1. What Is a Turkish Power of Attorney?
A power of attorney — vekâletname — is a document by which you authorise someone, normally a lawyer, to act for you in defined matters. The agency relationship behind it is governed by the Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098. For a property purchase it must be a notarised power of attorney that names your representative and spells out exactly what they may do — buy a specific property, sign the title deed, pay taxes, and so on. A general, open-ended authority is neither necessary nor wise; the document should be tailored to the transaction.
2. Can You Really Buy Without Coming to Turkey?
Yes. At the Land Registry both buyer and seller must either appear in person or be represented under a power of attorney — and thousands of foreign buyers complete their purchase entirely through a representative every year. The single condition is that you personally execute a valid notarised power of attorney in favour of the lawyer who will act for you. Everything else — viewings by video, electronic documents, bank transfers — follows from that. What does not change is the moment of ownership: title passes only when the transfer is registered at the Land Registry under the Land Registry Law No. 2644, whoever signs on your behalf.
3. How to Grant the Power of Attorney from Abroad
There are three routes. The most common is to attend a Turkish consulate in your country, where the power of attorney is drawn up in Turkish by the consular officer. Alternatively, you can sign before a notary in your home country and then have the document apostilled and sworn-translated into Turkish before it is used in Turkey. If you happen to be in Turkey briefly, you can sign before a Turkish notary directly — with a sworn interpreter present if you do not speak Turkish. In each case you will need your passport and a biometric photograph, and the text must set out the specific powers granted.
4. What Your Lawyer Can Do Under It
A properly drafted property power of attorney lets your lawyer carry out the whole transaction: obtain your Turkish tax number, open a bank account in your name, conduct due diligence at the Land Registry and municipality, commission the mandatory valuation report, sign the sale contract, pay the title-deed fee and taxes, sign the title transfer, and arrange utilities — and, where the purchase is tied to it, lodge the related residence or citizenship application. Once the transfer is registered, the title deed is issued in your name and either posted to you or held by your lawyer until you next visit.
5. Specific or General — and Why It Matters
This is the most important safety decision you will make. Notaries routinely advise foreigners to grant a specific, transaction-limited power of attorney rather than a broad general one, and to set an expiry date so the authority lapses automatically once the purchase is done. A narrow power of attorney — naming the property and the exact acts permitted, valid only for the months the transaction needs — gives your lawyer everything required to complete the purchase and nothing they could misuse afterwards.
6. Keeping It Safe, and Cancelling It
A power of attorney generally remains valid until it is revoked, unless its own text sets an expiry. You may revoke it at any time under the Code of Obligations No. 6098, through a notarised revocation and by notifying the institutions that hold it — the Land Registry, the bank, and your lawyer. The recurring abuse cases in Turkish real estate almost always involve a broad power given to an unlicensed agent or a casual acquaintance. The protection is straightforward: grant a limited, time-bound power to a regulated professional — a lawyer answerable to the Bar — not to whoever is selling you the property.
7. The Language Layer
Every stage of a remote purchase touches Turkish-language formality. The power of attorney is in Turkish; a home-country notarisation needs a sworn translation; signing before a Turkish notary needs a sworn interpreter if you do not speak the language; and the title transfer at the Land Registry requires a sworn translator to be present where the buyer does not understand Turkish. Handled by separate providers, this is where remote deals stall. Handled by one person who is both your lawyer and your sworn translator, it is simply part of the same file.
8. Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to come to Turkey at all? No. Once you execute the power of attorney, the purchase can be completed entirely by your lawyer; many buyers never travel for the transaction itself.
Is giving a power of attorney safe? Yes, if it is specific, time-limited, and given to a regulated lawyer. The risk comes from broad authorities handed to unlicensed agents.
Can one power of attorney also cover my citizenship application? It can, if it is drafted to include those powers — which is common where the purchase is a citizenship investment.
How do I cancel it? By a notarised revocation, with notice to the Land Registry, bank, and your lawyer; it can be revoked at any time.
Who should I give it to? A lawyer registered with a Bar association, who is professionally accountable — not the seller, an agent, or an acquaintance.
Buying property in Turkey from abroad?
SP Law Istanbul handles the entire purchase under a correctly drafted power of attorney — due diligence, valuation, contract review, title transfer, and the sworn translation required at the Land Registry — all from the same desk, whether you travel or not.
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