How to Send Money Abroad from Turkey for Companies

Sending money out of Turkey isn’t just another transaction for your business—it’s a core operational function. You’re dealing with Turkish financial regulations, tricky currency swings, and the challenge of picking the right transfer partner. This guide is your roadmap to doing it right, whether you’re paying suppliers overseas, funding a foreign branch, or handling international payroll.

Your Guide to International Business Payments from Turkey

For any Turkish company operating globally, getting a firm grip on the details of sending money abroad is essential. It’s not just about compliance; it’s about being cost-efficient. This means getting familiar with things like Navigating the Complexities of International Trade and Taxation. Honestly, it’s far more than a simple click; every transfer is a strategic move that affects your cash flow, your relationships with partners, and ultimately, your bottom line.

Think about it: whether you’re a textile firm paying for cotton from Egypt or a software company paying for cloud services from Ireland, the fundamental hurdles are the same. Success boils down to smart planning around the legal stuff and finding a financial partner that actually gets what your business does.

Understanding the Global Payments Landscape

When your Turkish company sends money abroad, you’re plugging into a massive global system. The business-to-business (B2B) payments world is huge, making up $37.6 trillion of the $44 trillion yearly retail foreign exchange market. All that volume means you have options, but it also means you’re up against some hefty fees and confusing regulations.

This is where having a clear strategy becomes so important. If you don’t, you’re likely to run into common, costly problems:

• Sky-High Fees: Hidden charges and weak exchange rates can silently eat away at your profits with every single payment.
• Frustrating Delays: A simple mistake in your paperwork can get your funds stuck in limbo, which is a great way to damage a relationship with a key supplier.
• Compliance Headaches: Not following the rules set by Turkish authorities can lead to fines and can even halt your operations.

The real challenge isn’t just sending the money. It’s making sure it gets there on time, for the lowest possible cost, and without breaking any rules. Nail this, and you’ve got a real edge over the competition.

Paving the Way for Smoother Transactions

Consider this guide your starting point for making smarter, faster, and cheaper international payments. We’ll walk through the must-have documents, explain the transfer limits you need to know, and make the compliance rules clear.

If your company is just entering the Turkish market, understanding these financial mechanics is a critical piece of the puzzle. For a wider view on setting up here, you might find our guide on how to successfully invest in Turkey helpful. By getting this foundation right from the start, you can make sure your money moves exactly where and when you need it to, without the expensive headaches.

Getting Turkish Compliance and Documentation Right

Sending money out of Turkey for your business isn’t just a simple bank transfer. You’ve got to navigate the local legal landscape first. This means getting familiar with the rules set by authorities like the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) and the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK). This isn’t just red tape; it’s a crucial step to make sure your payments go through without a hitch.

Think of your paperwork as telling the story of your transaction. Each document justifies why money is leaving the country, which helps protect your business and the financial system from any funny business.

Required paperwork for sending company funds abroad from Turkey

This whole process is tied directly to Turkey’s economy. The country’s global trade connections are significant, and understanding the flow of money—both in and out—is key. These economic patterns influence everything from regulations and exchange rates to the very systems you use for transfers. You can get a better sense of these economic trends in Turkey on TheGlobalEconomy.com.

The “Why” Behind Each Document

The specific documents you’ll need really depend on why you’re sending the money. It’s not a one-size-fits-all situation. The main goal is always to provide solid proof of a legitimate business reason for the transfer.

For example, say your Istanbul-based tech company is paying for a software licence from a developer in the United States. In that case, the signed service agreement or an official invoice is your golden ticket. It proves you’re paying for a real business service.

Now, picture a manufacturing firm in Bursa buying raw materials from China. The required paperwork looks totally different. You’ll need things like a proforma invoice, a bill of lading, and customs declarations to show that the payment directly corresponds to physical goods being imported.

Your Document Checklist

To give you a clearer picture, here’s a quick rundown of the essential documents you’ll likely need for various types of corporate transfers.

Having these documents organised and ready to go is half the battle won.

Common Scenarios and the Paperwork They Need

Let’s walk through a few real-world examples to see how this plays out.

