

Procedure 9: Add SGK, Work Permit and Licence Steps Only When Triggered

Do not automatically add SGK, a work permit or a municipal licence to every company checklist.

• SGK/employer setup: MERSİS can transmit the e-notification authorised-person data to SGK electronically, and current Ministry guidance states that employees declared in MERSİS as starting at formation can also be transmitted with registration so a separate notification for those declared employees is not required. Later hires and other employer obligations still follow the applicable SGK rules.
• Foreign founder or employee: company ownership does not itself grant the right to work in Türkiye; the applicable work-permit route should be assessed separately.
• Municipal/sector licence: depends on the activity and premises.

For foreign company owners who plan to work in Türkiye, use Work Permit for Company Owners in Turkey.

Where the Procedure Commonly Breaks

Legal Registration vs Operational Readiness

Legal registration: the Trade Registry has created the company’s legal existence.

Operational readiness: the company has the additional tax, banking, digital, employment and activity-specific capabilities required for its real business model.

The second milestone can occur later than the first. This is why company-formation procedures should be planned as a sequence of institutional handoffs rather than a single registration event.

How Workon Coordinates the Procedure

Workon is an Istanbul-based business setup, workspace and operational coordination platform for foreign founders and overseas companies entering Türkiye. Depending on the agreed scope, Workon coordinates the incorporation file, registered address, foreign-document and PoA sequence, MERSİS/Trade Registry workflow, bank-application preparation, licensed CPA onboarding coordination and connected operating requirements.

Regulated legal, tax, licensed CPA/SMMM, customs and other professional services are handled by appropriately authorised professionals. Banks and public authorities retain their own decision-making powers.

Review Workon’s company registration and operational coordination service.

Official Reference Points

• MERSİS
• Ministry of Trade: MERSİS integrations and SGK handoff
• Ministry of Trade: establishing a company
• Invest in Türkiye: establishing a business and inter-agency registration handoffs
• Revenue Administration: startup-notification guidance for new corporate taxpayers

Last reviewed: September 2026. This guide provides general operational information and does not replace case-specific legal, tax, banking or professional advice.