The Turkish Tax Authority has prepared new regulations for the rental housing market. The draft states that payments made in cash will result in a 10% fine. Turkiye writes that the penalty will affect the property owner and the tenant.
A fixed minimum fine of 5,000 Turkish liras ($147) has been established, and it will be imposed on cash payments within this level. Payments will increase for more significant amounts.
For example, if a landlord receives a monthly payment of TL 25,000 ($735), a cash payment for two months will result in a fine of ₺10,000 ($294) for each party to the transaction.
The Tax Administration has prepared this draft resolution to implement the requirements for mandatory bank payments. The rule was introduced in a law published on August 2, 2024. All residential or commercial real estate rental payments must now be documented through a bank or the Turkish Postal or Telegraph Agency (Posta ve Telgraf Teskilati – PTT). The lease term does not matter; the adjustments apply even to overnight rentals.
The amount of fines will increase annually depending on the revaluation rate. The maximum payment per calendar year is limited to 20 million Turkish liras ($588,065).
However, if non-compliance is reported to the authorities within five business days, the fine can still be avoided.
Wazaar times clarifies that the fine will be 10% of the rent and reminds that similar measures have already been introduced, but only about commercial real estate.
Payments in cash at the time of renting such properties were penalized by 5% of the rate, with a minimum of 3,000 Turkish liras ($88). The annual limit of fines was also much lower – 8.7 million. Residential owners and tenants were not previously affected; now, they will not be an exception.
Experts believe that this is a severe change. From now on, rent payments must be processed through official channels, ensuring each transaction is tracked and recorded. This is expected to minimize the number of unregistered contracts and greatly simplify the accounting of lease payments.