Pursuant to the Law regarding Work Permits for Foreign Nationals (“Law”) and the amended Regulation on Work Permits for Foreign Nationals, all foreign nationals (including those of EU members) must obtain a work permit before commencing employment in Turkey. The Turkish entity that sponsors the work permit application (and acts as the local employer) must also meet certain requirements that must be maintained over the life of the work permit. The employer must meet a 5:1 ratio of Turkish to Foreign Employees per worksite (or be granted an exemption), as well as meet certain paid in capital or other financial requirements.

The sponsoring employer must also meet certain minimal salary requirements. Between 01.01.2022 – 31.12.2022 the required amount is:

Gross minimum monthly wage:     5.004,00 Turkish Lira

Net minimum monthly wage:         4.253,40 Turkish Lira

* 1 TRY = 0,062 USD (approx. December 2021)

Aside from this minimum salary requirement, the salary to be paid to the foreign employee must be commensurate with the position considered. Specifically:

  • High level managers and pilots cannot be paid less than 6.5 times the minimum wage (or  32.526,00 TRY gross/mo);
  • Department managers and engineers/architects cannot be paid less than 4 times the minimum wage (or 20.016,00 TRY gross/mo);
  • An employee who will work in a position requiring expertise (note: this is not defined) and a teacher cannot be paid less than 3 times the minimum wage (or 15.012,00 TRY gross/mo);
  • Tourism Sector: an Employee who will work as an acrobat or similar positions for tourism and animation organizations and masseurs/SPA therapists cannot be paid less than 2 times the minimum wage (or 10.008,00 TRY gross/mo);
  • All others (i.e sale officer, low level marketing officer) cannot be paid less than 1.5 times the minimum wage (or 7.506,00 TRY gross/mo).
  • Household workers cannot be paid less than minimum wage.

Salary requirements above are not inclusive of benefits of any kind, whether housing, bonus, etc. Salary requirements must be maintained throughout the validity of the work permit. Note that Bener has found that, aside from household or tourism workers, applications stating a salary less than three times the minimum wage face increased scrutiny.

Note also that work permit applications pending in the start of a new year will be required to meet the minimum wage requirement of the new year, not the year filed.

Please see other Bener Immigration Team memoranda for further guidance on work permit processing.

Tuğçe Işıkara Törtop
Partner | [email protected]