• Paying an International Supplier: This is a daily occurrence for many businesses. You’ll need the commercial invoice that breaks down the goods or services, their quantities, and the price, usually supported by a purchase order.
• Funding an Overseas Subsidiary: If you’re sending capital to your office in the UK, you’ll need more internal proof. Be prepared to show corporate resolutions authorising the transfer and documents that legally connect the parent company to the subsidiary.
• Paying Foreign Contractors or Employees: For payroll or freelance payments, employment contracts or service agreements are non-negotiable. They must clearly outline the work, payment terms, and the recipient’s legal details.

The bottom line is simple: your paperwork must create a clear, auditable trail that validates the purpose of every single international transfer. Nailing this from the start is the best way to dodge delays, rejections, and potential penalties.

Remember, Turkish banks and financial institutions are legally required to review these documents thoroughly. If anything seems off or is missing, they’ll put your transfer on hold. Being organised with your paperwork isn’t just good practice—it’s the most effective strategy for ensuring your money gets where it needs to go, on time.

Choosing Your Transfer Method: Banks vs. Fintech

The partner you choose to move your money can have a massive impact on your bottom line. When your Turkish company needs to send funds abroad, you’re basically looking at two main options: the old-school traditional banks using the SWIFT network, or the newer, nimbler fintech platforms. This isn’t just about picking a service; it’s a strategic decision that directly affects your costs, speed, and overall efficiency.

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer here. Your company’s specific needs should absolutely steer this choice. For a massive, one-off payment to acquire heavy machinery from Germany, you might feel more comfortable sticking with your long-standing corporate bank, where personal relationships and perceived security are paramount. But if you’re a SaaS company paying a dozen international contractors every month, a fintech platform’s speed, rock-bottom fees, and slick dashboard will almost certainly win out.

Comparing bank transfers with modern fintech payment solutions

The good news is that the infrastructure for sending money from Turkey has come a long way. Thanks to substantial foreign exchange reserves acting as a buffer for cross-border deals and a global shift towards digital payments, Turkish businesses are in a stronger position than ever. Modern digital apps bring speed and transparency to the table, making international money management far less of a headache. You can dig deeper into this evolving financial environment in this report on Turkey’s investment climate on State.gov.

The Traditional Banking Route

For decades, banks were the only game in town for international corporate payments. They rely almost exclusively on the SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) network. Think of SWIFT as a series of connecting flights for your money—it often bounces between several intermediary banks before it finally lands in the recipient’s account.

While it’s a proven and reliable system, it comes with some significant downsides:

• Speed: SWIFT transfers aren’t exactly fast. You’re typically looking at a waiting period of 2-5 business days. A snag at any one of the intermediary banks can cause even longer, frustrating delays.
• Cost: Each bank in that chain can slice off a fee for its trouble, and those costs add up. Worse yet, banks often build a hefty margin into their exchange rates. This hidden cost can be far more damaging than any upfront transfer fee.
• Transparency: Trying to track a SWIFT payment can feel like shouting into the void. If a transfer gets held up, pinpointing where it’s stuck often involves a painful cycle of phone calls and waiting games.

The Rise of Fintech Solutions

Fintech platforms have completely shaken up this old model. Instead of relying on SWIFT, they’ve built their own modern payment networks. They do this by holding local bank accounts in multiple countries, allowing them to cleverly bypass the slow and expensive SWIFT system for most transactions.

Here’s how it works: you send your Turkish Lira into their Turkish account, and they pay your recipient from their local account in the destination country. It’s a much more direct route.

This approach delivers some powerful advantages:

• Lower Costs: Fintechs usually offer exchange rates that are incredibly close to the mid-market rate (the “real” rate you see on Google). Their transfer fees are also typically lower and far more transparent.
• Faster Transfers: Many payments can be completed on the same day. For some currency routes, it can even be a matter of minutes.
• Better User Experience: These platforms were built for modern businesses. Expect intuitive online dashboards, real-time tracking, and handy integrations with your accounting software.

The core difference really boils down to the infrastructure. Banks are stuck with an old, layered system, while fintechs use technology to create a more direct and efficient path for your money.

Bank Transfers vs. Fintech Platforms for Turkish Companies

To help you visualise the differences, let’s put them side-by-side. This table breaks down the key features that matter most when sending corporate payments internationally.

Ultimately, the right choice depends on your specific needs and payment patterns. By weighing these factors, you can find a solution that not only moves your money but also supports your business’s financial health.

Making the Right Choice for Your Business

So, how do you decide? It starts with a close look at your company’s payment patterns.

