Can your company employ foreign staff?

Who files the application?

The employer files, not the foreigner. For in-country applications the employer enters the e-İzin system directly; for applications from abroad the employer completes the file using the reference number the foreigner obtained from a consulate.

Whoever enters the system must be the workplace's SGK e-Bildirge user and must hold an electronic signature in their own name. Once the workplace record is open, others can be authorised to apply through the Authorisation Procedures menu, with no limit on numbers.

Without an electronic signature the process cannot start at all. It is obtained from a qualified certification provider and delivery can take several days — factor that into your timeline.

The five-citizen rule

As a general rule, at least five Turkish citizens must be insured at the workplace for each foreigner to be employed. Where more than one foreigner will work at the same place, the figure is calculated separately for each.

The count is assessed against social security records on the application date. A headcount that has slipped below the threshold at the moment of filing is the single most common ground for refusal.

Where the criterion does not apply

• Domestic work — elderly, disabled and child care, and patient companionship
• The first foreigner in a key personnel role at businesses meeting the criteria for foreign direct investments of special significance
• Certain institutions with special status and groups falling under exemptions

Assessment also differs for foreigners who are company partners, where the shareholding and the company's financial position come to the fore.

Financial capacity and salary

The workplace's financial position

At least one of paid-in capital, gross sales revenue or export figures is expected to meet the set thresholds. These amounts are updated periodically and current values should be checked before applying.

The latest balance sheet, profit and loss statement and tax certificate go into the file. For newly established workplaces without financial statements, capital structure and committed employment carry the weight instead.

The salary criterion

The salary must suit the nature of the work and reach a set multiple of the minimum wage. The multiple varies by occupational group: higher for senior management, engineers and architects, lower for domestic work and manual roles.

The salary declared in the application must match the employment contract and the figure later reported to social security exactly. A discrepancy between those three leads to cancellation and administrative fines.

Sector exemptions and easements

For some kinds of business the criteria are applied in a relaxed form. Whether your company falls into these categories changes how the file is built.

• Businesses holding an R&D centre or technopark certificate
• Businesses meeting the criteria for foreign direct investments of special significance
• Certified tourism facilities and seasonal employment structures
• Businesses awarded and performing public sector contracts
• Businesses operating in free zones — applications go to the Ministry of Trade

If you hold an R&D centre certificate, state it in the application. It strengthens the file noticeably on both the employment ratio and the financial criteria.

Your duties once the permit is granted

A work permit places duties on the employer too, and breaching them leads to cancellation and administrative fines.

• Starting employment — within one month of the permit's start for in-country applications; within one month of entry and in any case six months for applications from abroad
• Social security — registering the foreigner on the declared salary and full-time basis and paying contributions regularly
• Notification — reporting the start and end of employment and anything voiding the permit to the Ministry within fifteen days
• Renewal tracking — filing the extension from sixty days before expiry and before the date passes
• Termination — reporting through Permit Termination Request in e-İzin if the foreigner never starts or leaves

The penalty for employing without a permit

An administrative fine is imposed on any employer of a foreigner without a permit, assessed separately for each foreigner, and the amount rises on repetition. The foreigner is also reported to the Ministry of Interior for deportation, and accommodation, return and health costs may be recovered from the employer.

Never let a foreigner start before you have seen the permit document. You can verify it at izinsorgula.csgb.gov.tr.

Once granted, the document is couriered to the workplace address by PTT — specimen image published by the Ministry.