Are you making frequent, smaller payments to freelancers and suppliers all over the world? A fintech is almost certainly your best bet for saving time and money. On the other hand, if you’re sending a huge, infrequent sum for a major capital investment, your corporate bank might offer specialised services or credit lines that a fintech can’t match.

The key is to vet your options based on your payment volume, frequency, and operational needs. That’s how you build a smart and effective international payment strategy.

Simplify your business setup with Workon’s all-in-one company registration service in Turkey.

Getting the Transfer Done Right

You’ve picked your provider and have all your paperwork sorted. Now for the main event: actually sending the money. Whether you’re clicking through your bank’s online portal or using a slick fintech platform, this is where precision is everything. A tiny mistake here can cause big headaches and expensive delays, so it pays to be methodical.

I always tell clients to treat it like a pre-flight checklist. Before you hit “confirm,” just pause and give everything one last look. This one habit has saved more transfers from getting stuck than anything else.

The Final Pre-Transfer Check

You’d be surprised how often a transfer gets held up because of a simple typo. One wrong digit in an account number and your money could vanish into a financial black hole for days, or even weeks. Run through this quick check to make sure that doesn’t happen.

• Recipient Details: Are they perfect? Double-check the recipient’s full legal name, their address, and their bank account number. For payments to Europe, you’ll need the IBAN (International Bank Account Number). For most other places, it’s the standard account number.
• Bank Codes: The SWIFT/BIC code is like a bank’s global post code. If it’s wrong, the money is going nowhere fast. Make sure it’s correct for the specific branch receiving the funds.
• Internal Sign-Off: Has the transfer been approved according to your own company’s rules? Getting the right internal authorisations first avoids compliance problems down the road.

This last-minute review ensures all your hard work getting the documents ready isn’t wasted by a simple, preventable slip-up.

Making the Payment

The screen in front of you might look different depending on whether you’re with a traditional bank or a fintech, but the information they need is universal. A corporate banking portal often feels a bit more old-school, sometimes requiring physical tokens for multi-step verification. Fintech dashboards, on the other hand, are usually built to be more intuitive and user-friendly.

Either way, you’ll be asked to enter the recipient’s details you just checked. Pay special attention to any field asking for the “purpose of payment.” This isn’t just a formality. The information you put here—like an invoice number or contract reference—has to match your supporting documents exactly. Any discrepancy is a huge red flag for the banks’ compliance teams.

Handling the Currency Exchange and Timing

One of the most important decisions you’ll make at this stage is how to handle the currency conversion. Broadly, you have two options: take the rate as it is right now (the spot rate) or fix a rate in advance.

If you’re sending the money immediately and the day’s rate looks good, using the spot rate is simple enough. But for payments scheduled for a later date, currency swings can be a real risk. A sudden drop in the lira’s value could make your transfer much more expensive than you budgeted for. This is where fintechs often have an edge, as many allow you to lock in an exchange rate for a future date, giving you much-needed budget certainty.

Successfully tracking your payment means more than just waiting for a confirmation email. It’s about actively using the tools available to follow your money’s journey, giving you complete visibility from the moment it leaves your account until it lands safely with your recipient.

After You Hit ‘Send’: Tracking and Troubleshooting

Once the transfer is on its way, your job isn’t quite finished. Your provider will give you a transaction reference number. For transfers on the SWIFT network, this is often called an MT103 confirmation. This number is your golden ticket for tracking the payment.

If a transfer seems to be taking too long, the first thing to do is use that reference number to check its status on your provider’s portal. If it looks stuck, get on the phone with their support team right away and give them the reference. They can usually pinpoint where in the chain of intermediary banks the payment is being held and find out why.

Most of the time, delays are caused by routine compliance checks or small queries about the paperwork. Having the transaction reference handy makes getting these issues sorted out much, much faster.

How to Minimise Costs and Beat Bad Exchange Rates

When your Turkish company sends money abroad, hidden fees and poor exchange rates can quietly eat away at your profits. The real cost of a transfer isn’t just the fee you see upfront; it’s often tucked away in the exchange rate margin. To protect your bottom line, you need to look past the advertised price and understand the full cost.

The best place to start is by demanding transparency. Before locking in any transfer, ask your bank or fintech provider for the mid-market rate. This is the real, “raw” exchange rate without any markup. Comparing their offered rate to the mid-market rate instantly reveals the hidden percentage they’re actually charging you.

This visual guide walks you through the international transfer process, from getting your documents ready to tracking the payment.

Prepare, Initiate, and Track Your Cross-Border Payments

As you can see, the initial stage is where you have the most control. This is when you choose your provider and negotiate the rate, which directly impacts your final cost.

Uncovering and Reducing Hidden Costs

The biggest savings are almost always found in the exchange rate itself. Even a seemingly small markup of 1-2% on a large transaction can translate into thousands of lira lost. It’s a mistake to just passively accept the default rate your bank gives you, especially if you’re transferring significant amounts.

Think about it this way: a Turkish exporter paying a €100,000 invoice could easily save over €1,500 just by getting a rate that’s 1.5% better than what their bank initially offered. This is where a little bit of shopping around and negotiation really pays off.

Proactive Strategies to Secure Better Rates

The key to saving money is to be proactive. Waiting until the last minute to make a payment puts you in a weak position with very little leverage.

• Leverage Your Volume: If your company sends money abroad regularly, don’t be shy about using that as a bargaining chip. Talk to your bank or fintech partner and push for better, preferential rates based on your consistent business.
• Time Your Transfers: Currency markets are always moving. If a payment isn’t urgent, you can watch the rates and start the transfer when the TRY is performing well against the currency you’re sending.
• Explore Hedging Tools: For payments you know you’ll need to make in the future, look into financial tools like forward contracts. These let you lock in an exchange rate today for a transaction that will happen months down the line, shielding your business from unfavourable currency swings.

At the end of the day, knowledge is your most powerful cost-saving tool. Once you understand how rates are set and where fees are hidden, you stop being a price-taker and become a savvy negotiator who can actively control transfer costs.

To truly cut costs and get the best deals, you need a solid grasp of the market. This includes understanding what influences exchange rates. This knowledge empowers you to make strategic, well-timed decisions instead of just reacting to whatever rate you’re given.

Common Questions on Sending Money from Turkey

When it comes to moving company money out of Turkey, the same questions pop up time and again. Getting the right answers from the start can make the difference between a smooth transaction and a frustrating, expensive delay.

Let’s tackle some of the most frequent concerns businesses have, building on the steps we’ve already covered.

Are There Limits on How Much Money a Company Can Send from Turkey?

Yes, and the rules are quite specific. The limits and reporting requirements really depend on why you’re sending the money. For example, if you’re paying an international supplier for goods, the process is usually straightforward as long as you have the proper commercial invoices and customs declarations.

It gets trickier with capital transfers, like sending funds to a foreign subsidiary or making an overseas investment. These face much closer inspection and often need pre-approval from Turkish financial authorities. The best advice here is simple: talk to your bank or a financial advisor before you even think about starting the transfer to understand exactly what’s required for your specific situation.

How Long Does an International Transfer Usually Take?

The timeline can vary wildly. If you go the traditional route with a SWIFT transfer through your bank, you can typically expect the money to arrive in 2-5 business days. That said, any hiccup with intermediary banks or a query on your paperwork can easily add more days to the wait.

Fintech platforms, on the other hand, have completely changed the game. Many can get your funds to their destination on the same day. For certain currency routes, it can even be a matter of minutes.

No matter which service you use, the fastest way to slow things down is with bad paperwork. Getting your documentation 100% correct before you hit ‘send’ is the single most important thing you can do to avoid delays.

What Is the Biggest Mistake Companies Make with International Payments?

Hands down, the most common and costly mistake is ignoring the exchange rate margin. Businesses often get fixated on the upfront transfer fee, but the hidden markup on the exchange rate is where the real cost lies. A seemingly tiny percentage difference can translate into a huge loss, especially when you’re dealing with large or regular payments.

Another major pitfall is submitting incomplete or incorrect documentation. It’s the number one reason payments get stuck or rejected. The smartest companies have a simple checklist: get multiple quotes, always ask for the final exchange rate, and then double-check every single document before it goes out the door. It’s a simple habit that avoids a world of preventable headaches.

Navigating company formation and international financial compliance in Turkey can be complex. Workon simplifies the entire process, from establishing your business to managing ongoing legal requirements, letting you focus on what truly matters—growth. Explore how we can support your business journey in Turkey.